Can you believe that it was over four years ago that we first began producing episodes of The Documentary Life?? Well, neither can we. But as they say, all good things must come to an end!It has been a great ride this here podcast over the past four years!Which is why this is not our typical end-of-the-season show, my #doclifer friend. Don't miss this one thinking that it's simply a re-hash of parts of past episodes. It is truly much more than that.And finally, I'd like to say, thank you, old Friend. Thank you. Sponsors & Thank Yous ° Free Music Archive – Special Thank You to recording artist, Dlay who supplied music for this week’s episode of TDL. You too can download his music or other artists’ music by going to Free Music Archive today! SubscribeApple | Spotify | Stitcher | Rate and ReviewIf you have found value in this podcast please leave a review so it can become more visible to others. Simply click the link and then click on the Ratings and Reviews tab to make your entry. Thank you for your support!

Imagine stepping up to the podium to accept your award for Best Documentary Feature for the film that you have put your heart, soul, blood sweat tears into. What would you say? Who would thank? Where would you even start?Well, Steven Bognar, of this year's American Factory knows precisely what this feels like. And he details the story of he and his partner, Julia Reichert's walk to that Oscar podium.And he details a heckuva lot more about what it means to live the life of a documentary filmmaker in Dayton, OH, far from the neon lights of New York, London, or L.A. And what it means to make meaningful documentaries that impact a lot of people and win a lot of awards.What it means to live and lead a documentary life.Topics Discussedhost Chris G. Parkhurst gives some History 101 of documentaries and the Academy Awardswhy its beneficial to the world that documentary filmmakers make films from where they are athow American Factory came from turning down what was initially meant to be a corporate video for the Fuyao factoryplay-by-play of Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert's walk to the podium to accept their award for Best Documentary Featureunique sound approaches that were brought to American Factory Additional Resources Trailer for American Factoryhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m36QeKOJ2Fc American Factory wins Best Documentary Featurehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF4ytC3-M3g Sponsors & Thank Yous ° Free Music Archive – Special Thank You to recording artist, Dlay who supplied music for this week’s episode of TDL. You too can download his music or other artists’ music by going to Free Music Archive today! SubscribeApple | Spotify | Stitcher | Rate and ReviewIf you have found value in this podcast please leave a review so it can become more visible to others. Simply click the link and then click on the Ratings and Reviews tab to make your entry. Thank you for your support!

In the past, documentary cinematography has been in the shadow of narrative feature's, overlooked because of certain, perhaps unfair assumptions about the craft. Well, that is no longer the case since the American Society of Cinematographers, as of this year, has an award for Outstanding Achievement in Non-Fiction Filmmaking.And cinematographers, Fejmi Daut and Samir Ljuma, of the Academy Award nominated, Honeyland, were the recipients of that inaugural award. (Not to mention a host of other cinematography awards!)And so we have today's episode which is entirely dedicated to the craft of documentary cinematography!Topics Discussedhost Chris G. Parkhurst talks about what makes a good documentary cinematographer and where we can find themwhat it's like working as a two person cinematography teamhow the shooting style changed dramatically midway into filming due to an unforeseen shift in storyworking without power in rural Macedoniaachieving the perpetual golden hour look of Honeyland Additional Resources FREE DOWNLOAD OF HONEYLAND CONVERSATION PART TWOAs mentioned in the show, there is much more to my conversation with cinematographers, Fejmi Daut and Samir Ljuma. Too much to put into a single show!To listen to the second part of that conversation head over HERE for your free download! Trailer for Honeylandhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B27ORUHlp6E Finding the star of Honeylandhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dj9mT91fe64 Honeyland at DOCNYChttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJo1dvoo67k Sponsors & Thank YousMusic Vine 15 PERCENT OFF!Music VineThank you to music licensing platform, Music Vine for contributing the wonderful music that we’ve used in this week’s episode.We’ve used many music licensing platforms over the years for commercials, corporate videos, and documentaries and these guys are definitely different.Their music catalogue is truly fresh, diverse, full of character, their search engine is as straight forward and user friendly and their licensing fees? Unlike anywhere else we have come across.If you need any music for your doc project, we can honestly recommend Music Vine.And make sure to use our promo code to get an additional 15 percent off of any subscription!!PROMO CODE: doclife15 Continuing the Discussion with The D-Word Today's episode is only the beginning of the conversation. Now it's time to have your voice heard, #doclifer! So where can you do this? THE D-WORDWHAT IS THE D-WORDThe D-Word began in 1996 as a series of online journal entries by filmmaker Doug Block depicting the joy and angst of making and selling his feature documentary, Home Page. In the words of Mr. Block, "it was meant to inform, inspire, humor and depress the hell out of working or aspiring documentary filmmakers, or anyone else interested in the filmmaking process, for that matter!"We had Doug on the show way back in EPISODE #105, where he discussed those early days working as an independent documentary filmmaker. And how this would lead him to creating the first incarnation of The D-Word.The D-Word has long-since evolved into a virtual community and is now the largest, longest-running one of its kind, currently numbering more than 19,000 members from 147 countries. Its focus is now on hosting free discussions on documentary film and production and leading a documentary life. Sound familiar?Get started with The D-Word today, by completing their free APPLICATION. ° Free Music Archive – Special Thank You to recording artist, Dlay who supplied music for this week’s episode of TDL. You too can download his music or other artists’ music by going to Free Music Archive today! SubscribeApple | Spotify | Stitcher | Rate and ReviewIf you have found value in this podcast please leave a review so it can become more visible to others. Simply click the link and then click on the Ratings and Reviews tab to make your entry. Thank you for your support!

