Great Documentaries About Filmmaking
by lucaskgm | created - 30 Nov 2016 | updated - 4 weeks ago | PublicGreat documentaries about the art of filmmaking or some specific aspects of it.
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1. Hello Cinema (1995)
75 min | Documentary, Comedy, Drama
Makhmalbaf puts an advertisement in the papers calling for an open casting for his next movie. However when hundreds of people show up, he decides to make a movie about the casting and the screen tests of the would-be actors.
Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf | Stars: Shaghayeh Djodat, Behzad Dorani, Feizola Gashghai, Maryam Keyhan
Votes: 2,183
2. They'll Love Me When I'm Dead (2018)
TV-MA | 98 min | Documentary, Biography
In the final fifteen years of the life of legendary director Orson Welles, he pins his Hollywood comeback hopes on a film, The Other Side of the Wind (2018), in itself a film about an aging film director trying to finish his last great movie.
Director: Morgan Neville | Stars: Alan Cumming, Peter Bogdanovich, Oja Kodar, Orson Welles
Votes: 5,433
3. Jodorowsky's Dune (2013)
PG-13 | 90 min | Documentary
The story of cult film director Alejandro Jodorowsky's ambitious but ultimately doomed film adaptation of the seminal science fiction novel.
Director: Frank Pavich | Stars: Alejandro Jodorowsky, Michel Seydoux, H.R. Giger, Chris Foss
Votes: 27,507 | Gross: $0.65M
4. Burden of Dreams (1982)
Not Rated | 95 min | Documentary
A documentary following German auteur Werner Herzog as he deals with difficult actors, bad weather and getting a boat over a mountain, all in an effort to make his film Fitzcarraldo (1982).
Director: Les Blank | Stars: Werner Herzog, Klaus Kinski, Claudia Cardinale, Jason Robards
Votes: 8,121
5. Chambre 666 (1982 TV Movie)
45 min | Documentary
During the '35th Cannes International Film Festival' (14th-26th May 1982), German director Wim Wenders asked a sample of 15 other international film directors to get, each one at a time, ... See full summary »
Director: Wim Wenders | Stars: Wim Wenders, Michelangelo Antonioni, Maroun Bagdadi, Ana Carolina
Votes: 1,482
6.
Cinéma, de notre temps (1989– )
Episode:
Où gît votre sourire enfoui?
(2001)
104 min | Documentary
Two directors struggle to survive in the movie industry.
Directors: Pedro Costa, Thierry Lounas | Stars: Danièle Huillet, Jean-Marie Straub
Votes: 433
7. These Amazing Shadows (2011)
Not Rated | 88 min | Documentary
Tells the history and importance of The National Film Registry, a roll call of American cinema treasures that reflects the diversity of film, and indeed the American experience itself.
Directors: Paul Mariano, Kurt Norton | Stars: Jeff Adachi, James H. Billington, Robin Blaetz, Brooks Boliek
Votes: 1,757
8. The Wonderful, Horrible Life of Leni Riefenstahl (1993)
183 min | Documentary, Biography, History
A documentary about the life and work of Leni Riefenstahl, a German film director most notorious for making the most effective propaganda films for the Nazis.
Director: Ray Müller | Stars: Leni Riefenstahl, Marlene Dietrich, Arnold Fanck, Walter Frentz
Votes: 3,052 | Gross: $0.45M
9. Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004 TV Movie)
R | 122 min | Documentary, Biography, History
The story of Z Channel, one of the first U.S. pay cable stations and its programming chief, Jerry Harvey. Debuting in 1974 in LA, their eclectic slate of movies became a prime example of the untapped power of cable television.
Director: Xan Cassavetes | Stars: Jerry Harvey, Chuck Ross, Timothy Ryerson, Bob Strock
Votes: 1,691
10. Casting By (2012)
TV-14 | 89 min | Documentary, Biography
The surprising, never-before-told tale of the indispensable yet unsung Casting Director - Iconoclasts whose keen eye, exquisite taste and gut instincts redefined Hollywood.
