Documentary Story Telling and Me

What does documentary storytelling mean to me? Personally, it means sharing part of who I am with the world. I don't see myself as a Hollywood filmmaker in the future, but I do see myself telling stories through real scenarios. For me, documentary storytelling is raw and can be just as effective as drama or television shows.

As someone who loves railroads, one of my favorite documentaries was done by Kaw Valley Films in 1991. Titled "Legends of the Rails: The Story of the American Passenger Train," this independent documentary received various awards for its stunning cinematography. It was even featured on PBS and received high ratings from Trains Magazine and Billboard.

After first seeing the film as a little guy, I grew up to appreciate the story line and the great cinematography in this piece. It inspired me to create my own railroad documentary, which I recently published under the same publisher as Kaw Valley! How cool is that?

For me, producing a documentary can be very fulfilling and rewarding when done right. It takes a lot of blood, sweat, tears, lining up schedules, planning shots, and hard work to pull it off. Especially around railroads, as freight trains don't run on set schedules.