The Full Frame Documentary Film Festival is the largest film festival in the United States entirely devoted to documentary film. An international event dedicated to the theatrical exhibition of non-fiction cinema, the Festival is held annually for four days in the Spring in downtown Durham, North Carolina. Typically, more than 100 films are screened, along with discussions, panels, and workshops fostering conversation between filmmakers, film professionals and the public. The Full Frame Archive comprises preservation masters of documentary films that won awards at the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival (formerly DoubleTake Film Festival) between 1998 and 2010. Formats include 35mm film, 16mm film, Digital Betacam cassette, HDCAM cassette, Betacam SP cassette, and DVD. In addition, there is a complete set of festival program books. While all are documentary films, some may also be considered belonging to the genres of biographical nonfiction, ethnographic, ethnic nonfiction and music. Feature, short and animation forms are all represented. The films vary widely in topic and style, with a predominant emphasis on human rights issues. All of the films deal with social issues in one way or another, including topics such as gender; family relations; education; life cycles (childhood, aging, death, etc.); crime and justice; minority groups and discrimination; public health; humanitarian aid; technology and social life; migration; democracy; economic development; war and conflict; peace and healing; art and society; religion; rehabilitation; etc. Competition for awards has always been international; though the majority of award-winners are from and about the United States, the collection is also notably strong on topics relating to Africa and the Middle East. Only films completed within one year of the festival were eligible for competition, thus all are contemporary to the festival date. The number and type of awards given at the Festival changed from year to year; thus, each year is represented by a different number of films, selected according to varying criteria. The Archive was begun in late 2007 and acquisitions are ongoing. The films are donated by the filmmaker and/or copyright holder. Although the intent is to eventually preserve every Full Frame award winner, this may not be possible, as some copyright holders may decline to donate their work.
