How to Develop Your Documentary Writing Career

Writing For Cable Channels and Independent Production Companies

Oct 13, 2009

Have you noticed how many documentaries are broadcast on channels like PBS and Discovery Channel? Somebody has to write all those words. That's a documentary scriptwriter

There is a surprising amount of work for writers who are flexible and can thrive amid the paradox and chaos of documentary filmmaking. Some writers work on staff directly for broadcasters, but many also work on contract for documentary production companies that produce series, mini-series and feature documentaries for the broadcasters. In either case, with many exceptions, the career trajectories of documentary scriptwriters tend to follow a similar, winding, path.

Documentary Scriptwriters are Creative and Social

Working with real people instead of fictional characters means that 'stranger than fiction' events can happen at any time during the writing process. A documentary scriptwriter is someone who loves to write, but also knows how to get out of the writers' space and mix it up with real, live people. That's probably why, although there are a few common ways that writers end up working on documentaries there is no rigid formula for becoming a documentary scriptwriter.

Common Stages of a Scriptwriting Career for Documentaries

Interns come from journalism or film schools. They work hard, they don't get paid much, if anything, and they rarely get hired on full time. But they get to meet people in the industry and they get experience.

Researchers are hired to discover and establish contact with the people, the facts, the stock images, and any archival materials that appear in documentaries. These days they work mostly on the telephone and computer, but they can still occasionally be found in libraries and out in the field doing original research. They're expected to write a research report that goes to the writer and the producer to be turned into a script.

Producers like to work with experienced researchers. Some researchers gain the required experience at school, getting post doctorate degrees that show expertise in a particular field. Others get experience in the media as news journalists. Some make their own documentaries and gain experience in that way. And a few even start off as interns.

Writers are expected to write a script, on deadline, based on the research report, according to an established format. On a low budget production the researcher and the writer may be the same person. On a very low budget production the researcher, writer, director and producer will all be the same person. Documentary scriptwriters have to be adaptable. A writer may work closely with either the producer or the director depending on the style of documentary being produced.

Series that require consistency from episode to episode tend to be more producer driven and mini-series or feature documentaries tend to be more director driven. Researchers on a long running series might become writers. Documentary scriptwriters can also start off directly as writers if they have established careers in other forms, including fiction, especially if they know someone on the production team.

People who've researched and then written a number of episodes in a series are in a position to become a producer for that series. Producers know the series inside out. They tend to hire researchers and writers from the people they've known and worked with, or on the recommendation of people they know and work with. Smart documentary scriptwriters develop good working relationships with other writers because they are also potential producers.

Some producers employ story editors who supervise the researchers and work between the writers and the producers to ensure that the episodes are consistent and according to format. Story editors and producers often write one or two episodes in a series themselves. Story editors will sometimes turn into producers when you, and they, least expect it.

On a documentary series with multiple episodes, either the story editor or the producer will be required to provide a detailed document outlining the show's format and parameters. Story editors or producers are also often called on to tweak the written narration of any episode during the final editing process.

Documentary Scriptwriting Can be a Rewarding Career

Writers who enjoy meeting new people and going to unusual locations in order to share important true stories can find interesting work researching, writing, and producing documentary scripts for cable channels and independent production companies.

The copyright of the article How to Develop Your Documentary Writing Career in Writing for Stage/Screen is owned by Janice Benthin. Permission to republish How to Develop Your Documentary Writing Career in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.