Almost every documentary begins with a proposal. Unless a filmmaker is lucky enough to be able to work entirely from his or her own financial resources, some commissioning body or other will have to be persuaded to underwrite the project. The task of the proposal is to get somebody to say: ‘yes I will fund this idea.’ To get that to happen the film-maker must first identify potential commissioning organizations and then present the concept in as clear, as attractive and as persuasive a way as possible.
A documentary maker with an idea to propose must first to decide where to send it. An independent film-maker, or one at the start of his or her career usually has two options: to go directly to a broadcaster or distributor, ...
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