Behind the Scenes: Convening a Writers’ Room

Most people think a documentary begins and ends with interviews a few talking heads that anchor the story. That’s where we began. But as the project has unfolded, we’ve gathered far more material than one film could ever carry. Hours of testimony, years of evidence, and new developments that keep surfacing.

At a certain point, the question becomes: how do we make sense of this?

For us, the answer is to convene a writers’ room. It’s a collaborative space where producers, directors, researchers, and editors test ideas, debate structure, and work out how to honour the truth without overwhelming the audience. We are a small team, and this was a call that had to be made. Too much effort without a clear focus risks diluting the story.

The story itself has to remain simple: the harm that has been done, for decades, to people who were injured at work. That’s where our attention is now narrowing in, so those voices are not lost in just noise or sensationalised. This story has to be grounded and easy to follow such that anyone watching it learns and is informed.

This isn’t promotion. It’s simply part of the process, and we thought some people might be interested in how that process works behind the scenes.