Think/Point/Shoot

Documentaries have ethical, moral, and social implications. What we shoot, how we shoot it, can lead to painful or dangerous consequences. As makers, we focus on our aims and are apt to miss what is unseen or unimagined, especially when working under pressure. But audiences and participants see our work from a multiplicity of perspectives, and quickly spot our lapses. Think/Point/Shoot is the collective experience of filmmaking, journalism, and academic professionals. It offers a lifetime of hard-won knowledge. So, if you work in actuality filmmaking, or want to, make use of the book and prepare for the pitfalls and creative possibilities of the media currently in use.

Michael Rabiger, author of Directing the Documentary

"...manages to provide some clarity to a subject shrouded in the murkiness of competing political agendas...The liberal use of case studies and real-life examples throughout the book is particularly effective. Each chapter ends with a summary of "Take-Home Points" and extensive bibliographies for additional reading. The real-life example on the final page is about the personal ramifications of "Twitter Shaming." This one lesson would qualify Think Point Shoot as recommended reading for teachers and parents dealing with all those thousands of kids running around with smartphones in their hands, making media."

Cynthia Close in Documentary Magazine

Documentaries have ethical, moral, and social implications. What we shoot, how we shoot it, can lead to painful or dangerous consequences. As makers, we focus on our aims and are apt to miss what is unseen or unimagined, especially when working under pressure. But audiences and participants see our work from a multiplicity of perspectives, and quickly spot our lapses. Think/Point/Shoot is the collective experience of filmmaking, journalism, and academic professionals. It offers a lifetime of hard-won knowledge. So, if you work in actuality filmmaking, or want to, make use of the book and prepare for the pitfalls and creative possibilities of the media currently in use.

Michael Rabiger, author of Directing the Documentary

"...manages to provide some clarity to a subject shrouded in the murkiness of competing political agendas...The liberal use of case studies and real-life examples throughout the book is particularly effective. Each chapter ends with a summary of "Take-Home Points" and extensive bibliographies for additional reading. The real-life example on the final page is about the personal ramifications of "Twitter Shaming." This one lesson would qualify Think Point Shoot as recommended reading for teachers and parents dealing with all those thousands of kids running around with smartphones in their hands, making media."

Cynthia Close in Documentary Magazine