A FLY ON YOUR WALL?

Should an organisation ever let a TV production company tell its story?

I’ve been thinking about documentaries quite a bit recently, in particular their power to shape public perception.

Netflix and Rogan Productions recently released Grenfell: Uncovered, a sensitive and insightful retelling of the terrible tragedy that unfolded on the night of 14th June 2017, resulting in the deaths of 72 people. Having worked with Crest Advisory to support the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s communications, I had already seen part of the documentary earlier this year and was keen to watch it in full. As you’d expect, the film is painfully moving; the horror of watching an entire building being destroyed by a fire of such speed and ferocity never subsides. The courage of the survivors and firefighters who relive their experiences for Grenfell: Uncovered warrants the focus that has since been overshadowed at times by coverage of Covid-19, global affairs and other stories. This was despite the tenacity and expertise of journalists including Inside Housing’s Peter Apps, author of Show Me the Bodies: How We Let Grenfell Happen, a major contributor to the documentary who tracked every aspect of the incident and its aftermath. Grenfell: Uncovered will bring the stories of many of those who lost their lives to a global audience and, I hope, raise awareness of many urgent building safety risks still to be addressed.

On a slightly lighter note, there’s ‘Thames Water: Inside the Crisis’, a two-part BBC documentary series. I’ll admit that before I watched this, the prospect of metaphorically immersing myself in the world of water treatment centres and the effluent that ends up there would have scored just above root canal treatment on my list of favourite pastimes. However, as someone who deals in the complexities of crisis PR, I thought I’d better take the plunge (sorry!) There’s no doubt that the fly-on-the-wall exploration of Thames Water’s day-to-day operations against the backdrop of its £22 billion debt crisis made for hugely compelling viewing, but was the company right to embark on a documentary?

Exploring this question in full could take a while but I’d suggest that while there were some clear PR benefits, the programme's potential to fix Thames Water's beleaguered reputation was always going to be limited. Seeing frontline workers doing difficult, dirty and often thankless jobs may have enhanced our understanding of the company's challenges but it could never obscure the critical question of why huge bonuses continued to be paid to shareholders at the cost of urgent and essential infrastructure works. It’s a question that is unavoidable given that we now have dangerously polluted waterways caused by a system that isn’t fit for purpose, but which was treated as no more than a pesky detail by the executives we met in the programme: raised because it had to be, minimised immediately and ultimately sidestepped.

This is the first consideration for any organisation thinking about participating in a documentary: if you do it, you’re all in. Difficult questions will be asked and while unconvincing or revealing answers might make for great TV, they may not be so great for your reputation. Here are some other considerations:

1) Has it been commissioned yet? The production company may just be sounding out willing participants before pitching to a broadcaster for a commission. If so, there’s no guarantee that the programme will ever be made and no certainty about where it might end up if it is. 

2) What’s in it for you? Cut to the chase and examine the risks and benefits of the kind of exposure that comes with a documentary.  Don’t fall into the trap of believing that it will necessarily lead to great PR: no TV company worth its salt is going to produce a free advert for your organisation, so you’ll want to have some honest internal conversations first.

3) When will it be broadcast? While it’s unusual to know a precise transmission date far in advance, you should be able to get a broad sense of timing. Consider longer-term organisational horizons and whether these might be impacted by a documentary at some point in the future.

4) How would your team come across? Giving behind-the-scenes access to a camera crew can affect the reputation of your entire organisation. What might pass for office banter inside the building could look very different to viewers relaxing on their sofas, especially if your internal culture is anything less than watertight.

5) What level of access is required? Will this be a fly-on-the-wall documentary about your organisation, a one-off interview or something in between? Make sure you’re fully sighted on the proposal before reaching a decision. If you get the sense that it might be a fishing expedition by a production team who are looking to go wherever the wind takes them, steer well clear: you could be letting a fox into the henhouse.

6) Do you have the resources? Accommodating a camera crew over a prolonged period comes at a cost. Security protocols for most organisations require visitors to be accompanied at all times, and that’s before the additional time and effort needed for filming interviews and other content.

7) What will your stakeholders make of it? While it can be tempting to see a documentary as a shortcut to the masses, it’s important to think about how your staff and current community might perceive a new take on your operations – and how they’d react to any surprising insights.

8) What’s the production company’s track record? Do your due diligence and go through its back catalogue. If there’s anything that leaves you less than impressed - or if they’re not a fit for your organisation for any other reason - make your excuses.

9) Who else is involved? The answer will deepen your understanding of the company’s objectives for the film. Could other interviewees or participants indicate a controversial angle that you may not have been aware of?

10) Will you get to see the finished product in advance? Generally speaking, full editorial control only applies if you’re paying for advertising. It’s reasonable to expect be able to view your part in a documentary (although not necessarily a stand-alone interview) in the final stages of the editing process so that you can point out any glaring inaccuracies; however, be aware that this is very different from being able to change something that you simply don’t like. Most production companies will see their autonomy over the finished product as a matter of professional integrity.

Finally, the devil is in the detail so make sure that everything is recorded in a written agreement before you throw open your doors to the cameras.