Talking Films – A Conversation with Prapti Mittal
-By Pooja Shetty.
Meet Prapti Mittal, an innovative development producer who breathes life into stories worldwide. Prapti Mittal wears many hats in the field of film production, specialising in both nonfiction and fiction genres. As a producer, her prowess lies in establishing strategic business partnerships that propel cinematic visions to reality. She does this by helping bridge the gap between creativity and profitability through pitch decks, development and executive production. Beyond the producer’s chair, Prapti Mittal steps into the directorial realm, with a keen focus on documentary filmmaking. She specialises in social and travel documentaries. This also led her to innovate a new way of storytelling-based travel called “Blackline Expeditions”.
Prapti’s workshops are a treasure trove of industry insights. One of the workshops is about crafting compelling pitch decks and mastering the art of film business communication, her workshops offer a practical industry perspective. Another kind is her documentary workshop which takes the participants through realities of working on-ground. GoCreator is excited to be associated with her for some exciting new workshops. We also had the good fortune to talk to her about her work and the industry, and here are some excerpts from our conversation.
1. Please tell us a little bit about your background and what inspired you to become a documentary filmmaker?
I come from an academic background. My mother is a professor of English Literature, so research, education and storytelling were imbibed in me from a young age. I wanted to grow up to become a professor too, but I felt I needed to do my research “for the masses”. It was during my Master’s in Art History at UCL, London that I found filmmaking and I’ve never looked back. I experimented with quite a few roles in the film industry, from camera department to lighting and electrical to sound department, before finally realising I’m most interested in telling the story, be it fiction or nonfiction. I chose to specialise in documentary filmmaking as a producer and director because it allowed me to experience different places and meet diverse people, so the stories were automatically interesting. With documentaries, I got the privilege to tell stories of those people who might not have the skills or outreach to do so themselves.
2. Could you explain what you mean by the term “film bible” for those who may not be familiar with it, and why is it so important in filmmaking?
Well, a film bible is a document that communicates your creative vision to the people who stand between your story and the possibility of the story being produced. It’s called a bible because it’s the one and only document required to understand the entire story universe, like the Christian Bible is for the story of Christianity (it’s debatable but let’s go with it). As the concept creator, your film bible is so important because the quality of this document conveys to the decision makers (a) what the concept is, (b) what your creative vision is as a filmmaker, and (c) if your idea is profitable. It’s a sales pitch for a film or a series.
3. How does one create a film bible, and what elements should it typically include?
That’s a very difficult question. There are standard elements of a film bible that you can even find online. These include logline, synopsis, characters, story arc, tone, style and approach, etc. You can add the business elements to it as well, like target audience, marketing approach, budgets, etc. However, that is an incomplete way to look at a film bible. The real strength of making the film bible is mastering the act of communication. Communication is between two parties- one is the teller, the other is the listener. In this case, you need to express as much of your authentic self in the bible as possible, while understanding who is sitting on the decision making table, and what they want to hear.
4. What is the concept behind your upcoming workshop, and what can participants/students expect to learn or gain?
The upcoming Film Bible workshop is meant to be an intensive, practical learning experience for participants. We will discuss who needs to make a film bible, and we will discuss who will receive it. Once we establish this, we will discuss what makes a winning film bible and what are the various questions a concept creator needs to answer before starting and during the creation of a film bible. I’ll explain the three main elements that constitute a film bible- text content, visual presentation and pitching with the bible in real life. Lastly, we will discuss causes beyond the film bible that have an impact on the selection process. Participants can, thus, not only gain a greater understanding of the text-and-image-document that is the film bible, but also its role in film industry dynamics.
5. Documentary filmmaking involves a lot of research and planning. How do you guide participants through the pre-production phase of their projects?
This is an interesting question! There are many different genres within the documentary world, and they all require different approaches. Once you analyse and understand those different approaches, research and planning becomes more targeted. E.g. If you are making a character-led film, i.e., where the character themselves is the main focus of the story (like a biopic), then it is clear that we need to dig through their life. On the other hand, if we are finding a character to tell the larger story of a social or cultural issue (like a mental health condition), then it will take time to find the right person who represents the issue well, as well as who is available to shoot with us. There are many different factors at play which are difficult to explain in this short space. You should join our documentary expedition!
