SOMETIMES THE SUBSTORY IS THE MAIN STORY
What if the real story happens on the sidelines?
Nearly ten years of documentary work. Two seasons have already been released, and a third is in production. With UNTOLD DPM, an extensive archive spanning almost a decade of documentary work is being made available to the public for the first time.
UNTOLD DPM is a fly-on-the-wall documentary series and a long-term documentary project about people, lives, and situations that normally remain hidden from outsiders. The approach is observational: close to the people, behind the scenes, and with as little intervention as possible.
But anyone who documents over such a long period of time will eventually discover stories that no one was originally looking for. THE STORIES ON THE EDGE
For almost ten years, UNTOLD DPM's fly-on-the-wall approach has taken us to places and situations that cannot be fully planned.
We came to accompany certain people. But during filming, we kept encountering other people who initially only appeared on the periphery of our actual story.
Some stayed for just a few minutes. Others returned. Encounters blossomed into relationships, supporting characters became protagonists – and seemingly minor stories developed into narratives that were suddenly just as interesting as what was originally supposed to happen in front of the camera.
Some of the most compelling human stories in the UNTOLD DPM archive came about in exactly this way. Martin Dark is one of them. THE MAN BEHIND THE CAMERA
For more than a decade, Martin Dark has worked behind the scenes as a cameraman and photographer. His job usually involves observing and documenting other people – and creating the images through which we see their world.
The cameraman himself almost always remains invisible.
This is a particularly special position in documentary filmmaking. Those who film with people over extended periods are not simply outside their world. Camera operators observe situations, experience developments firsthand, and become witnesses to moments that were often never intended for public consumption.
In a fly-on-the-wall documentary project like UNTOLD DPM, this boundary becomes particularly interesting. Because sometimes the perspective shifts. The observer is observed. And the person behind the camera becomes part of the story.
WHEN A SIDE STORY BECOMES A MAIN STORY
Martin Dark is thus a prime example of something that has increasingly shaped UNTOLD DPM over the years.
Today, the project consists not only of the stories of the people we consciously followed as protagonists. It also includes unexpected encounters, people behind the scenes, relationships, and developments that emerged during filming.
This is precisely one of the special features of a long-term documentary project.
A single day of filming can be planned. A story that develops over years cannot.
People change. Relationships form and disappear. Life situations evolve. People who were originally on the periphery suddenly move into the center.
The archive thus becomes not just a collection of recordings, but a documentary chronicle of people and their changes over a long period of time.
ALMOST TEN YEARS UNTOLD DPM
With UNTOLD DPM, we are now gradually opening this archive to the public.
The documentary series combines fly-on-the-wall documentary footage with behind-the-scenes insights and long-term observation.
The focus is on real people and situations – but increasingly also on the stories that unexpectedly emerged during production.
Two seasons of UNTOLD DPM are already online.
Season 3 is in production. And with it, people and stories that were never originally intended to be in focus are also brought into focus.
Because after almost ten years of documentary work, we know one thing above all:
SOMETIMES THE SUBSTORY IS THE MAIN STORY
UNTOLD DPM
Fly-on-the-Wall documentary series and long-term documentary project
Stream seasons 1 and 2 now at untold-dpm.com
Season 3 in production