Documentary school training courses in Atlanta, GA (public, in-house or online)

This graduate course is designed to familiarize students with the practical and historical fundamentals of the documentary photograph. Students learn, through examples and assignments, how to photograph in a documentary manner, and how to develop an authentic style within this genre.

Documentary filmmakers rely on special abilities to successfully prepare their films for production. This course leads filmmakers through the development and preproduction processes as they correlate with nonfiction content, specifically the documentary. The course emphasizes preparation and writing. Topics addressed are research, pitching and proposal writing, outlines, treatments and scripts.

Through critical analysis and hands-on experience, students are expected to grapple with the art of documentary production. The class examines the techniques and conceptualizations of established and self-made directors. Production assignments explore documentary techniques so that students develop an understanding of nonfiction objectivity with a critical eye for and appreciation of a genre’s implicit subjectivity.

This is an advanced videography course focusing on the documentary from both a production and a theoretical standpoint. Students will develop and produce their own documentary throughout the semester.