- From POV Skeptic to POV Executive Producer: Former EP Ellen Schneider Reflects on 30 Years
Continuing our series of letters from past executive producers for POV, Ellen Schneider admits her initial skepticism of the new program, and her surprise when audiences and the press alike couldn't get enough of the show's initial programming.
- Uncovering 'Hoop Dreams' Tie-Ins
'Hoop Dreams' is a tasteful exception to the branded merchandise of Hollywood movies.
- The Stories Documentary Archives Tell
Sometimes the coolest film discoveries lurk in dusty cardboard filing boxes.
- Exhibit Highlights 50 years of Kartemquin Films History
Is the personal political? Kartemquin Films retrospective engages visitors on this crucial question.
- A Simple Question Belies Depths in 'The Jinx'
Sometimes an interview question seems so simple that it belies the cultural depths that inform it.
- Constructing Conversations about Race in 'Trick Bag'
How Kartemquin Films' 1974 short 'Trick Bag' illuminated the intersectionalities of race and class.
- The Challenges of Getting and Staying 'In the Game'
In the Game makes an important contribution to girls' sports documentary with its balanced approach to representing a team and life.
- The Ragged Edge: An Interview with Matt Sienkiewicz
"When you start a documentary like this, you don't know until the very end whether or not you have a story."
- Three Docs on Ice: Science, Spectacle, and Storytelling
Three recent documentaries address glaciers and climate change with differing focus on science, spectacle and storytelling.
- Teaching Op-Docs: Course Wrap-Up and Reflections
A look back on using The New York Times Op-Doc series as the focus for a course in online documentary production.
- Teaching Op-Docs: Helpful Resources
Some key resources, both online and in print, that helped develop materials for The New York Times Op-Docs curriculum.
- Teaching Op-Docs: Course Assignments
Following a semester of teaching online documentary production through the Op-Docs series, this post offers a round-up of the assignments used in the course.
- 'Hard Earned' Shows the Challenges of Making a Living and a Life
An upcoming documentary series from Kartemquin Films tells stories about people working to make a living and working to make a life following the economic recession.
- Teaching Op-Docs: Sound and Observation in Hotel 22
Elizabeth Lo's short film (and New York Times Op-Doc) Hotel 22 became the focus for a session about sound in documentary.
- Teaching Op-Docs: Fairness and Representation
Not all documentary characters are represented as heroes, and nor should they be.
- A Curious App to Consume, Sort Of
A new app brings together a series of materials about the ideas of consuming and being consumed.
- Teaching Op-Docs: The Role of B-Roll
As a viewer, I pay too much attention to B-roll. One reason is that B-roll is often intercut with interviews, and it changes the dynamics of movement within the frame.
- Teaching Op-Docs: Finding Ideas for Documentaries
"Where do you get ideas for documentaries?" is the number one question I have received through comments and conversations over the years. Here are some starting points to consider.