It wasn't that long ago when reality television was a dirty word that incited some pretty strong feelings among the documentary filmmaking crowd. However, non fiction television has come a long way in the past few years. Of course, don't take my word for it. Take it from fellow documentary filmmaker, Joe Litzinger, who is the executive producer of some of non fiction tv's most well known and respected (did I say respected?) shows. Topics Discussedhost Chris G. Parkhurst talks about how documentary filmmakers can use their abilities to advantage in other avenues of productionwhy doc filmmakers are well suited for reality televisionhow one procures work in the reality tv industrythe advantages of shooting a documentary film over reality tvhow reality television supports Joe Litzinger's documentary life Additional ResourcesTrailer for Zulu Summerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-BcYvbbl-s Trailer for Will Work for Viewshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nx2Nt1cYA0E Behind the Scenes for Life Below Zerohttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTBmwAhCd4c&list=PLh_0X_RDOHqHuDMD3ft0cZ7gqlF6kHhsE&index=14 Continuing the Discussion with The D-Word Today's episode is only the beginning of the conversation. Now it's time to have your voice heard, #doclifer! So where can you do this? THE D-WORDWHAT IS THE D-WORDThe D-Word began in 1996 as a series of online journal entries by filmmaker Doug Block depicting the joy and angst of making and selling his feature documentary, Home Page. In the words of Mr. Block, "it was meant to inform, inspire, humor and depress the hell out of working or aspiring documentary filmmakers, or anyone else interested in the filmmaking process, for that matter!"We had Doug on the show way back in EPISODE #105, where he discussed those early days working as an independent documentary filmmaker. And how this would lead him to creating the first incarnation of The D-Word.The D-Word has long-since evolved into a virtual community and is now the largest, longest-running one of its kind, currently numbering more than 19,000 members from 147 countries. Its focus is now on hosting free discussions on documentary film and production and leading a documentary life. Sound familiar?Get started with The D-Word today, by completing their free APPLICATION. Sponsors & Thank Yous ° Free Music Archive – Special Thank You to recording artist, Dlay who supplied music for this week’s episode of TDL. You too can download his music or other artists’ music by going to Free Music Archive today! SubscribeApple | Spotify | Stitcher | Rate and ReviewIf you have found value in this podcast please leave a review so it can become more visible to others. Simply click the link and then click on the Ratings and Reviews tab to make your entry. Thank you for your support!

