Emmy-nominated producer and director Maro Chermayeff, who leads SVA’s Social Documentary MFA, shares what to do after finishing a documentary and key tips.
The School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York City successfully launches the new Master of Fine Arts program in Social Documentary Film (MFA SocDoc). StudentFilmmakers magazine follows up with Maro Chermayeff, multi-award-winning and three-time Emmy Award-nominated producer, director, and author who serves as Department Chair.
What’s been going on since the launch of SVA’s new MFA SocDoc program?
Maro Chermayeff: In early September 23, diverse and fantastic students joined us from around the country and around the world. Group One, as we fondly refer to our inaugural class, is proving to be incredibly interesting and talented, with a true mix of new and aspiring filmmakers and several individuals who, having spent some time professionally in the non-fiction arena, are now returning to the academic setting – seeking tools and techniques to take their vision to the next level.
Our core required classes have been insightful, engaging and very hands-on, and the evening guest lecture series, which we call Process and Style, very inspiring. To date our guest lecturers range from Joe Berlinger with his newest film Crude; to D.A. Pennebaker bringing his earliest works and staying for a hearty Q&A about his amazing career in documentary filmmaking; to Susan Fromke, Muffy Meyer, and directing faculty member Deborah Dickson discussing their early years working with the Maysles brothers and subsequent stellar careers. Guests to come in this year include – Alex Gibney, Brett Morgen, Deborah Shaffer, Sandy Dubowski, Pamela Yates and many others.
Tell us about the department’s new space and facilities.
Maro Chermayeff: Our new department is housed in the ground floor of 136 West 21st street between 6 and 7th Avenue, in the heart of Chelsea in New York City. We are at street level, with a wonderful glass façade inviting people to look into our space as they pass through our neighborhood. A small SVA campus has formed on this block, with numerous departments on the floors of our building and the adjoining building, as well as the building across the street. Our department occupies the entire ground floor in a sleek and simple design by the architecture firm Spacesmith, whose founder and principal Jane Smith is also the chair of the BFA Interior Design at SVA. It is an amazing and beautiful state-ofthe-art facility with a fantastic 48-seat HD theatre, five edit rooms, a recording room, 2 large classrooms, office space, a kitchen and student lounge areas, and an equipment room and robust DVD film Library.
What cameras and editing systems has the department selected?
Maro Chermayeff: We took the plunge and went tapeless.
Our students all have access to 10 Sony XDCAM EX1 camera packages, and we plan to add more as the department grows. These lightweight high definition cameras are an industry staple, and their ease of use coupled with their scalability provide students with a solid platform from which to build their camera skills.
On the post side, we have 5 Final Cut Pro editing suites running Final Cut Studio 3 that share 9TB of storage on a fully expandable Apple Xsan. Each edit suite is equipped with 2 Cinema Display monitors and a 42” Sony Bravia HD display. All of the edit suites tie back to the machine room for output and ingest to and from our HDCAM and DVCAM decks. Students will also have access to a soundproof booth that will be used for recording voiceover. Additionally, we have an editing classroom where students may copy media from the Xsan and work locally on their MacBook Pro laptops and external hard drives.
We offer both Final Cut and Avid editing options. Reserving Avid training and editing for 2nd year projects.
What are some current trends within documentary filmmaking?
Maro Chermayeff: I believe that trends or timings can be important, but what always works, what remains timeless is: access, story, character, subject matter and execution… If you do really good work, it sets the trend…
As far as industry and business trends making documentaries a viable main stream offering, Michael Moore films and others such as March of the Penguins inspired filmmakers to believe that docs could hold full houses at the multiplex, and that is true in some cases only. On television of course non-fiction is all across the map, and opportunities are multiple but not necessarily in the traditional documentary form, but the expanded definition including reality genres,…
If you could share a special message to the inaugural class of your MFA SocDoc program, what would it be?
Maro Chermayeff: My message is simple: Welcome to the best life imaginable – being a creative artist, seeking out truths, telling important stories and having a career, and earning a living as a documentary filmmaker.
Read full Q&A at www.studentfilmmakers.com/interviews/QA-Maro-Chermayeff So You’ve Completed Your Documentary Film: Now What?
Maro Chermayeff Answers the Question:
“Before completion, I would start showing your work to people, in and out of the industry, who opinions you value during the rough cut and fine cut stages. I have always believed that feedback during the process is invaluable. Having diverse and critical feedback can really define the final steps of a films completion, and make it a better movie…
“I also think that going on the festival circuit both domestically and internationally is a great experience. Of course if films do well at festivals, buyers are there, and that can change the landscape quite quickly. There are many festivals besides the top tier, and I have seen films become the little engine that keeps on garnering notice and attention…
“I think one has to be very clear about what their film is, and not just fire buckshot out into the industry. Not every film is viable theatrically based on subject matter alone – in fact, most are not. As far as talking to broadcasters, if the film was funded independently – know the networks, know their brand – and get your films to places that value the kind of film you are bringing. Network Execs have limited opportunities and they can love a film, while knowing it is not for them or their target audience and that is a catch 22. If you are new to the industry consider finding a mentor, someone known and respected in the genre, who may come on board in a credited or non-credited role who can champion the film in the industry with their contacts – and help it get the recognition it might deserve.”
Documentary Filmmaking Tips to Remember
Maro Chermayeff Shares Her Insights and Advice to New Documentary Filmmakers
# 1 “Find a great story, not necessarily a big story – but a great story, even a personal story, that can be very intimate in its scope but speaks to and about something significant which may be much larger, with strong subjects who can carry the piece.”
# 2 “Get to know and love your subject. Access and a POV in your material is key, both in the storytelling and also in translating your own style and vision. Be an original voice. Stylistically I am a great believer in outstanding cinematography and sound. It is not enough to just be at the right place at the right time. There is no reason to document a great story poorly.” # 3 “Either be a great editor by birth, or find yourself a great editor. Editing is the beating heart of non-fiction storytelling.”
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