Actuality Abroad — See the world through a different lens.

Documentary Outreach

The best way to learn documentary storytelling is to make one.

Actuality Abroad leads small crews of filmmakers, journalists, and photographers on four-week documentary travel experiences around the world. On each trip, the crew works alongside locally-led organizations to research, develop, and produce short documentaries entirely on location.

Guatemala

Vietnam

Cambodia

Costa Rica

Belize

India

Nepal

Mexico

Testimonials

What they say about the experience.

★★★★★

I'm not the same person going out of it as I was going in. The work is hard. The relationships you build — with your crew and with your protagonists — are real. I didn't expect that.

Rosie Robinson

Documentary Outreach · Vietnam

★★★★★

I think I learned more in those three weeks than I did all of the last two semesters in university. I really liked having the opportunity to play multiple roles in the movie making process that I might not have been able to try anywhere else.

Samuel Scott

Documentary Outreach · Guatemala

★★★★★

Someone coming from a non-film school background, I didn't have a lot in the way of technical film production education. After this trip I feel much more well educated, and gained experience that I will carry with me for the rest of my career.

Samuel Mitchell

Documentary Outreach

Read all reviews →

The Experience

What happens on location.

Filming a protagonist on a walk, Guatemala

Week One

Research

You arrive and get straight to work. From the first day, the crew is in the field: briefings, screenings, hands-on exercises, pre-interviews, time spent with the people and places you will eventually film. You are not assigned a story, you go looking for one. By the end of the week you have a protagonist and a story you want to spend the next three weeks telling.

Week Two

Prep

Turn what you have learned into a working plan. With your crew you shape the story, build an outline, and map out how it will be told. Before moving into the main film, you produce a short micro-documentary together. You learn how your crew communicates, makes decisions, and works under pressure before the stakes get higher.

Filming an interview in central park, Costa Rica

Week Three

Production

You are in it. Filming real life as it unfolds, working with your protagonist and collaborators, making creative decisions in the field as things shift around you. Each evening, the crew reviews the day's work, gets feedback, and adjusts. The story begins to take shape.

Recording audio on the Río Pacuare, Costa Rica

Week Four

Editorial

You bring it together. From rough cut to picture lock, with the Production Manager alongside you the whole way. The film screens publicly at the end of the trip, for the community and for the people who trusted you with their story. You leave with a finished documentary and a production process you can lead on your next project.

How to Join

Just three steps to
getting on the crew.

Apply

Submit your application.

Tell us about yourself, your background, and why you want to do this work. No prior documentary experience required. We're looking for people who are curious, committed, and serious about the work.

Interview

Schedule a video call and get every question answered.

We speak with every applicant before extending an invitation to travel with us. It is a chance for us to learn about your goals, and for you to find out exactly what you are committing to.

Join

Accept your invitation and make your plans to travel.

Once you are invited, we help you prepare for everything: logistics, what to bring, what to expect on the ground. By the time you land, you know your crew and you know the plan.

Apply Now

See the world through a different lens.

The best way to learn documentary storytelling is to make one.

What they say about the experience.