So you want to make documentaries, but what should your next steps be? Do you need a filmmaking qualification? How do you get funding? Where should you seek inspiration?
Watch the video to see Britain’s leading documentary makers, including Ken Loach, John Akomfrah and two-times Oscar nominee Lucy Walker offer their advice on a career in documentary making.
If you’re interested in training courses (and are aged 16 to 19) then the BFI Film Academy Specialist residential programme focuses on the craft and workflow of different specialisms – including documentary – with leading industry professionals delivering masterclasses and practical skills training. Participants also receive bespoke careers advice.
Asif Kapadia on directing for documentary
Asif Kapadia, a multi-award winning director, shared his insights on documentary filmmaking and his experience directing some of the most successful feature docs in the last 10 years.
Starting his career as a fiction director in 2001, Kapadia’s first feature, The Warrior, garnered him 3 BAFTA nominations of which he won 2. He soon made the shift to directing feature documentaries and due to the success of his biographical subjects Senna and Amy, he has since become one of the most acclaimed documentary filmmakers.
Interviewer: Pelumi Akindude