Documentary First
The Making of Films You'll Love
A weekly podcast from Documentary First Productions,
makers of The Girl Who Wore Freedom.
Discover how documentaries actually get made, paid for and seen
with filmmaker Christian Taylor. Plus DocuView Deja View, where every guest recommends a documentary worth watching.
Our Mission & Vision
DocuView Deja View
Need a documentary to watch tonight?
200+ documentaries our guests recommend, each linked to the episode where it came up.
Picked again and again
Searching for Sugar Man
Picked by Alex Ivany, Andrew Gans and Jonathan de Jong
Three Identical Strangers
Picked by Josh Lindsay, Yvette Amirian and Eric Gardner
Undefeated
Picked by Robbie Davis and Andre N. Jackson
The Thin Blue Line
Picked by Josh Lindsay and Erik Ewers
What people are saying
Listeners keep coming back
“The best film podcast out there.”
Joe Amodei, Virgil Films
Documentaries are far from my own line of work, but I gain insight into story telling, enjoy the variety of perspectives and come away feeling that listening to Christian and her guests was a terrific investment of my time.
Salsa In The MtnsApple Podcasts review
The shorter deep dive episodes are my favorite, because we get to hear how Christian takes something that she heard in the longer interviews and talks about how it applies to her everyday life. Highly recommend this podcast!
Lura B PriebeApple Podcasts review
I loved so much about this! I think that people are crying out for “real” in a world where we are trying to figure out what is real and what isn’t.
@jdstein45YouTube comment
Ratings and reviews help new listeners find the show. Thank you. More ways to support the show
Free guides from the people who make documentaries
Each free guide gathers the lessons one guest shared on Documentary First into a single guide you can keep and come back to. Browse every lesson in the Lessons Library, then get the newest guide free with your email.
Our films
True stories of real people: what they remember, what they overcome, and what they leave behind.
The Girl Who Wore Freedom
Directed by Christian Taylor
An untold love story of two nations. Through the eyes of Dany Patrix and the people of Normandy, the film reveals the bond between the French and the Americans who liberated them in 1944.
Grueling Glory
Directed by Christian Taylor
Hundreds of reenactors march through Carentan, Normandy, to honor 101st Airborne veteran Tom Rice. A story of liberation, remembrance and the people who keep both alive.
In productionHeroes of Carentan
Directed by Christian Taylor
A boy of six when the war reached his doorstep, Yves Marchais is among the last who remember Carentan under occupation and the battle that set it free. Yves carries us back to the 101st Airborne paratroopers who paid for that freedom, before only the record remains.
In productionSo They Might Live Freeworking title
Directed by Christian Taylor
Eighty-two years after the 101st Airborne liberated their villages, the Dutch still say thank you. The last eyewitnesses hand their memories to the next generation, and ask what that remembrance demands of us now.
In developmentThe Brave Dutch
Directed by Christian Taylor
When his bomber went down over the occupied Netherlands on 29 April 1944, Lt. John Low of Laurel, Mississippi, was hidden by Dutch families and resistance fighters on the Veluwe. Drawn from his own account, the film tells the story of the ordinary people who risked everything to save him.
How to Support a Project
Our films are proudly fiscally sponsored by Living Stories Ltd, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to supporting meaningful storytelling. If you'd like to make a tax-deductible donation to support one of our films, please visit their website and designate your gift to the film you'd like to support, or give through that film's own page.