Documentary filmmaking during this time of a pandemic is something that so many of us doc filmmakers are contemplating. Or doing. Or not doing. Today's episode is filled with both a discussion on the ethics of documentary production during this time as well as best practices & safety protocol for those of us who are making our docs during this time.Documentary filmmaker and TDL host, Chris G. Parkhurst, delves into this discussion with IDA's Carrie Lozano and award-winning documentary filmmaking, Heidi Ewing.Topics DiscussedChris G. Parkhurst's tips for filming during this time of Covidthe whats, whys, hows of IDA's The Ethics of Documentary Production in a Pandemichow Carrie Lozano's background in both journalism and documentary filmmaker has made her uniquely positioned to discuss filming during this timewhy award-winning documentary filmmaker, Heidi Ewing has chosen to film during this timehow documentary filmmaking inherently is made up of a number of ethical decisionsEwing's best practices & safety protocol for doc filmmakers Additional ResourcesRead for yourself IDA's The Ethics of Documentary Production in a Pandemic Continuing the Discussion with The D-Word Today's episode is only the beginning of the conversation. Now it's time to have your voice heard, #doclifer! So where can you do this? THE D-WORDWHAT IS THE D-WORDThe D-Word began in 1996 as a series of online journal entries by filmmaker Doug Block depicting the joy and angst of making and selling his feature documentary, Home Page. In the words of Mr. Block, "it was meant to inform, inspire, humor and depress the hell out of working or aspiring documentary filmmakers, or anyone else interested in the filmmaking process, for that matter!"We had Doug on the show way back in EPISODE #105, where he discussed those early days working as an independent documentary filmmaker. And how this would lead him to creating the first incarnation of The D-Word.The D-Word has long-since evolved into a virtual community and is now the largest, longest-running one of its kind, currently numbering more than 19,000 members from 147 countries. Its focus is now on hosting free discussions on documentary film and production and leading a documentary life. Sound familiar?Get started with The D-Word today, by completing their free APPLICATION. Sponsors & Thank Yous ° Free Music Archive – Special Thank You to recording artist, Dlay who supplied music for this week’s episode of TDL. You too can download his music or other artists’ music by going to Free Music Archive today! SubscribeApple | Spotify | Stitcher | Rate and ReviewIf you have found value in this podcast please leave a review so it can become more visible to others. Simply click the link and then click on the Ratings and Reviews tab to make your entry. Thank you for your support!

Questions of race and who has the right to tell another person's or culture's or race's stories have recently been at the forefront of the documentary community's collective consciousness. More than that, it's been the subject of recent debate and discussion, whether in industry-led panels, major publications, or social media.Documentary filmmaker and TDL host, Chris G. Parkhurst, delves into this difficult, sometimes divisive discussion with two of documentary's own, Marjan Safinia and Grace Lee.Topics Discussedhow Safinia and Lee came to collaborate on PBS' And She Could Be Nextoverlook at discussions of race in the documentary community over the past few monthswho has the right to tell a story and whyhow people of color in the American documentary industry can have less access and resources than their white counterpartsHow minorities are looking to reclaim and change the way that their stories are being toldAdditional ResourcesTeaser, And She Could Be Nexthttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPgO1J-Y2DYContinuing the Discussion with The D-WordToday's episode is only the beginning of the conversation. Now it's time to have your voice heard, #doclifer! So where can you do this?THE D-WORDWHAT IS THE D-WORDThe D-Word began in 1996 as a series of online journal entries by filmmaker Doug Block depicting the joy and angst of making and selling his feature documentary, Home Page. In the words of Mr. Block, "it was meant to inform, inspire, humor and depress the hell out of working or aspiring documentary filmmakers, or anyone else interested in the filmmaking process, for that matter!"We had Doug on the show way back in EPISODE #105, where he discussed those early days working as an independent documentary filmmaker. And how this would lead him to creating the first incarnation of The D-Word.The D-Word has long-since evolved into a virtual community and is now the largest, longest-running one of its kind, currently numbering more than 19,000 members from 147 countries. Its focus is now on hosting free discussions on documentary film and production and leading a documentary life. Sound familiar?Get started with The D-Word today, by completing their free APPLICATION.Sponsors & Thank Yous° Free Music Archive – Special Thank You to recording artist, Dlay who supplied music for this week’s episode of TDL. You too can download his music or other artists’ music by going to Free Music Archive today!SubscribeApple | Spotify | Stitcher |Rate and ReviewIf you have found value in this podcast please leave a review so it can become more visible to others. Simply click the link and then click on the Ratings and Reviews tab to make your entry. Thank you for your support!

