It's All 'Based on a True Story': Storytelling in Documentary and Fiction

Thu Sep 27, 2018
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM (120 min)

MASTERCLASS BY KEITH FULTON AND LOU PEPE IT'S ALL BASED ON A TRUE STORY; STORYTELLING IN DOCUMENTARY AND FICTION IN COOPERATION WITH AFS AND THE U.S. EMBASSY IN CAIRO MODERATED BY KARIM EL-SHENAWY Thursday, September 27, 10 AM, TU Berlin (Audimax)

Because of documentary film's associations with "fact" and “truth”, we often overlook the form's reliance on the same techniques that storytellers employ in fiction. Likewise, because of fiction's connotations of "invention" and “imagination”, we disregard the fact that fiction storytelling grows from the human need to make sense of our very real lives and the world around us. Audiences expect certain storytelling conventions when they watch a film, regardless of form. How do these conventions apply to both fiction and documentary? And what can storytellers learn from the ways that these devices are employed in each form?

Using examples from their own filmography and clips from films that have inspired them, Lou Pepe and Keith Fulton, directors who have made both documentary and fiction films together for over 20 years, will discuss storytelling techniques for both forms.

Fulton is a native of Boston, Massachusetts and holds a B.A. in Art History from Haverford College, whereas Pepe was born in Philadelphia and holds a B.A. in Computer Science and Film Studies from M.I.T. Both directors hold an MFA in Film Production from Temple University, and are fellows of the Sundance Institute’s Writers and Documentary Labs.

Fulton and Pepe’s documentary feature Lost in La Mancha stands as the first and only verité chronicle of the collapse of a major motion picture. It won many prestigious awards at several international events, just as their fiction film debut Brothers of the Head and their most recent documentary release The Bad Kids did.

The team is currently in post-production on He Dreams of Giants, a documentary that continues the saga of Terry Gilliam’s 30-year quest to bring Don Quixote to the screen. KARIM EL-SHENAWY Egyptian film director. Since 2007, he has directed several acclaimed documentaries. In 2013, he completed his MA degree in film directing at Goldsmith College, University of London. The same year, he directed his first short fiction, Odd, which was selected in more than 30 international film festivals. He also worked as first assistant director in several award-winning features, such as Clash 2015 and Nawara 2014. Gunshot is Karim's feature fiction debut.