Making a
Documentary
What makes a good
documentary and how will this
film be worthwhile?
What is a
Documentary Film?
 A factual record of events on film
 Photo-based
 Using still pictures
 Using video clips
 Using voiceovers
 Not a piece of propaganda
 Has a point of view or message
What Makes a Good
Digital Photograph?
 Pixels
 Short word for Picture Element
 Single point in a graphic image
 A dot of color
 Chose images with a high number of
pixels
 1000 x 1000
 Can be blown up and still be sharp and clear
 Photo quality is essential to making
good documentaries
Choosing a Topic
What topic in American history are
you comfortable applying American
values to?
Need to consider images available
for the topic
Can you relate the documentary
message to the topic?
Writing Scripts
 Tell a story
 Research will be transformed into a 5
minute script
 Make a story board
 Break down story chronologically
 Each box needs a
 Title
 Description
 Stories will be made into one large film
Creating a Script
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Will be read into a microphone
Work must be saved on flash drives and computers
Break down research into storyboard format
Start with a skeleton outline of the major events of your
topic
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How your topic started or emerged
How it developed
The climax of the event
How it concluded (if it did)
How is your message conveyed
Finding the Right
Photographs
 A list of websites will be provided to you
 Photo search
 Select high-definition historical photos
 Should mesh with documentary scripts
 Use accredited websites or historical books
 Should find at least 20 photos
 Check accuracy
 Must keep bibliography
Finding the Right
Music or Video
Footage
Music
Itunes - $ .99 each
Digital History Site - free
Video
United Streaming - free for us
Interviews
Movie Making
Software
IMovie
Supplies
Video cameras
Tape
Sources
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Digital History
http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu
Gilder Lehrman Institute
www.gilderlehrman.org
Thomas Jefferson Digital Archive http://etext.virginia.edu/jefferson/
Historical Photo Archive
http://www.historicphotoarchive.com/
American Memory (Library of Congress)
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/index.htm
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US History Place
http://historyplace.com
U.S. Historical Archive
http://www.ushistoricalarchive.com
The National Archives
http://www.archives.gov