I asked ChatGPT “Which british screenwriters working in drama also write documentaries?”

ChatGPT said:

Several notable British screenwriters are known for both dramatic works and documentaries, often blending the storytelling techniques of fiction with the realism of documentary. Here are some key figures:

1. Peter Kosminsky

• Dramas: Known for hard-hitting dramas like The Government Inspector, Wolf Hall, and The State.
• Documentaries and Docudramas: Kosminsky’s work often blurs the line between drama and documentary, especially in docudramas that closely examine political and social issues, such as The Promise and Britz. His background in current affairs has informed his scripted works, which often feel as deeply researched as documentaries.

2. Paul Greengrass

• Dramas: Greengrass is known for high-intensity dramas such as United 93 and Captain Phillips, which are based on real events and noted for their realism.
• Documentary-Influenced Style: Although primarily a director, Greengrass often collaborates on his scripts, using a documentary-style approach, including handheld cameras and improvised dialogue, to achieve a sense of immediacy and authenticity. His early career in documentary television at ITV’s World in Action influenced his approach to narrative filmmaking.

3. Jimmy McGovern

• Dramas: McGovern is acclaimed for gritty dramas such as Cracker, The Street, and Broken.
• Documentary-Style Realism: While not a documentary filmmaker per se, McGovern often writes dramas inspired by real-life events and social issues. His work is marked by a journalistic attention to social justice themes, and he has collaborated on projects that bring documentary techniques into fictional settings.

4. Abi Morgan

• Dramas: Morgan is known for The Hour, Suffragette, and The Iron Lady, blending factual bases with dramatic storytelling.
• Documentaries and Docudrama Projects: Although primarily a dramatist, her works often feature real historical figures or events, such as Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady. She has a documentary-like approach to characters and storylines, researching extensively to bring authenticity to her subjects.

5. Michael Winterbottom

• Dramas: Winterbottom’s work includes The Road to Guantanamo, 24 Hour Party People, and Welcome to Sarajevo.
• Documentaries and Hybrid Films: Known for his versatility, Winterbottom often blends fictional narratives with documentary techniques. The Road to Guantanamo, for instance, is a docudrama that tells the story of three British detainees at Guantanamo Bay, mixing interviews with dramatized scenes for a raw and realistic impact.

6. Sally Wainwright

• Dramas: Creator of Happy Valley, Last Tango in Halifax, and Gentleman Jack.
• Documentary Roots and Influence: Wainwright has primarily worked in drama, but her careful attention to regional and social realism is rooted in documentary-like research. Gentleman Jack, for instance, is based on the diaries of the real-life Anne Lister, blending historical fact with dramatic storytelling.

7. David Hare

• Dramas: Hare is known for Collateral, The Hours, and The Reader.
• Documentary-Inspired Works: Hare’s dramas often touch on real-life events, political issues, and social injustices, informed by meticulous research. His play Stuff Happens examines the lead-up to the Iraq War using a documentary-style format, blending real and fictionalized dialogue for a powerful effect.

8. Adam Curtis

• Documentaries and Docudramas: Known for his unconventional, thought-provoking documentaries like The Century of the Self, HyperNormalisation, and Can’t Get You Out of My Head. Curtis’s work, although purely documentary, is often compared to dramatic storytelling for its strong narrative structure and thematic depth.

These screenwriters frequently bring documentary-level depth to their storytelling, even when working within dramatic formats, reflecting real-world events, social issues, and authentic character portrayals.

I replied: but which British screenwriters actually write screenplays for documentaries?

ChatGPT said:

Here are some British screenwriters who not only work in drama but also write or co-write screenplays specifically for documentaries:

1. Adam Curtis

• Known For: Curtis is perhaps the most prominent British screenwriter and director working specifically in documentaries, with a style that combines archival footage, narration, and a distinct, narrative-driven screenplay. His well-known works include The Century of the Self, The Power of Nightmares, HyperNormalisation, and Can’t Get You Out of My Head. Curtis uses his scripts to weave complex stories about politics, psychology, and social trends, making him a standout in documentary storytelling.

2. Peter Kosminsky

• Known For: Kosminsky started his career in documentaries and continues to bring a documentary sensibility to his work, even in drama. He wrote and directed documentaries like The Falklands War: The Untold Story and Afghan Aftermath. Kosminsky’s approach often involves intensive research and interviews, and he structures his documentaries with a dramatic screenplay quality, focusing on real-life narratives that he later brought into his drama work.

3. Nick Broomfield

• Known For: Broomfield is a documentary filmmaker whose work often involves a written structure that guides his interviews and explorations. His well-known documentaries include Kurt & Courtney, Biggie & Tupac, and Whitney: Can I Be Me. While much of his style is observational and improvised, Broomfield does write outlines and sequences to structure his explorations, giving his work a screenplay-like foundation.

4. Louis Theroux

• Known For: While primarily known as a presenter and interviewer, Theroux is also credited as a writer for his documentaries, as he often outlines his films’ structure, narrative arc, and questions in advance. His documentaries, including My Scientology Movie, Louis and the Nazis, and his When Louis Met… series, have a written structure that allows for a semi-scripted exploration of controversial subjects.

5. Kevin Macdonald

• Known For: Macdonald writes and directs both dramas and documentaries, such as One Day in September, Touching the Void, and Whitney. His work in documentaries involves scriptwriting, particularly in structuring archival footage, interviews, and narration to build compelling narratives. One Day in September, for instance, combines his narrative screenplay skills with factual storytelling to recount the 1972 Munich Olympics tragedy.

6. Asif Kapadia

• Known For: Kapadia, who is both a director and a writer, gained acclaim for his documentary films Senna, Amy, and Diego Maradona. His approach to documentaries involves extensive scripting, especially in editing and structuring archival footage to tell a cohesive, engaging story. Kapadia’s documentary screenplays use real footage to create a narrative arc typical of scripted drama.

7. John Battsek

• Known For: Battsek is a producer who often collaborates with writers on documentary screenplays. His projects include Searching for Sugar Man, The Imposter, and One Day in September. Though he is not always the primary writer, he plays a key role in developing the screenplay or narrative structure of the documentaries he produces, often collaborating with screenwriters to build compelling, structured narratives.

8. Carol Morley

• Known For: Morley is both a writer and director, creating hybrid documentary-dramas as well as pure documentaries. Her work includes Dreams of a Life and The Alcohol Years, which blend her writing skills with a documentary framework. Morley’s documentaries often begin with a written narrative plan or script, exploring complex subjects with a focus on story structure and character depth.

9. Clio Barnard

• Known For: Barnard works across drama and documentary, often blending the two. Her film The Arbor is a hybrid documentary-drama that tells the story of playwright Andrea Dunbar using actors to lip-sync interviews. This innovative screenplay approach gives The Arbor the feel of a scripted drama while maintaining documentary authenticity.

These writers create screenplays specifically for documentaries, using scripted structures and narrative techniques that give their factual works the impact of drama. By combining archival footage, interviews, and structured narration, they craft compelling documentary screenplays that engage audiences while adhering to real-life stories.