Check Out Durham’s Full Frame Documentary Festival
Documentaries are a nice change of pace from your average movie-going experience. Instead of escaping reality, documentaries give us a chance to examine it, often from a fresh perspective. It’s why works as intimate as Jiro Dreams of Sushi to those as broad as The Civil War have found renewed interest on Netflix and Hulu.
This April, Durham celebrates the art of the documentary with the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival. This 20-year tradition runs from April 6-9, and is definitely worth checking out.
About the Festival
Full Frame hosts nearly 100 documentary films from back home and around the world. Films are complemented by Q&A panels and discussions, and run from “morning to midnight.”
In the four days it runs, Full Frame essentially takes over most downtown venues. Films will be screened at the Durham Convention Center, the Carolina Theatre, the Durham Arts Council, and the Power Plant at the ATC.
Full passes are sold out, but you can rush the last minute line or buy tickets to individual films online. There are also free screenings running in Durham Central Park – right next to us! – on the nights of the 7th and 8th, perfect for a Spring evening out.
Film Highlights
Balloonfest: a darkly funny tale of misguided intentions, Balloonfest chronicles the 1986 release of 500,000 balloons above Cleveland. Originally a charity event, the balloons caused devastating environmental impact, traffic problems, and even death.
The Force: fresh from Sundance, The Force is a look inside the Oakland police department as it attempts to reform itself amidst increased police scrutiny and high crime rates.
One October: after a turbulent 2016 election, One October takes us back to 2008. Here, interviews on the streets of New York reveal the power and permanency of uncertainty. One October is making its world premiere at Full Frame.
Plastic China: somewhere in the Chinese countryside, two families live next to and work in a giant recycling plant. The film juxtaposes these images – nature and the refuse of civilization – with hardworking people who dream of a better life.
They Took Them Alive: in September 2014, 43 young men were kidnapped from a bus in rural Mexico, on its way to a protest. A tale of government cover-ups and conflicting narratives, They Took Them Alive makes its world premiere in Durham.