Lyndon Stone is the founder and festival director of Melbourne Documentary Film Festival. Melody Gilbert is a documentary filmmaker well acquainted with the world of film festivals.In light of Covid events, both the festival director and filmmaker, have had to pivot their approaches to documentary film festivals.This is the kind of discussion we documentary filmmakers have been wanting to have ever since the pandemic greatly impacted our doc lives.Topics Discussedhow Lyndon Stone has incorporated a hybrid approach to this year's MDFFhow the virtual festival can actually be a good thing for both the festival director as well as the documentary filmmakerwhy doco Melody Gilbert was initially hesitant to premiere her documentary feature at MSPIFF whichhow an online film festival might actually be very advantageous to the independent documentary filmmaker Additional ResourcesTeaser for Silicone Soulhttps://vimeo.com/350156250 Check out the full roster of this year's Melbourne Documentary Film Festival! Sponsors & Thank YousMusic Vine 15 PERCENT OFF!Music VineThank you to music licensing platform, Music Vine for contributing the wonderful music that we’ve used in this week’s episode.We’ve used many music licensing platforms over the years for commercials, corporate videos, and documentaries and these guys are definitely different.Their music catalogue is truly fresh, diverse, full of character, their search engine is as straight forward and user friendly and their licensing fees? Unlike anywhere else we have come across.If you need any music for your doc project, we can honestly recommend Music Vine.And make sure to use our promo code to get an additional 15 percent off of any subscription!!PROMO CODE: doclife15 ° Free Music Archive – Special Thank You to recording artist, Dlay who supplied music for this week’s episode of TDL. You too can download his music or other artists’ music by going to Free Music Archive today! SubscribeApple | Spotify | Stitcher | Rate and ReviewIf you have found value in this podcast please leave a review so it can become more visible to others. Simply click the link and then click on the Ratings and Reviews tab to make your entry. Thank you for your support!

Mickey Lemle has made documentary films about some of the most brilliant individuals in the modern world. From His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama to Ram Dass to Sir Laurens van der Post, Lemle has been rubbing shoulders with great minds who all have very spiritual & compassionate ways of living. Lemle has had the splendid fortune to be able to tell their stories.Topics Discussedhow Lemle’s time in Nepal in the Peace Corps informed him about Tibet and in turn led to his making his first documentary filmhow/why he treats doc filmmaking as personal explorationhow to make one’s spiritual documentary accessible to a wider audiencethe power of a meditation practice to doc filmmakerstips for interviewing the most incredible minds of the world Additional ResourcesTeaser for The Last Dalai Lama?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5v_Rpg_36ig Teaser for Compassion in Exilehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDXbAPx2kew To check out Mickey Lemle's full roster of DOCUMENTARY FILMS. Sponsors & Thank YousMusic Vine 15 PERCENT OFF!Music VineThank you to music licensing platform, Music Vine for contributing the wonderful music that we’ve used in this week’s episode.We’ve used many music licensing platforms over the years for commercials, corporate videos, and documentaries and these guys are definitely different.Their music catalogue is truly fresh, diverse, full of character, their search engine is as straight forward and user friendly and their licensing fees? Unlike anywhere else we have come across.If you need any music for your doc project, we can honestly recommend Music Vine.And make sure to use our promo code to get an additional 15 percent off of any subscription!!PROMO CODE: doclife15 ° Free Music Archive – Special Thank You to recording artist, Dlay who supplied music for this week’s episode of TDL. You too can download his music or other artists’ music by going to Free Music Archive today! SubscribeApple | Spotify | Stitcher | Rate and ReviewIf you have found value in this podcast please leave a review so it can become more visible to others. Simply click the link and then click on the Ratings and Reviews tab to make your entry. Thank you for your support!