Director: Tom Donahue | Stars: Deborah Aquila, Risa Bramon Garcia, Ellen Chenoweth, Marion Dougherty
Votes: 1,637 | Gross: $0.01M
11. Listen to Me Marlon (2015)
Unrated | 103 min | Documentary, Biography
A documentary that utilizes hundreds of hours of audio that Marlon Brando recorded over the course of his life to tell the screen legend's story.
Director: Stevan Riley | Stars: Marlon Brando, Stella Adler, Bernardo Bertolucci, Michael Borne
Votes: 7,913 | Gross: $0.43M
12. Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff (2010)
Not Rated | 86 min | Documentary, Biography
In 2001 Jack Cardiff (1914-2009) became the first director of photography in the history of the Academy Awards to win an Honorary Oscar. But the first time he clasped the famous statuette ... See full summary »
Director: Craig McCall | Stars: Jack Cardiff, Martin Scorsese, Kirk Douglas, Lauren Bacall
Votes: 1,346 | Gross: $0.02M
13. Location Hunting in Palestine (1965)
54 min | Documentary
While scouting locations for his classic "The Gospel According to St. Matthew", director Pier Paolo Pasolini noticed that filming in the actual site of the story, in Palestine, wouldn't be ... See full summary »
Director: Pier Paolo Pasolini | Stars: don Andrea Carraro, Pier Paolo Pasolini
Votes: 324
14. My Best Fiend (1999)
Not Rated | 95 min | Documentary, Biography
The love-hate relationship between Werner Herzog and Klaus Kinski, the deep trust between the director and the actor, and their independently and simultaneously hatched plans to murder one another.
Director: Werner Herzog | Stars: Werner Herzog, Klaus Kinski, Claudia Cardinale, Eva Mattes
Votes: 12,186 | Gross: $0.10M
15. That Moment: Magnolia Diary (2000 Video)
73 min | Documentary, Drama
A behind-the-scenes documentary, following the 80+ days of filming Paul Thomas Anderson's epic film Magnolia.
Director: Mark Rance | Stars: Paul Thomas Anderson, Fiona Apple, William Arnold, Bobby Brewer
Votes: 504
16. Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex, Drugs and Rock 'N' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood (2003)
TV-14 | 119 min | Documentary
A look at 1970s Hollywood when it was known as New Hollywood, and the director was the star of the movie.
Director: Kenneth Bowser | Stars: Martin Scorsese, Dennis Hopper, Peter Bogdanovich, Sam Peckinpah
Votes: 3,090
17. No Subtitles Necessary: Laszlo & Vilmos (2008)
Not Rated | 86 min | Documentary
The lifelong friendship of the great Hungarian-born cinematographers László Kovács and Vilmos Zsigmond and their impact on American cinema.
Director: James Chressanthis | Stars: Karen Black, Peter Bogdanovich, Sandra Bullock, James L. Carter
Votes: 422
18. Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau (2014)
Not Rated | 97 min | Documentary, Adventure
A behind the scenes chronicle of how clash of vision, bad creative decisions, lack of interest and really bad weather plagued the disastrous production of the infamous The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996).
Director: David Gregory | Stars: Richard Stanley, Kier-La Janisse, Michael Gingold, Graham Humphreys
Votes: 4,411
19. This Film Is Not Yet Rated (2006)
Unrated | 98 min | Documentary
Kirby Dick's exposé about the American movie ratings board.
Director: Kirby Dick | Stars: Kirby Dick, Kimberly Peirce, Darren Aronofsky, Atom Egoyan
Votes: 28,618 | Gross: $0.30M
20. And the Oscar Goes to... (2014 TV Movie)
87 min | Documentary, History
The history of the Academy Awards.
