But why are we so captivated? And which documentaries actually deliver a worthy backstage pass? Before you hit play on the next Netflix or Max original, it helps to know what separates a puff piece from a masterpiece. A truly great entertainment industry documentary must possess three core elements: 1. The Unlearning of Magic A bad documentary tries to preserve the magic of movies. A great one explains why the paint is peeling. The best entertainment industry documentaries destroy the fourth wall. They show you the exhausted grip eating cold pizza at 3 AM, the animator crying over a render that failed, and the actor’s crippling insecurity before "Action!"
In the golden age of streaming, we have become obsessed with watching the watchers. While superhero blockbusters and romantic comedies dominate the fiction charts, a quieter, hungrier beast is taking over the non-fiction space: the entertainment industry documentary .
Furthermore, the pandemic created a backlog of stories. For two years, the entertainment industry stopped. Filmmakers used that downtime to raid their hard drives. The result is a surplus of deeply personal, verité-style films that have been sitting in edit bays for decades. Of course, there is a hypocrisy to the entertainment industry documentary. We watch a documentary about the toxic environment of Nickelodeon ( Quiet on Set ) on the very same streaming service that profits from the nostalgia of those shows. There is a voyeuristic thrill in watching a producer cry on camera about a flop, knowing that same producer is currently signing a check for the documentary's distribution rights.
Streamers need content. They also need credibility. By funding a scathing about the dark side of a rival studio or a forgotten genre, they look "edgy" and "authentic."
Whether you are a film student, a casual cinephile, or just someone who likes to watch rich people sweat, this genre has something for you. So cancel your plans, turn off your phone, and queue up a documentary about the chaos behind your favorite movie. The red carpet is nice, but the back alley behind the stage is where the real story lives.