Sasha Joseph Neulinger endured some of the most traumatic events a child can experience. He is a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. And he has now turned those events into one of 2020's more extraordinary documentary films, Rewind. Neulinger sits down with TDL to discuss his journey making Rewind and to offer some insight into how doc filmmakers might best deal with the depiction of personal trauma in their films.In our first segment, Chris G. Parkhurst, gives us 5 Tips for Making the Personal Documentary.Topics Discussedtips for making your personal documentary filmwhy Neulinger set out to face his own demons by making this documentary filmwhy making the personal documentary needs to be more for yourself than othersapproaching family members with your personal docthe journey of financing a film like Rewind Additional ResourcesTeaser for Rewindhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dx0q7ETJRAI The D-WordHey, #Doclifers! By now, you have probably heard the news that we are partners with The D-Word! If you are not already a member of this important online documentary community and resource, allow us to introduce you to them!WHAT IS THE D-WORDThe D-Word began in 1996 as a series of online journal entries by filmmaker Doug Block depicting the joy and angst of making and selling his feature documentary, Home Page. In the words of Mr. Block, "it was meant to inform, inspire, humor and depress the hell out of working or aspiring documentary filmmakers, or anyone else interested in the filmmaking process, for that matter!"We had Doug on the show way back in EPISODE #105, where he discussed those early days working as an independent documentary filmmaker. And how this would lead him to creating the first incarnation of The D-Word.The D-Word has long-since evolved into a virtual community and is now the largest, longest-running one of its kind, currently numbering more than 19,000 members from 147 countries. Its focus is now on hosting free discussions on documentary film and production and leading a documentary life. Sound familiar?Get started with The D-Word today, by completing their free APPLICATION. Sponsors & Thank YousMusic Vine 15 PERCENT OFF!Music VineThank you to music licensing platform, Music Vine for contributing the wonderful music that we’ve used in this week’s episode.We’ve used many music licensing platforms over the years for commercials, corporate videos, and documentaries and these guys are definitely different.Their music catalogue is truly fresh, diverse, full of character, their search engine is as straight forward and user friendly and their licensing fees? Unlike anywhere else we have come across.If you need any music for your doc project, we can honestly recommend Music Vine.And make sure to use our promo code to get an additional 15 percent off of any subscription!!PROMO CODE: doclife15 ° Free Music Archive – Special Thank You to recording artist, Dlay who supplied music for this week’s episode of TDL. You too can download his music or other artists’ music by going to Free Music Archive today! SubscribeApple | Spotify | Stitcher | Rate and ReviewIf you have found value in this podcast please leave a review so it can become more visible to others. Simply click the link and then click on the Ratings and Reviews tab to make your entry. Thank you for your support!

Eric Becker has been taking on extreme challenges since he can remember. If it's not racing bikes it's climbing mountains. If it's not climbing mountains, it's making doc films about people climbing mountains. Tune into this week's episode where we celebrate International Everest Day by welcoming doc filmmaker and mountaineer, Eric Becker on to TDL!In our first segment, Chris G. Parkhurst, gives us Reasons for Working on Multiple Documentary Projects at the same time!Topics DiscussedReasons to work on multiple doc projects at the same timeHow doc filmmaker Eric Beckergot hooked into documentary as a way to travel the worldLogistics of filming an actual mountaineering expeditionHow to get brand support for your doc filmsHow to work with an otherwise reticent doc subject Additional ResourcesTeaser for Return to Mt. Kennedyhttps://vimeo.com/268848753 Sponsors & Thank YousMusic Vine 15 PERCENT OFF!Music VineThank you to music licensing platform, Music Vine for contributing the wonderful music that we’ve used in this week’s episode.We’ve used many music licensing platforms over the years for commercials, corporate videos, and documentaries and these guys are definitely different.Their music catalogue is truly fresh, diverse, full of character, their search engine is as straight forward and user friendly and their licensing fees? Unlike anywhere else we have come across.If you need any music for your doc project, we can honestly recommend Music Vine.And make sure to use our promo code to get an additional 15 percent off of any subscription!!PROMO CODE: doclife15 ° Free Music Archive – Special Thank You to recording artist, Dlay who supplied music for this week’s episode of TDL. You too can download his music or other artists’ music by going to Free Music Archive today! SubscribeApple | Spotify | Stitcher | Rate and ReviewIf you have found value in this podcast please leave a review so it can become more visible to others. Simply click the link and then click on the Ratings and Reviews tab to make your entry. Thank you for your support!