My name’s Rob, and I love short documentaries.
Sitting at the place where journalism meets creative storytelling, they marry the best of both these worlds – real stories told with poetry. For me, there is no format better able to bring other people’s experiences to life.
We’re spoiled by the quality and quantity of short docs we have access to these days, and by the breadth of stories getting told. And – although there is much work to do here – more, different people are slowly getting to tell these stories.
But I think there is space for a project like this.
At festivals and online, short docs often have to fight for attention, against other types of short film, or against feature length documentaries. And where short docs do get centre stage, it often seems to be the film and little else.
I want to speak to the people who make these films, to understand them and their creative process. This context and insight can help capture the vibrancy of the short doc scene.
And so every week, I’ll share a doc that I think is brilliant. The films will vary in style, length and subject matter. Some will be very recent, some much older. But they will all have something special that, I believe, deserves a moment in the spotlight.
I hope this newsletter will be the first step in building a short doc community of filmmakers and film lovers. I don’t know how it might grow and that’s exciting – to work with that community and build something together.
But I do know how I want it to feel – like a clubhouse (hence the name). A supportive, protective and collaborative space. A space where serendipitous connections occur. And a space where this beautiful, important art form can be celebrated, discussed and shared by people who share my love for it.
Subscribe, follow us on Instagram (@shortdocclub) and download our metaverse token (just kidding about the last one).
Rob
This is so exciting and I’m thrilled both it and you exist