Intro to Cinematic Investigative Documentary

By the end of this course, students will understand how "cinematic investigative documentary" actually works: from the first spark of an idea to the shaping of a rigorous, emotionally compelling nonfiction film. This is a deep-dive into the craft and practice of investigative documentary storytelling: how filmmakers build structure, develop character, create a vivid storyworlds, track evidence, earn access, consider interviews, work with archives, and transform complex real-life material into narrative with tension, meaning, and moral force.

Please note: This is not an entry-level production course and does not provide hands-on instruction in camera operation, sound recording, editing, or other technical production skills. Instead, the course offers a high-level introduction to the creative, investigative, ethical, and storytelling practices that shape cinematic investigative documentary.

Led by a Peabody-winning investigative documentary filmmaker, the course combines practical instruction, close study of major documentary work, and conversations with real-world creators working at the highest level of the field. Students may approach the class in one of two ways: as an introduction to the professional tools, ethics, and creative process of documentary filmmaking, OR as a workshop for developing their own nonfiction film or series project. Challenging, hands-on, and rooted in both craft and rigor, the course is designed for students who want to understand not only what makes a great cinematic investigative documentary, but how one is actually made. The course incudes weekly office hours.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

• Understand how cinematic investigative documentaries are built from the ground up, including story, character, access, evidence, visual world, style, stakes, and the filmmaker’s moral responsibility.
• Develop the core tools of investigative documentary practice, including building trust, conducting interviews, gathering records, working with archives, filing public records requests, and organizing timelines, source lists, and investigative logs.
• Analyze how structure, editing, world-building, and the order of revelation shape suspense, meaning, ethics, and audience understanding in prestige documentary features and series.
• Learn how to communicate a documentary project to funders, grantors, producers, broadcasters, and creative partners through loglines, pitch decks, treatments, work samples, budgets, and why-now language.
• Create a polished, workable pitch OR gain a practical understanding of how high-end investigative documentary projects are developed, produced, and brought to audiences.