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Welcome, Jesse.

Doug, what do you think, maybe we should have a topic in here to
discuss personal definitions of documentary, instead of emailing them
to Jesse?

Hi.

I'm producing a film on a family's fight to keep their son/brother
from dying of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. The film takes
place in a Montana town where the family has access to few
resources besides its own to fuel the fight. Because of their
ingenuity and dedication to their family, 5 boys and their mother
have helped the 6th brother live well past the life expectancy for
someone with his disease. The film explores the 6th son's love
of life and the role his family plays in keeping him alive.

Its an hour long piece that has been shot over the course of the
past 3 years on mini digital video. The director grew up with the
family and has special access to their home and hearts. We are
scheduled to wrap photography this summer and are starting to
cut on Final Cut Pro. In the meantime we have a fundraising
drive underway writing grants, creating an informational website
and starting a grass roots newsletter to keep donors aware of
the project. Montana PBS is interested in broadcasting the film
when it is done.

I'm new to the documentary world after spending years in
animation and television production. I'm looking forward to
meeting everyone and learning as much as I can.

Welcome, Brigid. Looks like you're doing a great job of jumping
right into the fire and producing from the ground up. Glad to give
you some help and support.

Hi there (from Vancouver, BC, Canada),
I found this site a couple days ago and wonder why it took me so long.
I signed up, originally, as my boss, Larry Baker, but it seems that
I'll likely have more opportunity to keep up to date with what's
going on here. Larry is a Sound Designer who has been doing audio
post production for documentaries (and other projects) for nearly 4
decades.
I work with him at his studio, Headroom Studios, doing marketing,
research, general administration stuff, etc...I'm hoping to pursue
some writing and producing in the near future as well. We both have
a love of documentaries and if we had our way, we would work
exclusively in that area.
It seems there are a lot of talented people in this group with
interesting projects and great ideas. Can't wait to get to know some
of you better...

hey all,
I work for a tv station in Northwest Missouri, at the moment I am
working on a behind the scenes doc following a local heavyweight
boxer, Rob Calloway. Possible fight on HBO before Christmas if he
beats his next opponent June 28. Fingers crossed and Las Vegas here
we come !

Welcome Paul and Dani.

Greetings Doc makers,

I'm Danielle Beverly, new to New York City via San Francisco and
Chicago. I've been working mainly for PBS since 1997. I'm in the last
months of production on my first feature documentary. The film follows
a 35 year old bipolar artist/chef/bulimic who destroyed her stomach and
esophagus in a failed suicide attempt, and is currently rebuilding her
life. I've done all the camera and sound on the film, as well as
produce it. Several doc makers suggested "d-word" as an excellent
resource, and I'm happy to now be part of this community.

Well, you're part of this Forum, Danielle, but not part of this
community until you email me and Ben a request: d-word@d-word.com

Bonjour,
I am an Australian currently shooting a doco in France - my wife is
an editor and has worked on several Australian and French
documentaries, and was previously making a series out of Tokyo where
we previously lived.
I am photographer, getting my head around this black art, and an avid
(not the brand, the generic term) forum subscriber/contributor.
Our current project is following the creation of a new political
movement in France in the wake of the recent tumultuous presidential
elections, which yielded yet another notch in the extreme-right
wing's belt.
Looking forward to sharing ideas and experiences (although I am
reletively new to the moving picture side of things - I was
previously a Production manager for a media/internet development
company in Tokyo.)
Voila....
will email now.

Welcome Steve. Hope to see you soon inside the Community as well.

Hello: I am a professional historian who, having spent a great deal
of time as a "talking head" on the tube or on the radio doing
interviews about various contemporary international issues decided a
few years ago that I wanted to learn how to get behind the
camera/microphone and learn to make documentaries myself. I have thus
far produced a number of short mini-documentaries and am working on a
much larger piece. Since I am trying to learn as many aspects of
documentary film making as I can, from the creative to the very
technical, I am hoping this forum will be the right place to do that.

Hey Steven, we can use more historians in The D-Word Community. Why
don't you email me and we'll get you in there: doug@d-word.com.

Hi all,
My name is Kathy and I currently reside in Beijing. My
experience so far in film has been writing and producing
fiction back home in Vancouver, Canada, but I've always been
fascinated with documentaries. Signed up to look for more
information about how to start making a documentary (where
to begin!), and to see if there's anyone in Beijing who
would like to start a project about the quickly disappearing
hutongs. Thanks and looking forward to being a part of this
forum.

Welcome Kat! Of the people who have introduced themselves, I can't
remember anyone being from Beijing. But someone has to do the first
step ...
So what are Hutongs again?

Hi, my name's Erin.
I'm assisting on someone else's project in an effort to learn more
about the process of production. I actually did quite a bit of
documentary work as a student, but it was very low-tech and shoe-
string funding. So now I'm hoping to be introduced to the world of
people who do this professionally.

Welcome to The D-Word, Erin!

Thanks for the warm welcome! Hutongs are old courtyard housing for
families (children, parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents
would live in the same compound but in different quarters with an
open courtyard in the middle) and they've been around for centuries.
With the 2008 Olympics coming, they're being leveled fast and the
ones that are being preserved are becoming very touristy. Are there
books or on-line resources you recommend to give an overview or an
idea on where to start (do I start with footage and see what I get
from that or do I begin with a story in mind...)? I probably have
very basic questions. Thanks!

Welcome Kat and Erin! Kat, try www.aivf.org

hi, all. i am a working filmmaker and the director of the 5th
annual channel islands indie film festival (sept 10-15 2002) in
ventura county, ca. we also curate a monthly series of
microcinema (shorts). we regularly screen docs addressing
progressive issues. we would love to see your film. cheers.

Welcome Phillip. I'm sure we'd all like more info on the festival,
if you have the time.

Thanks for starting this resource, Doug. And hi, all!

I'm currently prepping for "Yanomami: The Last Stand", which
will be following one of the last of the Orinoco Cowboys back into
the Amazon. What raised my interest is, he's going to help curb
a global epidemic the old-fashioned way. Should be fun, if not a
complete trial by fire for me.

With my previous background in children's television and music
videos, this project has really restored my passion for the real
world again. It'll be great sharing time with like minds, who also
want to bring their visions of the world to audiences that may
never get a chance otherwise.

Welcome to The D-Word, Scott!

Dragonfly Motion Pictures is a small (one-person) independent documentary production company located
in Toronto. Owned and operated by Rick Miller, I create low budget social issues documentaries. Dragonfly
also provides post production services to a variety of broadcast clients. Since graduating from York
University's film school in 1987I have acquired in excess of 100 editing credits on documentaries for
Canadian broadcasters TVO, CTV, CBC, History, Discovery, Bravo, and Vision.

Dragonfly Motion Pictures has three documentaries in production. "David, his bubby, and Goliath" profiles
a family of radical activist who follow the ancient Jewish tradition of Tikkun Olam: healing the world
through social action. "The Cost of Copper" documents the history of remote northern Quebec mining
village which is in the process of becoming a ghost town. "Beer: A Love Story" is an examination of
Canada"s love affair with beer.

I hope that The D Word will provide me with a forum to acquire advice on issues that arise from time to
time when I produce my documentaries. I often have questions about ethics and story development that
I've not been able to find answers to anywhere else on the web. I'll also have questions about the craft of
documentary making. I also hope that I'll be able to make a positive contribution to your forums by
sharing my experiences with fellow filmmakers.

millrick,
Toronto
June 21, 2002