# Penny Lane Is My Real Name Penny Lane is My Real Name is a newsletter about making art and making a living in documentary film. Page: Feed: --- ## [5 Questions From Tour + 5 Recommendations](https://lennypane.substack.com/p/5-questions-from-tour-5-recommendations) _2026-08-19 · Penny Lane_ Today’s live chat is NOT HAPPENING TODAY due to a scheduling snafu (my bad!), but I’ve got you covered with this midweek bonus post about Q&As, the beauty tax, nonfiction recommendations & more. ## [100% HUMAN](https://lennypane.substack.com/p/100-human) _2026-08-16 · Penny Lane_ An indie filmmaker tries to prove to a machine that she writes her own newsletter. ## [How to make a real person into a character](https://lennypane.substack.com/p/how-to-make-a-real-person-into-a) _2026-08-09 · Penny Lane_ On casting, characterization, and the strange alchemy that makes audiences care about your documentary subjects. (And yes, more ethics.) ## [The Work is the Reward](https://lennypane.substack.com/p/the-work-is-the-reward) _2026-08-02 · Penny Lane_ Opening weekend, and the mental trap of thinking "bloom season" is the only reward. ## [Why Documentaries Can Never Be Escapism (and Why That is Good Actually)](https://lennypane.substack.com/p/why-documentaries-can-never-be-escapism) _2026-07-26 · Penny Lane_ On the eve of releasing a documentary into theaters, I continue to ask, "Are Documentaries Movies?" ## [What Is It Like To Be An Owl?](https://lennypane.substack.com/p/what-is-it-like-to-be-an-owl) _2026-07-19 · Penny Lane_ An owl, a philosopher, and the impossible challenge of documentary filmmaking. ## [Betting on Myself (Again)](https://lennypane.substack.com/p/betting-on-myself-again) _2026-06-28 · Penny Lane_ Twice a year, I disappear for 10 days and try to come up with 10 new ideas for documentaries. Here's why I do it, and how you can too! ## [3 Documentaries for People Who Choose to LOL](https://lennypane.substack.com/p/3-documentaries-for-people-who-choose) _2026-06-21 · Penny Lane_ More funny doc recommendations for anyone who believes comedy is more than just a distraction from reality, but one of the best ways to see it clearly. ## [How to take feedback (without losing your soul)](https://lennypane.substack.com/p/how-to-take-feedback-without-losing) _2026-06-14 · Penny Lane_ Also: I am adding a new subscription tier and perks for paid subscribers! ## [Browse ThreatCrush Modules (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/1G5QSZTrzewr) _2026-06-14 · **Sponsored**_ Install community-built security modules to extend real-time threat intelligence and monitoring ## [Are documentaries movies?](https://lennypane.substack.com/p/are-documentaries-movies) _2026-06-07 · Penny Lane_ Let's be real. We all kinda know they're (mostly) not! But documentary's theatrical crisis might come from misunderstanding what people value about nonfiction in the first place.