I've got a killer idea for a documentary! Let's film it!

hehe Kenneth Williams60, that last post was absolutely top-tier 😁
but regarding what came before... Kenneth Williams, we aren't being lethargic, nor are we bitter, and god knows we aren't even jaded forum users 😁 I'm nearing the end of my second year in mechanical engineering, been in a relationship for three and a half years, doing everything young people are supposed to do without exception, and I still find pockets of time here and there for this forum—well, just this section, because I live for movies. Honestly, I’d love to put together a documentary on this subject. I'm just waiting for some absolute maniac (in the best way possible 😁) to step up and handle most of the heavy lifting with the organization. I simply don't have the bandwidth; I'm just not the kind of person who enjoys drowning in endless bullshit.

Noah Smith53 said:haha, Kenneth Williams60, that last post was absolutely killer 😁
but regarding what you said before... I guessKenneth, we aren't being lethargic, nor are we bitter—and the users here certainly aren't either 😁. I'm actually nearing the end of my second year studying mechanical engineering, and I've been in college for about three and a half years now. I'm doing everything typical young people do without any weird exceptions, though I do find time here and there for this forum—just this specific section, because I really love movies. And honestly, I would truly love to produce a documentary on this subject. I'm just waiting for some kind of fanatic (in a good way 😁) who can take over most of the organizational heavy lifting. I simply can't manage it myself because, well, I'm not really the type of person who enjoys getting buried under a mountain of responsibilities.

hehe, yeah, I know 😁 it's all fine. I didn't mean it personally at all... besides, I get it, because I often find myself shutting down someone else's idea even before they've fully laid it out 😛
I really believe we're all just movie lovers with normal social lives here, it's just that sometimes my damn tongue gets ahead of me. My apologies.

Instead of just sitting here bickering, maybe we should all just pool our cash together and finally shoot one genuinely brilliant American film 😉 I actually have an idea—it’s pretty fleshed out in my head, 😁—but I’m thinking a feature film rather than a documentary. As for all that religious fanaticism stuff, you guys are more than welcome to come down to my neck of the woods to film it. I have a buddy who is a fairly well-known actor—well, within our local circles, anyway—and he could serve as our narrator. And when it comes to people to interview, ranging from the totally sane to the completely unhinged... I guess there would be plenty of material there. So, what's the first move? Feature or documentary? Alex Walker5, you're the one who started this whole thing, so you decide. Btw, I really hope you have some kind of camera 🤣

Kenneth Williams60 said:Besides, who said I (meaning Alex Walker5) was actually trying to shake anyone's convictions?
And honestly, why would any of the people being interviewed bother changing their minds in the first place??
As far as I'm concerned, the movie has a pretty clear point. People don't all need to undergo a total worldview shift for a piece of work to be meaningful... by the way, I think you might be taking the concept of fanaticism a bit too literally. But that's just my two cents. 😉

Alright then, what exactly is this "clear point" you're talking about? I still haven't received an answer to that, and it’s been sitting there since the very start of the thread. I'm certainly not the only one asking.

Kenneth Williams60 said:Heh, I don't know. 😁 It’s all good. I wasn't even taking that personally... honestly. Besides, I get it. I really do. I have this habit myself—I often find myself shutting down someone else's idea before they even get the chance to finish the sentence. It just happens. 😛
Look, I’m pretty sure we’re all just cinephiles with actual lives outside of this screen, but sometimes that damn sharp tongue of mine just gets the better of me. My bad.

No problem at all. 🙏Look, I’m telling you, I don't always think you're wrong... sometimes you just end up feeding those idiots exactly what they want.

James Garcia58 said:Fine then, what exactly is the main point here? I still haven't received an answer to that, and it was asked right at the start of the thread. I'm certainly not the only one asking.

