Documentaries I Have Loved

[gokartride]

I admit, I love documentaries. I find them very moving, all the moreso because they are so based in realities. This was also my professional genre for many years. Here's a few that I loved...

"The Way West" - a series by Rick Burns on the westward expansion and it's impact on indiginous peoples. Very cool, very comprehensive.

"Ishi: the Last Yahi" - very haunting story of a man who wandered of the wilderness, the very last of his tribe. The story is both heartbreaking and noble.

"The Donner Party" - another by Rick Burns. Sparse, haunting visuals and beautifully narrated entries from journals.

"The Johnstown Flood" - felt almost as gut-wrenching as if I were there.

I could go on...what docs have you enjoyed??

 

[Satya]

My list of documentaries I have loved includes most 30 Days Documentaries and most stuff by Michael Moore. Yeah, not very sophisticated, but what can I say.

 

[gokartride]

I guess I do tend to gravitate towards the historical...some interesting and vivid insights can be had from a more distant perspective, insights that I find easily applied in today's world.

Recently a series on the U.S. experience in WWII aired...it was like a seven episode series. I decided, out of respect for those facing inhuman circumstances and very troubled times, to stay up and watch the entire series as it initially aired. It was almost like being on a retreat being immersed (both visually and via sound) in one subject for many nights. I was glad I did that.

 

[Lurker]

I pretty much love any doco that is interesting, informative and educating, especially historical and travel ones. I generally watch them and store random and bizarre pieces of insight away till relevant then immediately forget the name of the documentary once finished so I can't give any specifics *shrug* but I love documentaries

So you've said you are/were a documentary producer/director? Explain more...

 

[sumone]

I've been thinking about documentaries since you posted this. The only ones I've seen recently are Michael Moore's. I've 'accidentally' seen a lot of documentaries and enjoyed them immensely but as for names or titles .... my memory is the pitts. My interest is sparked now though and I think I will look into it.
My Dad loved documentaries and some of the nicest times I had with him as a teenager were when I was watching one with him. He loved the wildlife ones.
Planet Earth was a documentary wasn't it? I loved that! My son and I were glued to it for days.

 

[Shai Gar]

I love nature docos, and anything about Tesla.

 

[gokartride]

So you've said you are/were a documentary producer/director? Explain more...

I did mostly (but not excusively) short form (10-15 minutes) human interest type stories, where each piece centered on a person and some facet of their life. In the later years we worked on an international program that was produced out of three production hubs on different continents. I cannot sufficiently explain the many things I saw and experienced, but the range of subjects ran from artists to partical physicists, to leper communities and people living on garbage dumps...and everything between. The interesting thing was that we spent a lot of time working on these pieces from a story-telling perspective and got to know the subjects of stories very well...this all tends to give one a lot to think about. My group was very connected with circumstances preceding and surrounding fall of the Berlin Wall and many projects came out of the experience in Eastern Europe. I think the one thing that stood out to me from all this was a sense of the unique human dignity and spirit seen in people within varied circumstances/conditions. In some cases this was quite a surprise. I have to say, for lack of a better word, that it was a beautiful thing.

 

[Motor Jax]

WWII Documentaries by BBC

or anything about Vietnam

if i only had the History Channel, i would be totally content


... i love history...

 

[Inkling]

The only documentary i remember by name is the March of the Penguins.... funny how it's really hard to stop watching that once it comes on!

...but, anyway... i know i've seen others, just don't remember them much

 

[Lurker]

I did mostly (but not excusively) short form (10-15 minutes) human interest type stories, where each piece centered on a person and some facet of their life. In the later years we worked on an international program that was produced out of three production hubs on different continents. I cannot sufficiently explain the many things I saw and experienced, but the range of subjects ran from artists to partical physicists, to leper communities and people living on garbage dumps...and everything between. The interesting thing was that we spent a lot of time working on these pieces from a story-telling perspective and got to know the subjects of stories very well...this all tends to give one a lot to think about. My group was very connected with circumstances preceding and surrounding fall of the Berlin Wall and many projects came out of the experience in Eastern Europe. I think the one thing that stood out to me from all this was a sense of the unique human dignity and spirit seen in people within varied circumstances/conditions. In some cases this was quite a surprise. I have to say, for lack of a better word, that it was a beautiful thing.

Damn! That sounds ubercool. I'd love to experience something like that, the travel but not to tourist sites, the getting to know people from varied backgrounds on a more personal level, seeing another side of life that you have to seek out as it won't come to you and seeing how despite differences there are things that connect us all. How long did you do it for, what do you do now and are you still involved with film making?

I would eagerly receive any stories or links that you're willing to share.

 

[sumone]

gokartride, you are one lucky INFJ!

 

[gokartride]

How long did you do it for, what do you do now and are you still involved with film making?

I did this professionally for twenty years. This specialization (I got started when handheld broadcast TV cameras were fairly new) got us into a variety of other projects because this straightforward style was the look clients wanted. Still, docs always came first. It was even more interesting because, since we were a working production facility, we also agreed to take on a steady stream of international interns that we worked side-by-side with. Good friends, interesting folks, unbelievable stories.

Anyway, the company I was with folded and, rather than do something less interesting, ten years ago I took a position with the U.S. EPA....I now hire and/or work with a variety of producers on various video projects (we shoot hi-def now)....that and a good bit of graphic design work which I've done all my life. I use what I had done earlier by helping communities, tribes, and local government to address environmental priorities. As an old producer, I find it to be very interesting work, and a good bit less taxing than weekly broadcast deadlines and travelling with 12 suitcases of gear.

They were special times....and they changed me and how I look at the world. And it was all very real.