Directors: Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman | Stars: Anjelica Huston, Billy Crystal, Tom Hanks, Cher
Votes: 1,523
21. Corman's World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel (2011)
R | 95 min | Documentary
A documentary on DIY producer/director Roger Corman and his alternative approach to making movies in Hollywood.
Director: Alex Stapleton | Stars: Roger Corman, Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino, Paul W.S. Anderson
Votes: 2,674 | Gross: $0.01M
22. De Palma (2015)
R | 110 min | Documentary, Biography
A documentary about writer and director Brian De Palma.
Directors: Noah Baumbach, Jake Paltrow | Stars: Brian De Palma, Mark Hamill, Amy Irving, Kurt Russell
Votes: 6,199 | Gross: $0.16M
23. Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures (2001)
Not Rated | 142 min | Documentary, Biography
The career and life of Stanley Kubrick is explored through pictures, clips from his films, his old home movies, comments from his colleagues and a narration by Tom Cruise.
Director: Jan Harlan | Stars: Katharina Kubrick, Malcolm McDowell, Stanley Kubrick, Barbara Kroner
Votes: 12,202
24.
Century of Cinema (1995–1998)
Episode:
A Personal Journey with Martin Scorsese Through American Movies
(1995)
225 min | Documentary, Biography, History
Martin Scorsese describes his initial and growing obsession with films from the 1940s and 50s as the art form developed and grew with clips from classics and cult classics.
Directors: Martin Scorsese, Michael Henry Wilson | Stars: Martin Scorsese, Allison Anders, Kathryn Bigelow, Francis Ford Coppola
Votes: 5,136
25. The Kid Stays in the Picture (2002)
R | 93 min | Documentary, Biography
Documentary about legendary Paramount producer Robert Evans (the film shares the same name as Evans's famous 1994 autobiography).
Directors: Nanette Burstein, Brett Morgen | Stars: Robert Evans, Eddie Albert, Peter Bart, Charlie Bluhdorn
Votes: 7,963 | Gross: $1.43M
26. Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse (1991)
R | 96 min | Documentary
Documentary that chronicles how Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now (1979) was plagued by extraordinary script, shooting, budget, and casting problems--nearly destroying the life and career of the celebrated director.
Directors: Fax Bahr, George Hickenlooper, Eleanor Coppola | Stars: Dennis Hopper, Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, George Lucas
Votes: 23,196 | Gross: $1.32M
27. A Decade Under the Influence (2003)
R | 138 min | Documentary
A documentary examining the decade of the 1970s as a turning point in American cinema. Some of today's best filmmakers interview the influential directors of that time.
Directors: Ted Demme, Richard LaGravenese | Stars: Francis Ford Coppola, William Friedkin, Robert Altman, John G. Avildsen
Votes: 2,800 | Gross: $0.03M
28. The Story of Film: An Odyssey (2011)
Not Rated | 62 min | Documentary, History
A comprehensive history of the medium and art of motion pictures.
Stars: Mark Cousins, Juan Diego Botto, Aleksandr Sokurov, Norman Lloyd
Votes: 4,826
29. The Story of Film: A New Generation (2021)
160 min | Documentary
Mark Cousins offers hope and optimism while he explores different movies and talks about how technology is changing the course of cinema in a new century and how Covid continues the process.
Director: Mark Cousins | Star: Mark Cousins
Votes: 814
30. Visions of Light (1992)
92 min | Documentary, History
Cameramen and women discuss the craft and art of cinematography, illustrating their points with clips from 100 films, from The Birth of a Nation (1915) to Do the Right Thing (1989).
Directors: Arnold Glassman, Todd McCarthy, Stuart Samuels | Stars: Conrad L. Hall, John Bailey, Vilmos Zsigmond, Charles Lang
Votes: 3,333 | Gross: $0.80M
31. Side by Side (2012)
Not Rated | 99 min | Documentary
The documentary investigates the history, process and workflow of both digital and photochemical film creation.
