The DocCelerator programme is expanding its online remit with three further mentor workshops covering pitch, enhanced visuals and rough cut. “Filmmakers are looking for [further] ways of strengthening the dramatic elements of their story and optimize their filmic expression,” says Paradiddle Pictures’ Ove Rishøj Jensen.
It may have only launched in May 2020, but the DocCelerator documentary workshop programme is already expanding to embrace more stages of production and development. According to Ove Rishøj Jensen of Copenhagen-based Paradiddle Pictures, this hike in mentoring activity follows requests from former participants who want further input and expert feedback on their projects. “It feels great that we can actually now launch our new formats based on demand from participants of the first seven editions,” he confirms.
With the expansion comes a name change. The original DocCelerator workshop, which covered the development of key structural narrative elements of a story, will in future be called DocCeleratorStory. Together with the three new formats, the online workshop series now consists of:
DocCeleratorStory which defines and develops key structural narrative elements of a story
DocCeleratorPitch is aimed at pitch preparation to funders, investors, broadcasters and distributors
DocCeleratorCapture focuses on the recording process and boosting visual expression
DocCeleratorRoughCut gives rough cut feedback and strengthens the distribution.
All the DocCelerator formats comprise online project-based workshops of 2-3 days duration and accommodate 4-6 selected project teams (depending on the format).
“The online DocCelerator format is such an effective set-up for documentary makers to achieve fast, inexpensive and useful progress for their projects. Two days with full focus on one project, with no time, energy or money spend on traveling,” Rishøj Jensen tells Business Doc Europe. “The participants like this short but effective boost to their projects, which they get from taking part. During two days, their stories becomes much more focused and they realize that this focus saves them a lot of time and money in the production and editing.”
“I think the pandemic has little to do with the positive feedback we have received on DocCelerator,” he continues. “It is more that documentary makers have this basic need of getting concrete input and feedback for their projects, in order to enhance them. The competition for funding is not exactly decreasing and access to getting projects greenlit is more and more complicated. Therefore filmmakers are looking for ways of strengthening the dramatic elements of their story to optimize their filmic expression.”
