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Pros and Cons of the Industry

When it comes to independent filmmaking, specifically for documentaries, there are advantages and disadvantages to this style of filmmaking in comparison to the well-known “big-studio” or “Hollywood” style of filmmaking.  One main argument in favor of independent documentaries is that they could be used as a tool to promote social cohesion and insight, as stated by John Grierson and he also when on to believe that because of this, Hollywood was “unjoinable” (Aufderheide 2007). This meant that documentaries, needed to distance themselves from the large studios and entertainment cinema, striving for a different experience for the viewers.

Due to separation from larger studios, independent documentary filmmaking allows for an extensive amount of freedom for the filmmakers, allowing for a multitude of topics and stories that could be covered by the film these creators go on to make. The disadvantage to this creative freedom is that this could lead to poor results in terms of viewership and recognition of the film itself for a few reasons. The separation from large-studio interaction can lead to independent films being made my inexperienced filmmakers, thus leading to poor forms of storytelling, or making a documentary with such a niche subject that it becomes unappealing to viewers (Corner 2007), therefore not being able to form “social cohesion and insight,” which is what the goal of a documentary is. Even with these disadvantageous risks, in today’s modern society, independent documentaries can still find success on subscription streaming platforms such as Netflix, Curiosity Stream, Amazon Prime Video, and for free on YouTube if they cannot find theatrical success or film festival success.

To continue the advantages of creative freedom, a considerable positive of independent filmmaking for documentaries is the important role each of the filmmakers within a crew have. Within independent documentaries, there is a sense of decentralized organization. Decentralized organization for filmmaking means that there is “less hierarchical culture, [allowing] a free flow of ideas” and this “approach works well when an organization needs innovation and creative solutions” (Fraher 2010). This decentralized form of filmmaking allows for all individuals involved with the creation process to share ideas and opinions about what they think is wrong and what can be done to improve. Like all films, documentary films have directors, producers, editors, and other crew, but due to the creative independence, many of these roles can overlap and evidently, decentralized organization is the obvious choice for this kind of cooperative environment.

Due to the nature of the work done for independent documentaries, and the close relationship between filmmakers through decentralized organization, this specific industry of filmmaking allows for the ability to network and contact individuals more directly and efficiently. Communication within any industry is vital, especially when focusing on how to advance and prepare for a career in the future. The industry of independent documentaries allows for this important communication both locally and internationally, but with a hidden downfall for some — since this sector of the film industry is so specific, most independent documentary filmmakers are usually only in contact with other similar filmmakers, hindering the ability for individuals that would like to branch out into other genres.