Director: Christopher Kenneally | Stars: Derek Ambrosi, Michael Ballhaus, Andrzej Bartkowiak, Dion Beebe
Votes: 13,713 | Gross: $0.03M
32. Lost in La Mancha (2002)
R | 89 min | Documentary
Terry Gilliam's doomed attempt to get his film, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote (2018), off the ground.
Directors: Keith Fulton, Louis Pepe | Stars: Terry Gilliam, Johnny Depp, Jeff Bridges, Tony Grisoni
Votes: 11,996 | Gross: $0.73M
33. Lumière and Company (1995)
Not Rated | 88 min | Documentary, Drama
40 international directors were asked to make a short film using the original Cinematographe invented by the Lumière brothers.
Directors: Theodoros Angelopoulos, Vicente Aranda, John Boorman, Youssef Chahine, Alain Corneau, Costa-Gavras, Raymond Depardon, Francis Girod, Peter Greenaway, Lasse Hallström, Hugh Hudson, Gaston Kaboré, Abbas Kiarostami, Cédric Klapisch, Andrey Konchalovskiy, Spike Lee, Claude Lelouch, Bigas Luna, Sarah Moon, Arthur Penn, Lucian Pintilie, Helma Sanders-Brahms, Jerry Schatzberg, Nadine Trintignant, Fernando Trueba, Liv Ullmann, Jaco Van Dormael, Régis Wargnier, Wim Wenders, Yoshishige Yoshida, Yimou Zhang, Merzak Allouache, Gabriel Axel, Michael Haneke, James Ivory, Patrice Leconte, David Lynch, Ismail Merchant, Claude Miller, Idrissa Ouedraogo, Jacques Rivette | Stars: Pernilla August, Max von Sydow, Merzak Allouache, Jeffe Alperi
Votes: 3,347
34. Hitchcock/Truffaut (2015)
PG-13 | 79 min | Documentary
Filmmakers discuss how Francois Truffaut's 1966 book "Cinema According to Hitchcock" influenced their work.
Director: Kent Jones | Stars: Wes Anderson, Peter Bogdanovich, David Fincher, Bob Balaban
Votes: 7,175 | Gross: $0.30M
35. Life Itself (2014)
R | 121 min | Documentary, Biography
The life and career of the renowned film critic and social commentator, Roger Ebert.
Director: Steve James | Stars: Roger Ebert, Chaz Ebert, Gene Siskel, Martin Scorsese
Votes: 16,245 | Gross: $0.81M
36. Lightning Over Water (1980)
91 min | Documentary
Wim Wenders abandons the shoot of one of his own films in order to help his friend and fellow director Nicholas Ray create his swan song before he dies.
Directors: Nicholas Ray, Wim Wenders | Stars: Gerry Bamman, Ronee Blakley, Pierre Cottrell, Stefan Czapsky
Votes: 1,500
37. Spielberg (2017 TV Movie)
TV-MA | 147 min | Documentary, Biography
A documentary on Steven Spielberg, filmmaker. Includes interviews with relatives, film critics, peers and people who have worked with him.
Director: Susan Lacy | Stars: Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Richard Dreyfuss, Bill Butler
Votes: 8,291
38. Eraserhead Stories (2001 Video)
85 min | Documentary
The enduring hope that humanity may or may not persevere. A tale of love and abandonment.
Director: David Lynch | Stars: Catherine E. Coulson, David Lynch, Jack Nance
Votes: 575
39. Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond (2017)
TV-MA | 94 min | Documentary
A behind-the-scenes look at how Jim Carrey adopted the persona of idiosyncratic comedian Andy Kaufman on the set of Man on the Moon (1999).
Director: Chris Smith | Stars: Jim Carrey, Danny DeVito, Milos Forman, Peter Bonerz
Votes: 27,967
40. Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films (2014)
R | 106 min | Documentary, Biography, History
The history of the independent film company, The Cannon Film Group, Inc..
