Rating: 
Summary: Documentary production: practicality, concepts, guidelines
Review: In this book, Barry Hampe provides great advice, helpful concepts, and breaks down the documentary process into digestable servings. The book is divided into four sections: 1. An introduction to the concepts and guidelines of the Documentary genre 2. Preproduction 3. Production 4. Postproduction. Barry Hampe fills in the pages with experience, knowledge, and writes in a manner combining the ideas he discusses with pithy examples and stories which he uses to drive his points home. The book has a generous layout, placing information thoughtfully and easily into the reader. Included in the book is a wonderful filmography (including refrence info on where to find and order the documentaries listed), a well rounded bibliography, and even directions to join the International Documentary Association. I used this book as my introduction to documentary production, because though it is based on Hampe's work specifically with behavioral documentary, the information is easily transferable to any documentary/reality video project. The book stresses concepts in creating a form of reality through visual medium, called verisimilitude, and Barry Hampe demonstrates very carefully the indepth process in which an audience recieves the final cut out of what was originially a simple idea. If Barry Hampe can communicate his ideas so clearly in writing this book, I imagine his documentaries must be stunning.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent book of its kind!
Review: An excellent tool for a debutante documentarian from a teacher who has simple words of wisdom to make you understand the truth and lies on documentary film making. Indeed it is not a book with the techniques of film making but full of hands-on information about the reality, the pre-production, production and post-production scenario.
It is a book by a professional without the (mandatory) professional and often boring theory-based lecture notes but full of answers an inquisitive documentary maker might have.
The structure and design of chapters, headings, subheadings and paragraphs are also wonderfully crafted for an easy read, a must have for any film enthusiast, well worth the money!
Rating:
Summary: So, You Wanna Make a Movie?
Review: Anyone with romantic notions of filmmaking will be brought back to reality with this book. Barry explains, in no uncertain terms, the ins and outs, the nuts and bolts and the day-to-day reality of filmmaking. His understanding comes from the broad perspective of a film student, professional, festival judge and mentor. He covers the gamut of what to expect of yourself and the process of creating a finished product that an audience other than your family will appreciate. His wisdom and pragmatism is refreshing and realistic. Anyone thinking of venturing into this highly competive world would be well served by reading this book. It will help you decide if you have the vision, patience, flexibility and fortitude to venture forward. If nothing else, it will help you appreciate the dedication and artistry that went into the next documentary you see.
Rating:
Summary: So, You Wanna Make a Movie?
Review: Anyone with romantic notions of filmmaking will be brought back to reality with this book. Barry explains, in no uncertain terms, the ins and outs, the nuts and bolts and the day-to-day reality of filmmaking. His understanding comes from the broad perspective of a film student, professional, festival judge and mentor. He covers the gamut of what to expect of yourself and the process of creating a finished product that an audience other than your family will appreciate. His wisdom and pragmatism is refreshing and realistic. Anyone thinking of venturing into this highly competive world would be well served by reading this book. It will help you decide if you have the vision, patience, flexibility and fortitude to venture forward. If nothing else, it will help you appreciate the dedication and artistry that went into the next documentary you see.
Rating: 
Summary: Great for Filmmakers
Review: Barry Hampe gets back to basics with "Making Documentary Films and Reality Videos". It's a great book to read before you begin a project and as you do it. He drives home important things to keep in mind (shoot for the edit, hold your shots, interview techniques etc...) as you plan, shoot and edit. It's well-suited for the first-time filmmaker -- and it's a great review for experienced documentarians. And he has an easy style that keeps you reading. A great source for any filmmaker.
Rating:
Summary: Great for Filmmakers
Review: Barry Hampe gets back to basics with "Making Documentary Films and Reality Videos". It's a great book to read before you begin a project and as you do it. He drives home important things to keep in mind (shoot for the edit, hold your shots, interview techniques etc...) as you plan, shoot and edit. It's well-suited for the first-time filmmaker -- and it's a great review for experienced documentarians. And he has an easy style that keeps you reading. A great source for any filmmaker.
Rating:
Summary: Great for Filmmakers
Review: Barry Hampe gets back to basics with "Making Documentary Films and Reality Videos". It's a great book to read before you begin a project and as you do it. He drives home important things to keep in mind (shoot for the edit, hold your shots, interview techniques etc...) as you plan, shoot and edit. It's well-suited for the first-time filmmaker -- and it's a great review for experienced documentarians. And he has an easy style that keeps you reading. A great source for any filmmaker.
Rating:
Summary: This is my Bible!! The best of the lot!
Review: I bought a lot of books about documentary filmmaking before I embarked on my project. I needn't have bought any other ones. This has been my guide. It is direct and precise. No extra words. This book says it all. Thank you , Barry.
Rating:
Summary: This is my Bible!! The best of the lot!
Review: I bought a lot of books about documentary filmmaking before I embarked on my project. I needn't have bought any other ones. This has been my guide. It is direct and precise. No extra words. This book says it all. Thank you , Barry.
Rating:
Summary: Very practical and to the point
Review: I came upon this book after making 23 drama videos for autistic teenagers. Recently we looked at producing a day-in-the-life type documentary with cutaways of professionals commenting on the activities. I honestly found this book to be a mine of information. Almost any question I found myself raising was addressed in some form in this book. Consequently structuring the doucmentary in terms of narrative, visual arrangement, verisimilitude, camera and sound has become clearer. I would have liked the chapters on the Documentary Idea and Writing the Documentary to be longer. Personally, I would have benefited more from extending the discussions here. Also the author tends to drive the book along at a fiercely anecdotal rate which is great if you can imagine yourself in the author's shoes, but may not suit everyone's style. Overall I found this to be a most useful manual and certainly find myself returning to it for advice. What better recommendation can I offer?
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