I can still vividly remember a conversation with a rookie True Crime Producer who had just finished a phone call with the mother of a murder victim. Three weeks earlier he had persuaded her to at least consider appearing in a true crime episode. 

Although the crime had been quite a few years earlier the emotional pain and sense of loss was still felt every day by the mom and family. 

In a follow-up call she told the producer that the idea of the episode and her potential on-camera appearance had given her sleepless nights. But she had finally agreed to take part.

However, what she didn't know was that her traumatic ordeal had been completely unnecessary. The broadcast network had quickly rejected the episode for a variety of reasons. The producer, without elaborating, simply told her that the story would not be proceeding and apologized.

This type of scenario - purely through inexperience - was what motivated me to create the True Crime Skills course. There is a "right" time to reach out to relatives. The producer had treated it as though he was researching any type of story. "Here's the story brief with all the names. I'd better start calling them all."

Not Listening

Another common rookie mistake is not paying close attention to what an interviewee is actually saying. In one of my in-depth video interviews seasoned true crime writer Chip Selby talks about a cop stating, "Of course we knew early on that he did it." But the field producer never asked how he knew. The reason for the omission was that it was not on his 20 questions list, which he was ticking off as "done" each time the detective said something... anything.

A Nasty Surprise

Imagine watching TV one night with friends when - without warning - up pops the documentary on your son's brutal murder, which includes drama reenactments. You knew it had been made, but filming was over a year ago. No one from the production company had bothered to call and tell you when it would be airing. An oversight guaranteed to lead to a distressing complaint the next day. 

The Challenges 

The truth is, the biggest problem most people face when entering this specialist field as a Researcher, AP or Producer is that there's usually no formal training and you are relying on a busy colleague for help and guidance. No one teaches you the full picture. Whether it’s learning how to structure a compelling story, understanding how a true crime investigation unfolds, or simply navigating the demands of a fast-paced production environment with FOIA's, risk assessments, hard to get documents and sometimes overlooked legal appeals, rookies are often left struggling to figure it out on their own. And always there is a deadline looming!

I designed this course specifically to help fill those gaps. We explore what makes a compelling story and how to research cases. We then take an episode all the way through the production process, including pitching, outlines, police and family outreach, drama recres, finding archive, edit scripts, teases, outros... and so much more.

I know what it's like to feel unsure in the early stages of your career. With this course (aimed at students, true crime fans, and those already in the media world looking to move into true crime TV or podcasting) my aim is to offer a clear roadmap of what to expect and the foundation to succeed. Knowledge is power.

Truecrimeskills.com

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