The past few years have featured such blockbusters as Super-Size Me, Fahrenheit 9/11, Sicko, March of the Penguins, and An Inconvenient Truth. And as news articles proclaim a new era in the history of documentary films, more and more new directors are making their first film a nonfiction one. But in addition to posing all of the usual challenges inherent to more standard filmmaking, documentaries also present unique problems that need to be understood from the outset. Where does the idea come from? How do you raise the money? How much money do you need? What visual style is best suited to the story? What are the legal issues involved? And how can a film reach that all-important milestone and find a willing distributor? Epstein, Friedman, and Wood tackle all of these important questions with examples and anecdotes from their own careers. The result is an informative and entertaining guide for those just starting out, and an enlightening read for anyone interested in a behind-the-scenes look at this newly reinvigorated field of film.

本作は、単なる技術指南書を超え、混沌とした現実を「物語」へと昇華させるドキュメンタリーの核心を射抜いた一冊です。エプスタインとフリードマンら巨匠たちが、被写体との倫理的対峙や真実を編み出す際の葛藤を語る姿には、事実という無骨な素材を芸術へと変貌させる、崇高なまでのクリエイティビティが宿っています。 「なぜ撮るのか」という根源的な問いに、資金繰り等の泥臭い現実を交えて解き明かす構成が見事です。読者は、映像という媒体が持つ情報の重みと作家性の激しいせめぎ合いを追体験することになるでしょう。ノンフィクションの深淵に触れ、世界の見方を変えたい全ての表現者に捧げられた、魂の羅針盤です。