While ideas for documentaries abound, the key to realizing the idea is the development of the idea into a doable, sellable, and compelling documentary treatment or proposal. This course is for writers, producers, directors and independent filmmakers who have a documentary project they want to develop, write, and sell. The workshop provides an overview of the process by which documentary ideas become films. Students learn what works and what does not, and instruction covers how to research a story, outline the ideas, develop the treatment, structure a documentary, introduce and develop characters. In addition to participating in lectures, screenings, readings, and one-on-one consults with the instructor, students practice pitching their projects in class for critique. Students write every day. The class covers a wide range of documentary forms and style, including nature and science, social and current events, history and biography, and students come away with a firm understanding of how to put their documentary idea into a format that can be marketed and made. A sequel to this course is the Advanced Documentary Development workshop later in the season.