The Documentary Producer - Part Documentary Producer, part Shrink

I will be so bold to say that the most important aspect of Producing Documentary films is the ability to be a Shrink.

Yep, you heard me right if you want to be a successful Producer – go get your M.D. For real! I believe I have an honorary degree from the University of Trial and Error, and by God, I deserve it! My day to day job requires pushing, prodding, building up and breaking down other human beings.

Sure, I am also responsible for the money.  But money one can commandeer quite easily, no?  $4 + $6 = $10. Or if you want to be a bit trickier $8 - $12 = -$4. And there you go. Easy. You might not be happy with the results, especially if you find yourself with the second equation staring you in the face. But the problem and solution become quite straight forward.

Not true when looking at the other side of producing films – managing your team.

So you have just assembled the team and, on paper, everyone appears to be on the same page. You, your director, your investor, your editor… you name it. Your baby has blue eyes. Check. Your baby has dimples and freckles scattered around her cheeks. Groovy. You all know your baby must have curly hair, but your investor sees it straight…

The soundtrack screeches to a halt.

You are about to sign the paperwork to employ your $1.2M budget and you hit your first major crisis. Your head tells you that you can deal with straight hair, maybe you can give her a perm when she grows up, but your heart better tell you something else. Experience told me to run.

Our most recent doc hit that hurdle and as much as it hurt, we split forces. (Another blog for another day) Why? Simple…

The editing room is your sanctuary. You must do everything possible, from selecting your investor to knowing your director inside and out, to ensure your editing room is a working, breathing entity.  You do not want the person who feels like they made the whole thing possible breathing down your neck with their own agenda.

Come on, you have an enormous amount of footage and no dictated script to follow. Sure, you wrote a script when you went out to shoot, but I am sure things changed and the unexpected reared it head multiple times. This is what makes docs so great!

When we walked away from the table I found myself beat up and discouraged, but within a few short moments, I sighed in relief. I wouldn’t be navigating through post production hell. No amount of money is worth that experience.

So off we go, knocking on more doors… convincing more people… but most importantly – staying true to our vision with the confidence we will know when to strike the deal.

This week’s doc to see – Baraka.  Sit back, relax, and be prepared to be amazed!