Alma17-24, Jacob 4:13, D&C 50:22-25

The scriptures give a lot of insight to how to make a worthwhile documentary. The biggest indicator of this is that the scriptures are made up of stories that happened in real people’s lives that teach other people about principles of righteousness. The stories of the missionaries in the Book of Mormon also teach how to entrust people and communities. An important aspect of documentary is to gain people’s trust, without it, they would never tell you anything that would be compelling for people to watch. The things that make good stories are often life changing and personal. People aren’t usually willing to share things like that unless they trust you.
Ammon from Alma 17-24 was able to gain the trust of the people by serving them. It wasn’t until he offered to be the king’s servant that they let him go about in the kingdom. This is obviously a key part in learning to love people in order to make a documentary about them. This block of chapters also mentions quite a few times that he was patient and long-suffering. Getting to know someone takes time more than anything else. If a documentarian were to go find out about a person’s story, interview them, and leave, without anytime to get to know this person, the story would have no compassion or understanding to help the viewers understand the motivations of that person. They would be quick to judge. Spending a lot of time with someone is obviously time consuming and could possibly be boring at times, but that time spent will naturally come out in the film. You’ll be able to have compassion for that person and consequently, so will the audience.
In Jacob 4:13 it says “Wherefore, [the Spirit] speaketh of things as they really care, and of things as they really will be; wherefore, these things are manifested unto us dplainly, for the salvation of our souls.” Is that not what a documentary is trying to do? Show things as they really are? To me, this verse simply spells out the idea that if I use the Spirit while I’m making a film, the film in turn will be able to better show things as they really are.
As a filmmaker and a Christian, I’m concerned with revealing truth and light. I think that it’s sometimes hard to discern when something is of God and when it is not. But D&C 50: 22-25 spells out simply that anything that edifies is from God. In my logic, anything from God is truth and light. Thus, if I make films with the goal in mind to make someone, whether myself or a viewer, a better person, it is from God. So why not make something great?