Bath Film Festival 2007

Documentary Forum: Manipulating the Truth?

As the recent controversy in the media has shown documentary film makers can be laissez-faire about the truth. Newsnight, Dispatches, the BBC trailer about the Queen have all been exposed for misleading audiences. Is this all just editorial hyperbole or are the current pressures on documentary filmmakers to supply ever more sensational stories and better viewing figures leading to an erosion of standards? We bring together a panel of the country’s leading documentary editors under the chair of Angus Macqueen, Head of Documentaries at Channel 4, to discuss the issues and how they maintain truth and integrity in their work when editing by its very nature is so manipulative.

The session will include illustrative clips and plenty of opportunity for questions from the audience.

The Panel

Ollie Huddleston – Ollie has been editing documentaries for 20 years. He is known for his strong observational style and has worked with Angus Macqueen, Kim Longinotto and Adam Curtis. He has been nominated for a BAFTA and won a Royal Television Society Award for his work.

Brand Thumin – Brand’s work often plays around with the documentary genre and pushes boundaries. He recently edited the much acclaimed Death of a President, a fictional documentary about the assassination of President George Bush. Brand is also a winner of the RTS Best Documentary Editing Award.

Joby Gee - Joby has edited feature docu-dramas like The Flight That Fought Back (which was nominated for an Outstanding TV Movie Emmy), music documentaries and more popular TV docs like Little Britain’s Big Swim. He edited Beautiful Young Minds which is included in the festival’s Documentary Strand.

Chaired by Angus Macqueen,
Head of Documentaries, Channel 4

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