Documentary filmmakers face a lot of challenges you wouldn't think about at first glance. I've read three articles highlighting the issues they face and how they might be avoided or overcome.
In IDA's Filmmakers' Health article, it lists issues such as “the pressures related to industry-specific issues, such as financial precarity, funding scarcity, and power imbalances produced by the funding system”. The immense pressure to create documentaries while dealing with funding problems and strict schedules is excruciatingly difficult – and it brings a substantial amount of stress. It's important to recognise that filmmakers face mental-health challenges too. As Malikkah Rollins puts it, “mental health and well-being should have been a priority all the way from the beginning of documentary filmmaking.”
Then there are challenges that don't immediately meet the eye – ethical issues. In Honest Truths by CMSI, they discuss how filmmakers are “constrained by fear when openly discussing ethical issues”, as it may expose them to hate or jeopardise current and future jobs. For beginner filmmakers like myself this should be more avoidable, as we're free to be creative and can come up with ethical ideas.
Another, as Variety states, is that “there is a lot of competition”. It's harder than it sounds – it's difficult to make ends meet, hard to keep a lifelong career, hard to get reach, and there's an abundance of unpaid work. That's why it's important to keep branching out to new, interesting topics that competitors haven't covered – though even then, some challenges remain.
To conclude, I've found a wide range of challenges that come with creating documentaries, and they can be hard to navigate – but not impossible. I've also realised that documentary filmmakers are people who really should be prioritised in today's industry.
Sources: IDA – Filmmakers' Health · CMSI – Honest Truths · Variety.