Turn on ye ole Javascript to add ratings in this low-budg app.

Animating Reality: The New Frontier for Documentary

1. How can it be a documentary if it's animated?
2. Is it problematic for festival programmers to program "cartoons" that contain adult/difficult subject matter?
3. Does adding a level of abstraction give documentary film-makers a greater responsibility to their subjects' participation?
4. Who is the audience for an animated documentary? Are they still considered too experimental for studio financing/private equity investment/mainstream audiences?
5. How can/do documentary film-makers tap into the marketing power of audiences already primed to process ideas/issues/grief/excitement in a public forum with social networking sites like Twitter, Facebook, etc?
6. How are animated docs positioned to succeed or fail in new distribution models? (For ex: they tend to be shorter thus are more cost effective for digital models. They are also inherent niche markets both in terms of doc subject matter & animation fans)
7. Docs are moving into the cross-promotional video game/web apps arena at a much faster rate than narratives with comparable budgets. How soon could we see a console game based on an animated doc? How do we take advantage of this new platform?
8. Theatrical releases are tough for docs, most distributors/film-makers/producers are looking to new distribution models to reach audiences. Should animated documentaries be taking the plunge into 3-d as a way to revitalize documentary theatrical presence?
9. Some docmakers would like to repurpose existing footage & music, but are afraid of the legal consequences. Are changes in IP law something our community should be more engaged in? Or do we leave law to the lawyers & let our work reflect current realities?
10. For programming and awards, where categories are often either/or, should animated docs be considered animations or documentaries?