Branded documentary toolkit

SUMMARY

This toolkit has been designed to give an introduction to those who are unfamiliar with branded documentary, offering a variety of examples chosen from multiple industries and platforms. Developed by Happenstance Films to support their sponsored session at AMA's Change For Good Conference 2021.

What is branded documentary?

Let’s start with a definition: “Branded documentary is a unique videography approach that is designed to build awareness of a brand or non-profit by associating it with a documentary story that shares its values.” Note that it’s not about selling particular products or services but rather about the awareness-building capabilities of your marketing strategy.

Creative Strategist Ben Mason says, “To do documentaries, you have to say things that genuinely matter.” This is where the arts industry has such an advantage. Your purpose, passions, and the value you give to your audience is naturally strong. Use that to your advantage when thinking about the video content you want to make.

Key details

Branded documentary can be defined as:
• Documentary entertainment produced by organisations. This means getting rid of the idea of video content as advertisement.
• Content you don’t want to skip.
• Marketing made to be sought and not designed to interrupt - this means giving video content purpose and value, and not just making the logo bigger.
• Content that is both a good financial investment for you and a good investment of time for audiences - what do you want to be watching from your favourite brands?
• Content that attracts its own audience instead of buying time to be watched or played.