Director: Mark Hartley | Stars: Sam Firstenberg, David Paulsen, Luigi Cozzi, Menahem Golan
Votes: 5,990
41. Score (2016)
Not Rated | 93 min | Documentary, Music
A look at the cinematic art of the film musical score, and the artists who create them.
Director: Matt Schrader | Stars: Marco Beltrami, Jon Burlingame, Leonard Maltin, Bill Field
Votes: 4,868 | Gross: $0.10M
42.
Cinéma, de notre temps (1989– )
Episode:
Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater
(2013)
Not Rated | 70 min | Documentary
In 1985, filmmaker Richard Linklater began a film screening society in Austin, Texas, that aimed to show classic art-house and experimental films to a budding community of cinephiles and ... See full summary »
Director: Gabe Klinger | Stars: Sandra Adair, James Benning, Richard Linklater
Votes: 182
43. Best Worst Movie (2009)
Not Rated | 93 min | Documentary, Comedy
A look at the making of the film Troll 2 (1990) and its journey from being crowned the "worst film of all time" to a cherished cult classic.
Director: Michael Paul Stephenson | Stars: George Hardy, Pita Ray, Micki Knox, Tommy Bice
Votes: 8,522 | Gross: $0.10M
44. Ray Harryhausen: Special Effects Titan (2011)
Not Rated | 90 min | Documentary, Biography
The life and work of the renowned film visual effects artist and producer.
Director: Gilles Penso | Stars: Ray Harryhausen, Peter Jackson, Terry Gilliam, Guillermo del Toro
Votes: 1,364
45. 78/52 (2017)
Not Rated | 91 min | Documentary
An unprecedented look at the iconic shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (1960), the "man behind the curtain", and the screen murder that profoundly changed the course of world cinema.
Director: Alexandre O. Philippe | Stars: Marli Renfro, Alfred Hitchcock, Tere Carrubba, Alan Barnette
Votes: 3,869 | Gross: $0.04M
46. Five Came Back (2017)
TV-14 | 60 min | Documentary, Biography, History
The wartime contributions of five prominent Hollywood film directors during World War II are profiled.
Stars: Francis Ford Coppola, Steven Spielberg, Meryl Streep, Guillermo del Toro
Votes: 5,271
47. Harold and Lillian: A Hollywood Love Story (2015)
94 min | Documentary, Biography
Harold and Lillian eloped to Hollywood in 1947, where they became the film industry's secret weapons. Nobody talked about them, but everybody wanted them. Theirs is the greatest story never told-until now.
Director: Daniel Raim | Stars: Lillian Michelson, Harold Michelson, Bill Krohn, Stuart Cornfeld
Votes: 939
48. Faces Places (2017)
PG | 94 min | Documentary, Adventure
Director Agnes Varda and photographer/muralist J.R. journey through rural France and form an unlikely friendship.
Directors: JR, Agnès Varda | Stars: Agnès Varda, JR, Jeannine Carpentier, Clemens Van Dungern
Votes: 13,580 | Gross: $0.95M
49. The Beaches of Agnès (2008)
Not Rated | 112 min | Documentary, Biography
Agnès Varda explores her memories, mostly chronologically, with photographs, film clips, interviews, reenactments, and droll, playful contemporary scenes of her narrating her story.
Director: Agnès Varda | Stars: Agnès Varda, André Lubrano, Blaise Fournier, Vincent Fournier
Votes: 4,778 | Gross: $0.24M
50. Henri-Georges Clouzot's Inferno (2009)
Not Rated | 100 min | Documentary
Henri-Georges Clouzot's unfinished masterpiece, Inferno (1964), is reconstructed in this film which is part drama and part documentary.
Directors: Serge Bromberg, Ruxandra Medrea | Stars: Romy Schneider, Bérénice Bejo, Serge Reggiani, Jacques Gamblin
Votes: 1,999 | Gross: $0.02M
51. Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound (2019)
Unrated | 94 min | Documentary
An exploration of the history and emotional power of cinema sound, as revealed by legendary sound designers and visionary directors, via interviews, clips from movies, and a look at their actual process of creation and discovery.
