NFTS Cymru Wales: Documentary Storytelling

This course will be delivered face to face.

Documentaries and factual tv programmes come in many shapes and sizes, but they all have a set of organising principles. These are fundamental, easy to grasp and vital in helping you make sense of your idea and your material.

If you know what they are and how to use them, the problems you encounter throughout the film-making process will be more easily solved.

In this course we identify the key elements of a good documentary story, how they work and why they matter – from the moment you start production to the final day of the edit.

The course will:

• explain what the key elements of story structure are 
• explore how stories work in documentaries 
• help you develop an idea from the page to the screen 
• guide you through the problems that every documentary has in the edit

This course is led by Peter Dale, who produced and directed documentaries for the BBC for 18 years before becoming Channel 4’s Head of Documentaries. In 2005 he launched More4, Channel 4’s third digital channel and then ran his own independent production company. He’s now the Head of Documentary at the NFTS.

The course is aimed at producers at all levels including Development Producers, Edit Producers, Series Producers, Producer Directors, Assistant Producers and anyone who wants to know more about how stories work in documentaries.