Mastering the Art of Storytelling: Reflections on a Masterclass with Brett Morgen

Listening to Brett Morgen speak about his creative process was a refreshing experience, as we got a look inside his madly creative mind. In this 4-day masterclass, Brett generously shared behind-the-scenes information about the production of his most recent films, including his BAFTA-nominated film Moonage Daydream, a 2-hour immersive documentary about musician David Bowie.

Main takeaways

There were several nuggets of wisdom that really inspired us in the masterclass, but these are some that really made an impact on me:

1. As artists and filmmakers, we should be willing to put ourselves out to the public – get embarrassed, be laughed at, or even ridiculed – because our best works could come from these moments. If we fully commit to our art, these artistic pursuits will eventually come out fairly well. Don’t be afraid to expose your work to the public, because if you find yourself in a place that is uncomfortable, you are most likely in the right place at that moment in your life. So be audacious, and take some risks!

2. If we work with archive footage, we should write down our first impression and emotional reaction to what we are seeing on the footage. We should expound on how we were affected by the footage, as this could also be our guide in how we will edit the film – on how we’ll choose the images and create a unique experience for the viewer and how information will be presented in the most creative way.

3. Among Morgen’s ideas, this is what struck me the most: “That which we don’t have is not a curse, but a blessing.” There will be times when filmmakers won’t have the footage to use in telling their stories, but instead of looking at it from a negative perspective, find an opportunity to be creative. In his film Cobain: Montage of Heck, there were sequences where he didn’t have the right material. Morgen pushed himself to think more creatively about how to tell this story, and this ended with animated sequences that were innovative, visionary, and artistically excellent. For Brett, creating these montages is a way of making something out of things – that if we are able to put things together in the right order with the right film elements, we will be able to create impactful stories, despite the limitations.

MFA Documentary Cinema students with Brett Morgen.

It was a privilege listening to a madly creative genius who has produced some of the best music documentaries we have now. Morgen may have some controversial takes on documentary production, but as he said himself, we should take what he said to us as grains of salt – picking what could be useful to us and rejecting what might not be in line with how we think as filmmakers.

Having Brett Morgen’s masterclass was an amazing way to end our first term in the program, all thanks to the faculty of the MFA in Documentary Cinema program at the Tisch School for Film and Television at Tel Aviv University.