OurApproach

We tell authentic, personal stories. Our approach removes uncertainty from producing them.

The most honest moments on screen are rarely an accident. They're the result of genuine curiosity, careful preparation, thoughtful story development, and years spent learning how to help people feel comfortable on camera.

Over two decades, we’ve developed a collaborative process that consistently uncovers compelling personal stories, while giving our partners confidence that every production is efficient, on message, and on schedule.

The demands of each project are different, but here are some elements of our secret sauce.

We’re strong believers that well begun is half done, and the surest path to make a great film is start with the right story.

We love to be involved as early as possible in selection of stories and individuals. Our role at this stage is to break down some of the fundamental story mechanics: What is the emotional hook of the story? What is the conflict or tension? Does the story have a solid beginning, middle and end—how do we build a narrative arc?

Beyond the narrative, how does the story translate to the screen? What are the visual elements that can drive the story? What can we convey sonically to make the story more resonate?

Assessing stories from the outset can help put us on the path to success before we are all invested, financially our otherwise.

Pre-interviews are often the cornerstone for our entire production.

We’re collecting story data from day one, so an initial video call presents a world of unique opportunity. First and foremost, it is our only opportunity to hear a story for the first time from the people who lived it. It is a low-stakes, informal conversation to really root out the heart of a story.

Recordings of these calls become the blueprint for the story we will tell, and we return to them repeatedly as we build our production plan.

Pre-interviews are also an extremely inexpensive screen test for potential subjects (How well can they articulate their story? Are they willing to be open and vulnerable? Do we need supporting cast?) and recordings are easily sharable among partners to make story and casting decisions.

Our partners are often been surprised by the amount of writing we do.

Writing in pre-production is our opportunity to synthesize all that we’ve learned from pre-interviews, scouting, and story development into a concise shooting script with the highest degree of specificity possible.

Luckily, we have direct quotes from our pre-interviews that we can use as specific dialogue to advance a three-act structure. We’ve spent a significant amount of time with the story already, so writing the script allows us to refine and identify gaps. The end result typically resembles a beat sheet that identifies critical story points, paired with imagery for each beat of the story.

We find that having these beats create a great balance for production—they are specific enough to communicate the story direction and guide efficient production, but leave room for spontaneity in our subjects to carry us from A to B.

We see the subjects of our documentaries as our chief collaborators.

We believe that trust is largely the result of a person feeling agency, not being put under a microscope and observed. In every interaction with our subjects—from pre-interviews to scouting and production—we encourage them to share thoughts and ideas, as well as set boundaries for sensitive information.

We acknowledge that production itself can also be intimidating, so we go to great lengths to be as transparent as possible about the process and the demands of our schedule.

Finally, we aim to project professionalism, confidence, and support. We want to create the kind of trusting relationship that will allow something powerful and authentic to unfold on camera.

Interviews are not just question and answer, they are directed performances.

We have come to learn that the content of an interview is often less important than the way information is delivered. While we take painstaking effort to keep interviews loose and conversational, we put a tremendous amount of preparation and strategy into each approach. Listening, reflecting, encouraging, challenging, and provoking are perhaps some of our most refined skills.

It begins with putting the subject at ease. No clapboard, no countdown, just a natural conversation. Often we begin by saying: “I’m not going to ask about anything you haven’t already told us.” It’s amazing how quickly this allows people to put their guard down, it also happens to be true—we already know the story very well, we’re here to guide the subject’s delivery.

Our goal is to get lost in conversation, so we rarely work from a rigid list of questions. Instead, we put the emphasis on listening, expressing genuine curiosity and empathy to uncover honest emotion. An interviewer is largely a scene partner; most people are going to naturally reflect the energy we bring.

This is not to say our interviews are without structure. We’ve grown adept after years of interviews to really listen for clarity and story beats. We know when to bring people back on track, when to ask for clarity, and when to push for emotion.

Because we’re often shooting in our subject’s home or business, we make every effort to use small, efficient crews and maintain a small footprint. Constantly improving digital and LED technology make achieving a polished, cinematic look with minimal crew more achievable than ever.

Often the content of interviews drives our story, so we welcome collaboration with agencies and clients as well. To make this more inclusive and accessible, we are used to providing a video link directly from our camera lens, so a larger team can listen in to interviews from virtually anywhere. We always schedule breaks in interviews to review notes and ensure that statements are on message with our end goals.

We live to develop captivating, dynamic, and unexpected visuals to deepen a story. We've shot popcorn bursting in slow motion to evoke a bomb blast, used depth-sensing cameras to simulate artificial vision, built miniature dioramas, created stop-motion sequences, staged impressionistic recreations, and experimented with countless other visual approaches to translate emotion into images.

Every technique, camera movement, and composition is in service of the story we're telling. Sometimes the strongest choice is simply holding on a moment of raw emotion with a real person. Other times, a carefully crafted visual metaphors can reveal something words never could. Every story demands a unique approach, that’s what makes our job so fun.

We believe firmly in collaboration and transparency at every step of the process.

We find that early story discussions, and collaborative insights throughout the creative process, are the surest way to move forward as a team and deliver a unified vision on an efficient schedule.

We are always looking for ways to open lines of communication and encourage involvement from our partners—without being demanding of their time.

Developed largely out of necessity during the pandemic, we have continued to incorporate a variety of virtual tools throughout the process. For example, we regularly provide a live video stream—directly from our lens to your laptop—during production. This enables a more inclusive process for all stakeholders to provide feedback and ensure the accuracy of messaging in real time. It also often allows us to have less people in the room, which goes a long way for non-actors to feel less intimidated.

One of our favorite tools in post-production is sharing written transcripts in sync with recorded interviews. This allows easy access to searchable transcripts immediately after production, with instant ability to see and hear the delivery of a specific line. These platforms have been a game changer for exploring options in the edit.

Finally, we always ask for a live edit session with key collaborators before locking a cut. This is another process we often handle virtually, with the ability for all partners to drop directly into our edit suite to review and discussion. This allows us to explore options and make final tweaks in real time to avoid unnecessary back-and-forth that often leads to delays.