Documentary Filmmaker — 9-Part Short Documentary Series (2-3 min episodes)

I'm looking for an exceptional documentary filmmaker to produce a 9-part short-form documentary series. Each episode is 2-3 minutes, shot and edited at the highest production level. This is not a talking head video project. This is a real documentary series with cinematic quality, intentional storytelling, dramatic tension, music, voiceover, and professional grade everything. The series is called Laptop Life Gone Wrong. Each episode is a war story from my career — high stakes moments when everything went sideways, what happened, and how I came back. The credibility, scale, and proof are embedded naturally in the stories. Think ESPN 30 for 30 — but compressed into 2-3 minutes and built to perform on Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, and TikTok. Who This Is NOT For: If your instinct is to open slowly, build atmosphere, and let the story breathe over 10 minutes — this is not your project. Traditional long-form documentary pacing will kill these videos. We need someone who understands that the rules of short-form content apply even inside a documentary format. You have 10-15 seconds to earn the next 2 minutes. If you can't do that, the episode fails regardless of how good the rest of it is. If your reel is full of corporate testimonials, YouTube vlogs, or slow-burn festival docs, this is not the right fit. What This Requires: 1. You are the filmmaker end to end. You shoot, you direct, and you edit. This is not a project where you hire a camera crew and show up to direct. You own the camera on shoot days, you own the edit suite in post, and you own the final product. We're not looking for a production company or someone who delegates the craft. We're looking for one exceptional person who does all of it at the highest level. 2. True documentary storytelling craft — not just technical skill. You need to know how to take a bullet point list of story details and shape them into something that creates genuine dramatic tension, emotional investment, and a payoff. The subject is a great storyteller. Your job is to translate that into the documentary medium at the highest level. 3. Mastery of the first 10-15 seconds. You need to be obsessive about the hook. Every episode lives or dies in the opening. We will be producing 3 different intro variants per episode for split testing — you need to understand why hooks work and be able to execute multiple angles on the same story opening. Deep fluency in what works on short-form — Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, TikTok. You understand pacing, editing rhythm, music, and visual language for these platforms at a level that makes your work perform, not just look good. 4. Ability to travel. You will come to Puerto Rico to film. You may travel to Florida and potentially other locations. Travel is covered. Experience directing on-camera talent and pulling compelling performances through interview and direction High end camera, lighting, and audio gear 5. Full post-production capability — editing, color grading, music licensing or composition, voiceover integration, motion graphics if needed The Project Structure: We start with episodes 1-3. Each episode has 3 different intro variants (first 10-15 seconds only) for testing — so 3 episodes plus 9 intro variants total in the first phase. If the first three perform we move into episodes 4-6 and then 7-9 using learnings from what worked. Budget: $25,000 for the full 9-episode project. First phase (episodes 1-3 plus intro variants) contracted separately with option to continue based on performance. To Apply: Include links to your best relevant work — specifically anything short-form and documentary in style. Tell me which project you're most proud of and why it works. Tell me exactly how you would approach the first 15 seconds of a 2-3 minute documentary episode that has to stop someone mid-scroll and hold them for the full runtime. If you can't answer that question specifically and compellingly, this is very likely not the project for you. Thank you for reading ✊