Discovering new voices and stories in documentaries

Want to be a documentary maker? Hear why unique stories and hearing new, fresh voices are always in demand on TV.

In 2023, there has been an unprecedented attraction among TV commissioners and viewers to hear stories from real people, in their authentic voices! Here’s your chance to hear from programme makers who have brought award-winning insightful, provocative content to diverse British TV audiences this past year, and how TV production teams persuade new voices to reveal, share and preserve their unique stories with the world.

How did the production teams and commissioners source the subjects and stories? How did they make the approaches to gain trust and access? What was the purpose behind telling this story and how did the audience receive this story? This session will also look at what the viewer engagement was like and what it takes to create the structure and curate the style of someone else’s world. The panel will explore the successes and challenges and how to navigate the documentary making landscape.

Hear from the teams behind RTS award- winning documentary The Evolution of British Black Music (BET UK), and Channel 4’s recently launched Youth News strand.

Panel:

Cicelia Deane – Editorial and Commissioning Executive, BET UK
Femi Oyeniran – Film maker, actor & producer
Nicky Slimting Walker – Film maker, actor & producer
Debbie Ramsay – Commissioning Editor, News and Current Affairs, Channel 4
Charlie Mole – Director and Producer, BBC & Channel 4 Current Affairs
Chaired by Jasmine Dotiwala (multimedia Producer, Director, Inclusion Leader).