ACMI Stories & Ideas

In this session, a panel of experts illuminate the opportunities, success factors and deal terms existing in the booming VOD sector that is disrupting the programming plans of established channels. Key topics addressed include defining SVOD, TVOD and AVOD; identifying what Netflix, Amazon and platforms like CuriosityStream pay for programs; considering the differences in deals; exploring how they...

With tough local TV market conditions and the influence of globalisation on the film and television industry, 'patchwork' financing has become a way for producers to secure financing by cobbling together multiple markets and platforms. But in order to successfully finance and secure multiple deals, it is important to understand these international marketplaces and manage the expectations o...

It’s not often that a documentary makes headlines, but that’s what happened during The Jinx’s six-week run on HBO in 2015. It was one of the most fascinating and celebrated documentary series of recent times – the now-famous finale reported on the front page of the New York Times and its revelations prompting a new murder trial for its subject, Robert Durst. Two of the series’ filmmakers – Marc Sm...

Opportunities for commissioning, financing and distributing short form docs are increasing every day. Short form is arguably better suited to the dynamic shifts and new opportunities occurring in global media than long form. They are less complicated to finance and produce, and more agile and quick to reach target audiences. Alongside the shrinking demand for long-form and the log-jam at the door...

Filmmakers Marc Smerling and Zac Stuart-Pontier of The Jinx reveal how the tools of narrative filmmaking – in particular, ‘detective stories’ – can serve the documentarian, and share the cinema and television that has most informed their approach to documentary storytelling. By taking us inside scenes from their landmark HBO docuseries, Smerling and Stuart- Pontier dissect the techniques and chall...

Traditionalists may be outraged, but it is possible to create quality, popular factual content that is later formatted and sold to broadcasters around the world. These ‘Format’ concepts keep on giving for their creators and make it easier for broadcasters to commit their dollars to ambitious factual projects with less risk. The three speakers in this session know all about this ‘F’ word. They’ve c...

Magnus Temple is one of the UK’s most successful and most respected television executives. His company The Garden is a prolific supplier of acclaimed long form documentary series, including 24 Hours in A&E and 24 Hours in Police Custody, and with Nick Curwin he pioneered the fixed-rig genre with The Family and One Born Every Minute. In this comprehensive Masterclass, Temple explores the concep...

Grieving following the death of his young son, Parker reluctantly returns to work as a private investigator, observing a woman from an abandoned apartment. Unsure of whether he’s losing his mind, Parker soon witnesses bizarre happenings, unaware that the derelict building that he surveys her from has birthed a dark presence that slowly threatens to consume him. This is a recording of the Q&A with...

An increased demand for ‘super-premium’ documentary content is examined in The Rise of the Superdoc, as one of the world’s top factual producers, John Smithson (Touching the Void, 127 hours, Sherpa), discusses his extensive career in storytelling with producer Phil Craig. Exploring mega-budget commissions, international co-productions and the content demands of broadcasters, subscriber channels an...

In this revealing panel discussion, the filmmakers behind acclaimed feature documentary Sherpa explore the process of creating a film in the aftermath of unexpected disaster. Director, writer and co-producer Jennifer Peedom (Miracle on Everest, Solo), editor Christian Gazal (Happy Feet, The Little Death) and producers Bridget Ikin (An Angel at My Table, Look Both Ways) and John Smithson (Touching...

Vision. Strategy. Distribution. Evaluation – the four key steps to building the perfect campaign. Yet, no matter how closely you follow the rules, sometimes the marrying of art and activism just doesn't seem to want to follow suit. This session gives filmmakers, producers and industry professionals a sneak peek into all the messiness that comes with the job. With a focus on these different stages,...

Campaign tactics like private influencer screenings for business leaders, lobbying of government officials, and donation or petition drives have become all the rage – in part because the results of these efforts are easy to measure. The rise of big data has made the demand for impact metrics all but impossible to avoid for filmmakers seeking funding. But does any of this actually constitute positi...

Virtual Reality: Documentary Outside the Frame Virtual Reality has quickly become the most-talked about technology in the media industry. From the BBC to Hollywood, media-makers around the globe are experimenting with VR as an entirely new way to tell stories. But what are the opportunities for non-fiction storytellers in a medium that puts the audience at the centre of the action? This session br...

Dubbed "The Indie Queen" by TIME magazine, Parker Posey has forged a formidable presence in the world of independent cinema, earning her crown playing an impressive range of quirky characters on the big screen. Along with her star turns in classics such as Dazed and Confused, Party Girl, and The House of Yes, Posey has formed an equally as interesting television resume, popping up on the box with...

Relive The Stardom and Celebrity of David Bowie, a two-day multi-discipline symposium we hosted that saw artists, academics and cultural commentators reflect upon the influence of and on David Bowie in rock, pop, film, art, fashion and performance.

Relive The Stardom and Celebrity of David Bowie, a two-day multi-discipline symposium we hosted that saw artists, academics and cultural commentators reflect upon the influence of and on David Bowie in rock, pop, film, art, fashion and performance.

Relive The Stardom and Celebrity of David Bowie, a two-day multi-discipline symposium we hosted that saw artists, academics and cultural commentators reflect upon the influence of and on David Bowie in rock, pop, film, art, fashion and performance.

Relive The Stardom and Celebrity of David Bowie, a two-day multi-discipline symposium we hosted that saw artists, academics and cultural commentators reflect upon the influence of and on David Bowie in rock, pop, film, art, fashion and performance.

Relive The Stardom and Celebrity of David Bowie, a two-day multi-discipline symposium we hosted that saw artists, academics and cultural commentators reflect upon the influence of and on David Bowie in rock, pop, film, art, fashion and performance.

Relive The Stardom and Celebrity of David Bowie, a two-day multi-discipline symposium we hosted that saw artists, academics and cultural commentators reflect upon the influence of and on David Bowie in rock, pop, film, art, fashion and performance.

Relive The Stardom and Celebrity of David Bowie, a two-day multi-discipline symposium we hosted that saw artists, academics and cultural commentators reflect upon the influence of and on David Bowie in rock, pop, film, art, fashion and performance.

Relive The Stardom and Celebrity of David Bowie, a two-day multi-discipline symposium we hosted that saw artists, academics and cultural commentators reflect upon the influence of and on David Bowie in rock, pop, film, art, fashion and performance.

Relive The Stardom and Celebrity of David Bowie, a two-day multi-discipline symposium we hosted that saw artists, academics and cultural commentators reflect upon the influence of and on David Bowie in rock, pop, film, art, fashion and performance.

Relive The Stardom and Celebrity of David Bowie, a two-day multi-discipline symposium we hosted that saw artists, academics and cultural commentators reflect upon the influence of and on David Bowie in rock, pop, film, art, fashion and performance.

Relive The Stardom and Celebrity of David Bowie, a two-day multi-discipline symposium we hosted that saw artists, academics and cultural commentators reflect upon the influence of and on David Bowie in rock, pop, film, art, fashion and performance.