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Here's What Really Happened

No tweeting. No press. No industry. Filmmakers-only conversations revealing personal insights into the art and business of documentary filmmaking.


“Here’s What Really Happened” are signature sessions from IDA's biennial Getting Real Conference that began as a filmmaker-led solution to combat the lack of transparency that continues to plague the community. These intimate conversations allow filmmakers to speak openly about what actually happened in the production, sales and distribution life of a film. The rules are, everything said in the room, stays in the room. Our goal is to create a safe space for discussion that allows filmmakers to have frank, meaningful discussions without the influence of industry in the room. We believe that one of the greatest resources for a filmmaker is another filmmaker.

In building a more knowledgeable and transparent community together, IDA tours “Here’s What Really Happened” sessions to various festivals and conferences around the world. These private conversations have focused on security/surveillance, sales agents, festival strategies, fact-finding, ethics, work/family life balance, truth-seeking in production, and other themes.

Learn what really happened behind-the-scenes in an upcoming session. It’s personal, it’s intimate, let’s get into it.


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Go inside the minds and behind the scenes of five top documentary industry grantors. Ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes at grant review committees from Tribeca to Sundance? This panel will take you there! Collectively our panelists give away millions of dollars each year. Find out from the source what really gets your film noticed and funded.
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We invite you to join moderator Sara Hutchison (writer/producer and IDA Board Executive Member) and a panel of experts, including writer/producer and IDA Board Member Steven Reich (Avalanche: The White Death), writer/producer Sharon Wood (The Celluloid Closet), writer/producer P.G. Morgan (Revenge of the Electric Car), and writer/director/producer Freida Lee Mock (Wrestling with Angels: Playwright Tony Kushner, Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision) as we look at the role of writing in nonfiction storytelling.
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ALL NY Week 1 NY Week 2 NY Week 3 LA Week 1 LA Week 2 LA Week 3 August 12 - September 1at IFC Center August 19 - September 8at Laemmle Sunset 5 A Marine Corps cover-up of one of the worst water contamination incidents in US history, the glaring reality of the media's objectification of women, as
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ALL NY Week 1 NY Week 2 NY Week 3 LA Week 1 LA Week 2 LA Week 3 August 12 - September 1at IFC Center August 19 - September 8at Laemmle Sunset 5 A Marine Corps cover-up of one of the worst water contamination incidents in US history, the glaring reality of the media's objectification of women, as
Page One: Inside the New York TimesUSA | DIR Andrew RossiCAST: Sarah Ellison, David Carr, Tim Arango, Brian Stelter, Bruce Headlam, Richard Perez-Pena, Clay Shirky, Alex Jones, Ian Fisher, Noam Cohen As the standard-bearer for daily journalism, the New York Times has been confronted by the 21st
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Join producer/director Robert Kenner (Two Days in October; Food, Inc.), as he moderates a discussion with Kate Amend, ACE (Into the Arms of Strangers: The Long Way Home), Kim Roberts (Food, Inc.; Waiting for Superman) and Victor Livingston (Shakespeare Behind Bars; Crumb) of the rewards, and challenges, inherent in the director/editor collaboration, and other pearls of wisdom from the editing room.
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Join moderator Marjan Safinia for an intimate conversation with Doug Block, and learn more about the risks and rich rewards of making a personal documentary film, and the wisdom he's gained from a lifelong career as a documentary filmmaker.
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Join Joan Churchill, James Longley, Haskell Wexler and moderator Richard Pearce in a rich conversation about the unique POV of the documentary shooter.
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Doc U presents an in-depth conversation with Steve James, the award-winning producer-director of Hoop Dreams, the landmark documentary hailed by critic Roger Ebert as "the great American documentary."
Can't find funding? No one wants to invest? Perhaps it's the idea or some aspect of the project/package? Get a doc proposal check up, and tuneup. This daylong workshop is intended to help you decide if that dream doc is worth pursuing and if it's not selling, how to fix it.