PODCAST| Matt Micucci interviews documentary mentor Mikael Opstrup.
An interview with veteran documentary Mikael Opstrup, one of the mentors of the Ex Oriente workshops at the 2019 East Doc Platform in Prague, Czech Republic. Opstrup is the former chairman of the European Documentary Network and currently serves as its head of studies. He has also produced a number of international documentaries in Copenhagen, Denmark, and has worked as tutor at a large number of workshops and forums around the world – including, of course, the Ex Oriente Film Workshop, during which this interview was recorded. In the first part of this interview, we focus on the pitching process: what the pitching is, the do’s and don’ts, the various challenges and possible ways to overcome them. We also talk about the impact that technological evolution has had on the pitching process, production and financing of documentaries. Opstrup also shares with us what, from his point of view, have been the recurring themes as of late in documentary filmmaking, and talks a bit about his work with Ex Oriente.