A seven day film festival showing a diverse range of documentaries directed by filmmakers from all over the world.
By Roshan Farazad
Film still from "Circo." Photo provided by Silverdocs.
The eighth annual AFI-Discovery Channel Silverdocs Documentary Festival is taking place from June 21-27, in the Washington D.C. area. The Festival, an internationally renowned event, will be showing 102 films from 54 countries across the globe that will address the issues of war, peace, migration, politics, pop culture, and globalization. Created by a joint-effort between AFI and the Discovery Channel, Silverdocs embraces diverse documentaries and supports freedom of expression to help enrich our understanding of the world. Over 1,200 filmmakers and industry professionals will join the audience to view the films created by highly respected documentarians. AFI-Discovery Channel has released the full slate of films, 14 of which are nominated for Academy Awards. Some of the highlights of the Festival include:
- Opening Night: The highly anticipated film, “Freakonomics,” based on the best-selling book written by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner, explores human behavior with interesting results.
- A series of retrospective films directed by Frederick Wiseman, the Festival’s Guggenheim Symposium honoree.
- “Freedom Riders,” directed by Stanley Nelson, exposes segregation in the south in the 60s. “The People vs. George Lucas,” directed by Alexandre O. Phillipe, examines the relationship between Lucas’s work and his many fans. “South of the Border,” directed by the award-winning Oliver Stone, interviews five South American heads of state and explores Stone’s idea of how the media is misrepresenting them.
- Panel discussions that will address diverse topics with filmmakers and media professionals. Extended panels will focus on global peacemaking.
- A five day International Documentary Conference honoring excellence in filmmaking, with speakers including FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski and noted national political correspondent and author Juan Williams. Williams will be speaking about “The Power of Documentary to Engage and Enrich.”
To purchase tickets for the Festival click here.
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Film still from "Last Train Home." Photo provided by Silverdocs.
Film still from "Freakonomics." Photo provided by Silverdocs.
Film still from "The Kids Grow Up." Photo provided by Silverdocs.
