Interviews by themselves do not make a documentary. Interviews don’t show the topic; they show people talking about the topic. The goal should be to show things happening.
The documentary is a visual argument.
An expensive camera won’t make pictures interesting. it’s what the people are doing.
Typical problems to be avoided: lack of planning, inadequate visual evidence, poor interview technique, and obtrusive crew interference with the people in the video.
A static interview is visually boring.
The way you get good stuff in an interview is by encouraging people to tell you stories, not by interrogating them. The most important thing is to follow up on whatever the person is most interested in talking about.
You change composition only during questions-never during answers.
thoughtswithjames 