As I know.. That documentary is all about reality.
Which means, if you want to shoot dog's life..
All you have to do is just shooting the picture of dog
Find the person who have dog
Then asked them about the dog's life
It's like a news on TV.
That's what I know all about documentary.

Nada Taufik
Film Maker
pink_rebels?filmsindie.com
http://www.filmsindie.com/pinkrebels

Hi Ye Pyei,

Begin with coming to terms with POINT OF VIEW. Ask a few questions to yourself -

- who is spending these seven days in Hanoi: a person seeing the city for the first time ever, or a person who has been living here for the last seventeen years.

(Both situations can make interesting premises. The first one is easier to craft. But the second could be a masterpiece - a person who has spent his/her entire life in a city decides to give the city a fresh look and spends seven days on the streets, breathing the life of the city.)

- what kind of a picture of Hanoi do you want to paint for the viewer? a bleak picture could be how this glorious city is slowly falling prey to mass urbanisation/industrialisation/commercialisation/social decay. on the other hand it could also be a hardhitting realistic picture of the life on the streets of people who really make Hanoi buzz: the peddlers, the flowersellers, the prostitutes, the priests, the policemen etc. OR it could be a very romanticised picture of the eauty this modern city still retains.

- do you want it to be a FIRST PERSON documentary? in which case, you would be the person living out the seven days in the city. OR do you want it to be a THIRD PERSON narrative? here your camera would be capturing sights and sounds of the city with a VOICE OF GOD narrative in the background.

WRITING THE SCRIPT

Writing a script for a documentary could be a hard decision. There are two ways to go about it.

1. Extensively research your topic, the point of view and the city. Make notes of all the interesting things that you want to cover in the film. Then script it out frame by frame (A LOT OF IMAGINATION WOULD BE REQUIRED HERE)

2. THE BETTER WAY is to do a preliminary research and create a map and checklist for the seven days. In this map and checklist you would basically write down the places you would go and the activities/people you would explore/capture/interview. Once this is in place you just hit the roads with your camera and get as much bytes as possible. Improvise a lot. Think on your feet while the camera is rolling. Keep your eyes open. It would be a good idea to take some interested friends along.

After you have captured enough, sit down on the edit table and stitch together your film. After the film is in place write down the narrative for the documentary. Decide on music (if it's required at all.) Put them all together. Enter your baby for the awards show - WITHOUTABOX.COM will be a great help.

One last thing. Creative license is great. But it's important for a documentary filmmaker to be truthful.

And yes, remember this documentary should have a point of view, an opinion, a worldview. If it is only good looking shots of the city then it will be a travel video. Remember, the reason why Documentaries are not part of Journalism is that they have the Subjectivity of the filmmaker inherent to them.

Take care and all the very best for your projects.

- Dipankar (India)

Thanks alot for your replies.If anyone's got anymore then please keep 'em coming.?:D?