Event Preview: AFI-Discovery Channel SILVERDOCS Documentary Festival

AFI-Discovery Channel SILVERDOCS Documentary Festival
June 15 to 22
Washington, D.C.

Launched seven years ago with a mission to celebrate the vision of documentary filmmakers and support diverse voices and free expression, SILVERDOCS presents eight days of programming with 100-plus films from more than 60 countries. Not only does the event serve as a launch pad for independent documentaries, but it also affords international filmmakers access to U.S. audiences.

From its inception, the festival has been a unique alliance between the American Film Institute (AFI) and Discovery Communications, a mighty melding that has given SILVERDOCS some serious clout. "AFI has been a leading cultural institution for 40 years, and is going strong," says Sky Sitney, the event’s artistic director. "When AFI moved its headquarters from Washington, D.C., to downtown Silver Spring, we came together with our neighbors at the Discovery headquarters in a shared vision to honor documentary filmmaking and create a world-class festival that would be a destination for filmmakers and thought-leaders from around the world. David Zaslav, Discovery’s president and CEO, has, since taking the helm in January 2007, greatly achieved his mission of strengthening Discovery’s world-class brands. We’re honored to be Discovery’s partner, and are grateful for his continued support and leadership."

The festival this year opens with the U.S. premiere of Lionsgate’s More than a Game, directed by Kristopher Belman, and closes with the world premiere of the HBO Documentary Film The Nine Lives of Marion Barry, directed by Dana Flor and Toby Oppenheimer. In addition, each year SILVERDOCS honors a filmmaker at the Guggenheim Symposium, celebrating the legacy of legendary documentarian Charles Guggenheim. This year honors the life and work of celebrated documentary filmmaker Albert Maysles.

Concurrent with the festival is the five-day SILVERDOCS International Documentary Conference, attended by more than 1,200 industry professionals. "The conference is an integral part of SILVERDOCS and focuses on the craft and business of documentary storytelling, fostering connections between filmmakers, funders, distributors and broadcasters," says Sitney. "In over 60 panels and workshops, industry experts advise on how to get films funded, distributed and how to adapt to the digital demands of new technology. Panels run the gamut from ‘Doc Talks’ with industry professionals to discussions on the economy, the future of documentary filmmaking, and other important issues regarding the film business."

This year, the overarching theme of the conference is "Storytelling in an Always On World." Sony Pictures Classics’ co-president and co-founder, Tom Bernard, will be the featured keynote speaker, presenting his view of the changing media landscape in a speech titled "The Future Is Strange."

A further highlight of SILVERDOCS is The Good Pitch, a collaboration between the Channel 4 BRITDOC Foundation and the Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program (DFP). More than 300 filmmaking teams applied to pitch works-in-development to an invited audience of non-governmental organizations, film funds and production companies, eight of which were selected to present their projects in a public forum at SILVERDOCS. The eight projects focus on prescient socially oriented issues, such as same-sex marriage, oil drilling, world hunger, the Israel-Palestine conflict and the digital generation. "Good Pitch director Katie Bradford has made the point that it is really exciting to have this tour coming to Washington, D.C., the nation’s capital, where so much attention is given to policy change—and where films that matter are screened in front of an audience that can make a difference."