Okay, my bad. I honestly thought the question was rhetorical 😛 so, I guess the whole idea is just to make us reflect on the kind of society we actually live in. Like, to show what values are being pushed around our neighborhoods and whether we even chose this or if it was basically forced upon us... I don't think the goal is always to hand someone a neat little answer. Sometimes, maybe, just posing the question is enough. Especially in a documentary... I mean, if we wanted a point based strictly on hard facts, we could just film a lecture on math, physics, or chemistry. But, I suspect the appeal—both for the audience and for those of us making it—would be pretty questionable.

Look, I don't need a movie that basically points its finger at everyone and goes, "Hey, look at these terrible people living in our society." I’m already well aware of what kind of people inhabit our world. Honestly, if this film is actually trying to nudge anyone toward some deep moral epiphany, then I really wouldn't want to get dragged into an argument about it. You could potentially make a decent film about faith, but certainly not using the same approach Bill Maher uses.

So, here’s my situation: I’m a family man with a steady job, and an idea just popped into my head...
I have a buddy who works in TV and owns a professional camera setup.
He’s even got a home studio where he can handle all the editing.
I could reach out to him about this.
I can take care of the logistics and schedule the interviews since I know plenty of people from various local churches across the country.
I'm originally from Columbus, Ohio.
I've also got some savings put aside, so funding shouldn't be an issue.
The only thing is, I don't personally have the bandwidth to conduct the actual interviews.
However, I am overflowing with ideas and a massive list of questions.
If anyone else is interested in jumping on this, I’d be happy to lead the project so we can sit down and talk details.

My goal is to turn this into a really great comedy.

Alex Walker5 said:So the whole point of the movie would be to track down those "average," "normal" folks—the people who represent religious and moral authorities here in America, the types whose narrow-mindedness and one-dimensional views end up setting a terrible example for their kids, friends, and everyone else around them.
to show that people still believe in just about anything.

..I’ve watched *Religulous* twice now....The thing is, Maher was specifically hunting for fanatics who were inherently ridiculous....And honestly? You won't find that kind of stuff in America....Just look at the population size of the US compared to the places Bill was filming, or compare the actual diversity of religions represented in our country versus what he was showing elsewhere....
...first off, if you actually went up to some "ordinary" American priest or any other regular person and started lobbing questions at them like Maher does, trust me, you're the one who's going to end up looking foolish and dim-witted....

Alex Walker5 said:He’d love for us to show how people still believe in just about anything.
And they're out here teaching others to believe it, too.
His main focus would be on the Catholic faith and its various denominations, sects, and other organizations...

Anyone here actually have experience with filmmaking?

Alright, let's summarize this. You're an atheist fanatic who can't wrap your head around how anyone could believe some bearded guy in the sky created the universe and our planet.

So, the question is: how are you any different from them? Aside from having a diametrically opposed view that you shove down everyone's throat in every single post—to the point where you want to make a movie about it. You aren't making a movie about religion; you're making a movie about atheism, and faith is just the tool you're using to get there.

Do you see now that you're actually the fanatic here?

If they ever actually start filming, count me in as an extra!
I wouldn't mind just being some random person walking by in the background, but—get this—I want to be that one face you see popping up throughout the whole movie.

Let’s stick to movies for a second. Look, I’m an atheist myself, but I definitely wouldn't go about filming something like this just to try and prove my views aren't any more ridiculous than religious ones—instead, it feels like they just wanted to make... let's call it a decent sketch, which, if you ask me, was probably Bill Maher's actual Plan B. You can tell just by looking at who he chose to interview. The issue with this brand of comedy is that there’s always going to be someone pointing out that the film isn't neutral—which is kind of obvious from the jump, so saying it feels like stating the glaringly obvious—and that critique would apply regardless of which side is being filmed. Sure, there are plenty of funny aspects within the American Catholic faith, but to actually portray them realistically, you’d need access to actual believers—the kind who are willing to admit them—who would speak honestly about it, which, obviously, is never going to happen. It would be the exact same thing if a believer went out to make a documentary about atheist positions, just picking up a couple of narrow-minded fanatics who don't even realize what they're rambling about. A scripted version would probably fare much better; I don't recall anyone making a huge stink when Jim Carrey played God and poked fun at various religious themes and Bible references.