6. What are some of the challenges that aspiring documentary filmmakers commonly face, and how will your workshops help them overcome these challenges?
Few of the biggest challenges filmmakers face in documentary filmmaking is understanding what they should film and how they should tell the story. A lot of the ideas that are more in the realm of theoretical than they are practical. My workshops are meant to make participants gain clarity on how to translate those theoretical ideas into a documentary film by choosing the right characters, filming them in action (actuality) and asking the right questions. I also talk about how they can take their documentary as an opportunity to say something which is important to them. In short, my documentary workshops are meant to help filmmakers gain clarity of their own vision and skill themselves with the approach that works best for them.
7. Are there any new trends in documentary filmmaking that you are excited about and feel that everyone should know?
Documentary space is becoming more experimental and I’m all for it. There are documentaries that use fictional dramatisations, that use animation, that use absurdism and so many other techniques which were unheard of earlier. There are documentary podcasts too! There is more space to show one’s individuality as a filmmaker. Rather, it’s now desired. With the coming of streaming platforms, more people are watching documentaries and docu-series. Social media has opened up a whole new generation of filmmakers who create short documentary content. Overall, documentary is no longer that boring piece of information-heavy film that we knew of 20 years ago. Documentary can be anything you want it to be. I think that’s amazing!
8. How do you stay relevant and innovative in your approach to documentary filmmaking and film bible creation?
There’s a simple answer to this one. Keep learning new things and keep treating work as fun. Once I realised every project is an opportunity to show my craft, I started doing something new that I haven’t done before. I have fun with each and every project that comes my way. The more fun I have with a project I’m working on, the better the results have been.
9. What advice do you have for individuals who aspire to become successful documentary filmmakers ?
Do it out of curiosity and keep polishing your skills. Success can mean different things to different people- for some, it can be winning an Oscar, for others, it can be making a lot of money and for yet others, it can be creating a documentary that will be remembered long after you’re gone. All of the above are valid metrics to go by, so define your success very honestly and then study those who have achieved that success before you.
10. What do you hope participants take away from your workshops?
The love for learning itself. I hope participants can take away how important it is to keep learning and upskilling yourself throughout your professional life. It’s the only way to keep with the times.
11. How do you envision the future of filmmaking, especially independent & documentary filmmaking?
I think we are on the verge of a big change in the way that audiovisual content is produced. The generation that is joining the workforce now (or will join in the next decade or so) has a very different relationship with content creation than any previous generation did. Cameras and phones have never before made content creation so accessible. It is only logical that it’s going to change the way that movies and documentaries are produced. The exclusivity that producers had even as little as twenty years ago was based on their access to the big moneys required to produce films. Now, we are at the precipice of that exclusivity ending. In another twenty years, I’m sure we’ll see the topmost levels of audiovisual production (i.e. film and television) become democratised as well.
12. Are you working on anything new ? Any exciting new projects in the pipeline that you are excited about?
There are a couple of different projects that I’m working on. Commercially, I’m developing a docu-series that’s my largest project yet where I get to experiment with fictional dramatisation. On the other hand, I’ve just finished shooting an indie documentary in a conflict-zone which has been a big rush of adrenaline. At the same time, I’ve introduced Blackline Expeditions, 2-6 week travel experiences where documentary filmmaking becomes accessible to everyone who wants to join it. (https://www.studioblackline.co/documentary-expeditions)
13. Do you have a favourite documentary that you have worked on? What makes it so memorable?
Every project I have worked on has been quite special, for one reason or another. It’s difficult to choose from. My association with Royal Enfield and UNESCO for The Great Himalayan Exploration was quite memorable because of it finally reaffirmed why I got into documentary filmmaking in the first place, i.e. to be able to travel extensively, meet with a diversity of people and create something which documents the present for posterity.
14. Finally , How has your association with GoCreator been thus far and what do you think of our platform and how it can help aspiring filmmakers?
I think GoCreator is a great initiative for newcomers and has the potential to bring a positive change in the creative industries. The team being highly experienced in the business and creative domains is very helpful as they understand the lived realities of the people they are trying to help. My association with GoCreator so far has been a really positive experience, where we work together keeping the customer’s, i.e. newcomers’ needs first.