Q&A for How to Create a Good Documentary Film

Yes, child labor has been a problematic issue and creating awareness about it in a region or a country is a great cause.

Yes. That sounds like an interesting topic. You should do it.

You need an interesting topic/story, witnesses/testimonials, a lot of information, real footage, and documents and pictures (no cheesy reenactments). Treat the topic and people involved with respect, and make it as real and raw as possible - so no dramatization.

Most smartphones have pretty great cameras these days, so try shooting on one of those. You definitely don't need any fancy lighting equipment if you do all of your filming outdoors, and you can use iMovie or Windows Movie Maker. For sound, you can buy a decent microphone from Amazon or a local tech store for about $30. Another way to create a film documentary without investing in the equipment is to find a class in your area. Depending on where you live, there may be a community college or a community arts center offering a short course with a finished short doc as the goal. They provide cameras for the duration of the class. There may also be a public access tv station in your area. The mission of these organizations is to put recording equipment into the hands of regular folks who then cover local issues, history, personalities, whatever, from a non-news-agency point of view. One caveat is while you own the film you make with their equipment, part of the deal is that you allow the public access tv station to air your doc on their cable network.

Depending on how you tackle the subject, it could turn out really well or really terrible.

That would be a pretty good topic, given the state of the environment. It would take a ton of research though.

If you narrow your idea down it could be effective. Maybe focus on a specific person with mental health problems and follow them throughout their life, or even just one particular mental health problem and the individuals that are affected by it.

Sure, a lot of people don't know about the wildlife in the Adirondack Park.

Do some research. There's a niche out there for nearly every topic conceivable. The larger it is, the more likely you'll make some waves with it, but documenting history is important, no matter what aspect of it it is.

Yes, but make sure you do your research prior to making the documentary. U-boats and German warfare are two very complex subjects, so I recommend touching on British boats, as well as the war and the usefulness of the U-boats.