Me, me, me!!! Look, I haven't actually seen the movie and I haven't read a single thing beyond the opening post—but the concept? Pure genius. I have a few buddies who pride themselves on their editing skills, and I’ve been told more than once that I have a pretty decent eye for cinematography 😁

It's honestly refreshing to see people coming to the table with high-quality ideas.

rustyharbor66 said:It’s honestly refreshing to see people actually putting some decent ideas out there.

Was that—I don't know—just a wild assumption on my part... was that sarcasm? Just trying not to misread the room here...

My bad, rustywalker42, looks like you’re actually a bit older than I gave you credit for 😁
If you were planning on filming a documentary or some kind of sketch, what people usually call a 🙂, you have to accept that bias is inevitable—it’s baked into the interviews themselves. The people giving comments will always have an angle. What *shouldn't* be biased are the structural elements: the narrator, the specific questions asked, how they’re framed, and who gets targeted. That’s not exactly rocket science to pull off, but honestly, it’s tedious. AND... doing it that way won't yield anything groundbreaking because you’ll just end up with a collection of opinions everyone has already heard a thousand times. Boring. So, I’m proposing a completely different approach. A systematic method where you pick one person—let's call them the "neutral party"—whose sole job is to go in swinging with spot-on questions at both sides. You’d grill the preachers and the believers, but you’d also grill the atheists or those folks who just live by the "I don't know" philosophy 😁 and keep going until the screen fades. That way, you leave the audience to decide for themselves what the truth is. I haven't seen anything like that
anywhere else, frankly. Is this a decent concept?

isuse (or maybe I shouldn't even mention that name 😲), how many philosophers are on this forum!!!? antik, in just one single day you managed to become a fanatic, unserious, overambitious, blasphemous... bravo 🙏 I already mentioned before that I haven't watched that "controversial" documentary, so I don't really know what that guy's approach is—but, likewise, I know that people with those kinds of attitudes are often overly sensitive, and even hypocritical. On one hand, you have people elevating "Borat" or "Bruno" and stuff like that, fictional characters who, in my opinion, represent nothing more than basic, and frankly, low-brow mockery... I'll admit, there are some truly good jokes, but they are overshadowed by vulgar and mindless skits. On the other hand, we have this guy who apparently made some sort of half-joke about fanaticism, without any extreme caricature, or scenes like that hotel one in "Borat," which I think is the definition of cheap and senseless humor. And now, that guy couldn't possibly be semi-serious, no way!!
He has to be some boring hundred-year-old professor with scientifically grounded facts for a documentary to be considered good. Why does everything have to be so black and white? BTW, why would it be such a struggle here to find "ordinary" Americans who would talk about their beliefs, which maybe they hold onto a little too tightly? Are we some kind of primitive lunatics that you can't communicate with, like they often portray in Hollywood movies? So much for prejudices and underestimating 🙄

@ rustywalker42, how do you know that antik is an atheistic fanatic? For example, I am a believer... I might not be super devout, I have my own theory about all of it, but yes—I am a believer. I go to church (though, admittedly, only on holidays since I don't care for almost any form of formal ritual 😁), I pray sometimes, and I occasionally go to confession. And despite that, I still think this is a perfectly good idea—now, maybe antik is a believer in his own sense—so what exactly is your argument here? You're telling people they have a goal to mock someone, yet you don't actually know anything about them. That isn't right.

