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The Documentary Life

The Documentary Life

The Documentary Life is a podcast about building a life in nonfiction storytelling.

Hosted by documentary filmmaker Chris G. Parkhurst, the show explores what it really means to make documentaries—not just as a craft, but as a way of moving through the world with greater curiosity, observation, and empathy.

Each episode features thoughtful conversations with filmmakers, editors, cinematographers, producers, journalists, festival programmers, and other storytellers who have dedicated themselves to telling true stories. Together, we explore the creative process, the realities of production, the ethical questions that arise when working with real people, and the personal challenges of sustaining a meaningful creative life.

But The Documentary Life isn't only about cameras, funding, or film festivals.

It's about learning to listen more carefully. To sit with complexity instead of rushing toward certainty. To embrace uncertainty, contradiction, and the deeply human stories that exist all around us.

Whether you're directing your first short documentary, editing your tenth feature, producing independent nonfiction work, or simply someone drawn to authentic storytelling, this is a place for honest conversations about the rewards and realities of documentary filmmaking.

Expect interviews with accomplished filmmakers from around the world, practical discussions about craft and career, behind-the-scenes insights from real productions, and reflections on the philosophy of living a documentary life.

Because in the end, documentary filmmaking isn't simply about making films.

It's about paying attention.

Welcome to The Documentary Life.

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  • 22 episodes
  • fortnightly
  • Avg 44 min
  • English

Episodes 22

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  • S3 · E125
    Mar 6, 2020 · 42 min

    Fire in Paradise with Drea Cooper

    One of the most compelling, intense, and well done documentaries that I saw in all of 2019 wasn't even a feature length film. In fact, its run time was only 39 minutes. But it was 39 mins of riveting documentary that was financed and distributed by Netflix, and it came from ZCDC's Zachary Canepari and Drea Cooper. And Cooper sat down to discuss with us, among other things, what it was like working on this incredible. film. And speaking of run time, in our opening segment, I discuss how to decide what the proper length for your doc films might be. And how, in fact, we may be doing a disservice to our stories, by trying to adhere to a set of arbitrary time lengths. Topics Discussed how Cooper & Canepari came to the decision to make this a 39 min film how Netflix fully supported their film change of plans to pivot to this story how & why the usage of people’s phone footage became a powerful storytelling device Drea Cooper’s recommendsfor covering a catastrophic event on film Additional Resources Trailer for Fire in Paradise https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KNAl23NwME&t=8s Trailer for Netflix's Flint Town https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfNURrdgWTU And if you haven't already done so, you can LISTEN to our episode that we did with ZCDC's producer, Gary Kout! Sponsors & Thank Yous Music Vine 15 PERCENT OFF! Music Vine Thank 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! Subscribe Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Rate and Review If 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!

  • S3 · E124
    Feb 21, 2020 · 40 min

    Documentary Film Promotions & Marketing with Jon Reiss

    The playing field for distribution, promotions, and marketing for independent documentary filmmakers seems to be changing daily. But one thing that remains, is Jon Reiss, the veritable guru on all things film distro, promotions, and marketing. And for this week's episode he weighs in on this latest, including how social media marketing and ad placements are becoming a very important part of the doc filmmaker's toolkit. And for my segment, I delve into 5 Tips for Getting Your Documentary Into a Festival! 5 Tips for Getting Your Documentary Into a Festival Give a good hook Get great sound Enter fests early Evoke emotion Use Film Freeway Topics Discussed the importance of giving great thought to your potential audience before filming partnerships and how they benefit the doc filmmaker how social media plays an integral role in marketing for your doc ad social media over organic social media understanding how your audience gets their information Sponsors & Thank Yous ATHOS Insurance Services Make sure you and your film gear are protected! Over the years, so many of you #doclifers have asked us about best ways to insure your yourself, your shoots, and your precious film gear. And Aylene and Kat of ATHOS Insurance Services are experts on the subject. Get an INSTANT QUOTE today. ° 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! Subscribe Apple | Spotify | Stitcher | Rate and Review If 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!

Showing 21–22 of 22 episodes