In addition to feature films, Apted has continued directing documentaries, including Bring on the Night, a feature-length concert film about the making of Sting's first solo album. In 1988/9 he directed the documentary The Long Way Home, which chronicled the UK, US and USSR adventures of Boris Grebenshikov, the first Soviet underground musician allowed to record in the West. Before the making of Thunderheart, Apted made the documentary Incident at Oglala about convicted murderer Leonard Peltier. Incident at Oglala then informed Thunderheart in the casting of actors for the fiction film. In 1997, he explored the creative process in Inspirations through candid discussion with seven artists from diverse media, including music, painting, dance, sculpture, and architecture.