@ M. Stalker—I am also sensitive to that "pointing fingers" thing that happens so often in our society, so I get what you're trying to say. But again, we can't stay silent about everything and be so damn sterile. If we claim everything is finger-pointing, we'll end up paranoid, or we will (following your and rustywalker42's dismissive philosophy) become the very people doing the pointing. If that's how the world works, nobody would ever say anything concrete, do anything, or change anything... of course, this "nobody" is a bit of a caricature 😉

@ antik—go right ahead, you have my moral support (and maybe even practical support, since I'm from Savannah and I'm just finishing up my journalism degree, so I could actually conduct your interviews 😉). But, I doubt this documentary would succeed as pure mockery (unless you have some amazing comedian in mind), and the project itself would be higher quality if you didn't focus exclusively on that. Of course, a decent dose of healthy humor doesn't hurt at all, but the whole thing should, at least in my view, be based on serious issues. Look at "All is Lost," that is, to me, the perfect example of something like that.

P.S. guys, sorry for the long post 😬 and let's skip the arguing; let's join forces and film something!

Noah Smith53 said:My apologies, rustywalker42. It seems you might actually be a bit older than I initially assumed. I guess I misjudged that. Maybe I was just mistaken. 😁
If I were to sit down and film a documentary—or maybe just a quick sketch, depending on how people want to label it—I wonder what they would even call it. I guess there isn't really a set rule for that sort of thing, maybe? It’s hard to say. 🙂Bias is such a tricky thing. I suppose it’s something that just has to be filtered through the people giving commentary during a documentary. What really shouldn't be biased—well, if you want any integrity—are things like the narrator, the specific questions being asked, how those questions are framed, or even who they are directed toward. It isn't exactly an impossible feat to pull off, but honestly? It ends up being incredibly tedious. But here is the thing... if you play it that safe, you aren't going to uncover anything new. You’ll just end up with a bunch of people regurgitating their own opinions, which we all already know and find pretty dull. So, I guess I’d recommend a completely different approach altogether. What if you took a more systematic route? You could select one person—let's call them the "unbiased" party—who is tasked with aggressively challenging both sides with spot-on questions. I mean, you'd have them go after the priests and the believers, but then immediately turn around and grill the atheists or even the folks who just sit there saying, "I don't know." That might actually get us somewhere. 😁 And that’s just how it ends. I mean, if they actually gave the audience the freedom to decide what it all meant for themselves... honestly, I don't think I've ever seen anything quite like that anywhere else. Maybe it was just me, but it felt truly unique.
Is this actually a good idea? I mean, I guess it might be. Maybe. I'm not entirely sure myself, to be honest. It seems... interesting? But then again, who knows. I suppose we'll just have to see how it plays out.

I mean, the idea itself is actually quite solid. I guess. But honestly? It feels like something that might be incredibly difficult to pull off, at least if you're aiming for a high level of execution. Maybe it's just me, but it seems complicated. Still, I suppose it’s worth a shot. One can always try. 😉 Listen to me, I guess... I’ve already stepped up and taken over the role of author. 🙄 My apologies, rustywalker42. 😛

Kenneth Williams60 said:p.s. folks, my bad for the massive wall of text here 😬 let's skip the bickering and just pool our resources to actually film something!

Heh, well, look at him go. Where's he even going to head off to now? Savannah? Honestly, who's going to take any of you seriously over there anyway... ^^

Props to the idea. What Charlie is saying definitely has potential, but I feel like if you want to pull this off and actually have it land seriously—instead of it just being a joke like those Malnar projects—you’re gonna need a ton of work, deep thought, and actual experience in film and journalism.

The core of this movie would basically be driven by asking the right questions in the perfect order, leading up to a finale where the viewer is left wondering... well, something. You should probably check out NG; they make some really interesting documentaries and can turn absolutely nothing into something great.

Noah Smith53 said:haha, good luck trying to make it in a place like small-town Ohio... I mean, who is actually going to take you guys seriously there? ^^

hahaha... alright, fair point. 😁 but hey, if the people in those small towns are supposedly so advanced and sophisticated, then I guess it’s obviously meant to be a massive hub for all the next generation of brilliant filmmakers 😂
well, we aren't just aiming for local indie spots, then Berlin, then Cannes, or whatever else is on the list... let's be realistic here 😁