Director: Midge Costin | Stars: Gary Rydstrom, Steven Spielberg, Teresa Eckton, Thomas A. Edison
Votes: 2,237
52. Tales of the Uncanny (2020)
104 min | Documentary
A documentary exploring the subject of horror anthology movies.
Director: David Gregory | Stars: Ashim Ahluwalia, Chris Alexander, Joko Anwar, Mariano Baino
Votes: 206
53. Clapboard Jungle: Surviving the Independent Film Business (2020)
98 min | Documentary
Following five years in the life and career of an independent filmmaker, supported by dozens of interviews, posing one question: how does an indie filmmaker survive in the current film business?
Director: Justin McConnell | Stars: Chris Alexander, Dave Alexander, Chad Archibald, Charles Band
Votes: 236
54. Light & Magic (2022)
TV-14 | 60 min | Documentary, History
Showcasing the people of Industrial Light and Magic, the special effects division of Lucasfilm, this series takes us back in time as they create the effects for some of the biggest and most successful films of the last 45 years.
Stars: George Lucas, Dennis Muren, Lorne Peterson, Ron Howard
Votes: 3,204
55. Boulevard! A Hollywood Story (2021)
85 min | Documentary
Dickson Hughes and Richard Stapley, two young songwriters and romantic partners, find themselves caught in movie star Gloria Swanson's web when she hires them to write a musical version of "Sunset Boulevard."
Director: Jeffrey Schwarz | Stars: Muhammad Ali, Steve Allen, Brooke Anderson, Julie Andrews
Votes: 234
56. Creation is Violent: Anecdotes on Kinski's Final Years (2021)
81 min | Documentary
Interviews with associates of Klaus Kinski in his final years offer anecdotal evidence of his fragile state of mind and deteriorating work ethic.
Director: Josh Johnson | Stars: Gabriel Bartalos, Mario Caiano, Augusto Caminito, Debora Caprioglio
Votes: 37
57. What She Said: The Art of Pauline Kael (2018)
98 min | Documentary, Biography
A portrait of the work and life of controversial film critic Pauline Kael, and her battle to achieve success and influence in the 20th century movie business.
Director: Rob Garver | Stars: Pauline Kael, John Guare, David Edelstein, Greil Marcus
Votes: 1,030
58. Kubrick by Kubrick (2020)
65 min | Documentary
A rare and transcendent journey into the life and films of the legendary Stanley Kubrick like we've never seen before, featuring a treasure trove of unearthed interview recordings from the master himself.
Director: Gregory Monro | Stars: Stanley Kubrick, Michel Ciment, Malcolm McDowell, Jack Nicholson
Votes: 2,607
59. Fellinopolis (2020)
78 min | Documentary
Fellini behind the curtains, observing the great director through the eyes and the lenses of Ferruccio Castronuovo, Fellini's trusted partner, who filmed him between the '76 and '86.
Director: Silvia Giulietti | Stars: Ferruccio Castronuovo, Federico Fellini, Dante Ferretti, Norma Giacchero
Votes: 106
60. Friedkin Uncut (2018)
Not Rated | 107 min | Documentary, Biography, History
In this documentary, the hotshot director of The Exorcist (1973) and The French Connection (1971), now 83 years old, is interviewed about his career, and a number of his colleagues and admirers weigh in with reminiscences and tributes.
Director: Francesco Zippel | Stars: William Friedkin, Wes Anderson, Dario Argento, Samuel Blumenfeld
Votes: 1,134
61. Werner Herzog: Radical Dreamer (2022)
102 min | Documentary
Documentary presents a comprehensive portrait of an iconic artist of our time.
Director: Thomas von Steinaecker | Stars: Werner Herzog, Chloé Zhao, Joshua Oppenheimer, Patti Smith
Votes: 564
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