Social issue documentaries such as An Inconvenient Truth  and Food Inc. have made major inroads at the box office, and thanks to the vital work of Participant Media, Sundance Institute, The Good Pitch, Working Films, ITVS and a host of others, these films are generating awareness of and spirited dialogue about the themes and issues they embrace. But what kind of real impact have they made? Where are the raw quantitative and qualitative data that reflect the persuasive power that the best of these docs evince? In the final analysis, do documentaries really effect significant change?

Three comprehensive reports have just been released that provide resounding answers to these questions. An Inconvenient Truth, The End of the Line and Waiting for Superman were all subjects of unprecedented studies not only about impact and results but also about the nexus of filmmakers, funders, viewers, corporations, media and policymakers that needs to be built and maintained in order for this sub-genre of documentaries to thrive.

The End of the Line study, spearheaded by the Channel 4 BRTDOC Foundation and funded by the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, is the product of 18 months of rigorous quantitative and qualitative analysis, culminating with forward-thinking recommendations about maximizing the stakeholders for your film. The Inconvenient Truth study also comes out the Channel 4 BRITDOC Foundation--specifically, from foundation head Jess Search as her MBA dissertation, which determined the documentary's social benefit through a valuation process previously adapted by government agencies and nonprofit organizations. The Waiting for Superman study, produced by the nonprofit Harmony Institute and funded in part by the Ford Foundation, is the more qualitative of the three reports, focusing on the film's impact in changing viewers' perceptions about the US education system.

For a deeper assessment of the three reports, check out consultant Peter Broderick's Distribution Bulletin.

For Beyond the Box Office: New Documentary Valuations, Jess Search's report on An Inconvenient Truth, click here.

For Channel 4 BRITDOC Foundation's The End of the Line: A Social Impact Evaluation, click here.

For the Harmony Institute's Entertainment Evaluation Highlights: Waiting for Superman, click here.

TWENTY-FOUR FILMS TO BE SHOWN IN NEW YORK AND LOS ANGELES
FROM AUGUST 12th – SEPTEMBER 8th IN OSCAR® QUALIFYING RUN

LOS ANGELES, July 6, 2011 —A Marine Corps cover-up of one of the worst water contamination incidents in US history, the glaring reality of the media’s objectification of women, as well as portraits of assassinated journalist Anna Politkovskaya and the man behind Elmo are all part of the lineup of outstanding films that will be presented in the International Documentary Association’s 15^th Annual DocuWeeks™ Theatrical Documentary Showcase.

Screening from August 12th through September 1st in New York at the IFC Center (323 Sixth Avenue at West Third Street) and August 19th through September 8th at the Laemmle Sunset 5 (8000 Sunset Blvd.), the 2011 edition of DocuWeeks™ will present seventeen feature films and seven shorts from sixteen different countries in theatrical runs designed to qualify the films for consideration for The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences’ annual Oscar® Awards – and give documentary fans a chance to catch some of the best documentary films of the year.

“With every film playing for a full week, DocuWeeks™ gives movie-goers in Los Angeles and New York City multiple opportunities to see a great lineup of new documentary films,” says IDA Executive Director Michael Lumpkin. “After playing some of the world’s major film festivals such as Berlin, Sundance, Tribeca, Hotdocs, Sheffield and Los Angeles, some of today’s most talked about docs will now reach theatrical audiences on both coasts.”

The 15th Annual DocuWeeks™ Theatrical Documentary Showcase is presented by the International Documentary Association with the support of presenting sponsors Current and AT&T U-verse; as well as HBO Documentary Films, FotoKem, NBCUniversal Archives, Chainsaw, Consulate of Canada, Menage a Trois Wines, OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network, The Standard Hotel, Stella Artois, FilmFest App, LA Weekly, Village Voice, The Nation.

Features appearing in this year’s DocuWeeks™ Theatrical Documentary Showcase are: Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey, Better This World, A Bitter Taste of Freedom, The Boy Mir – Ten Years in Afghanistan, The Carrier, Darwin, Dying To Do Letterman, Hell and Back Again, The Mexican Suitcase, Miss Representation, Phnom Penh Lullaby, The Power of Two, Semper Fi; Always Faithful, SOS – State of Security, The Tiniest Place (El Lugar Mas Pequeno)To Be Heard, Unfinished Spaces

DocuWeeks™ will also present seven documentary short films including: The Barber of Birmingham, The Home Front, Library of Dust, Maya Deren’s Sink, Poetry of Resilience, Sand, Sun City Picture House.

Tickets for individual films at the Laemmle Sunset 5 are $11.00 for general admission, $8.00 for IDA members, and $8.00 for seniors and children.

Tickets for individual films at the IFC Center are $13.00 for general admission, $8.00 for IDA members and $9.00 for seniors and children. Tickets can be purchased at the respective box offices, or through www.documentary.org/docuweeks2011 beginning July 15, 2011.

A complete schedule and additional information about each film can be found on the International Documentary Association’s website at http://www.documentary.org/docuweeks2011.

Since its premiere in 1997 DocuWeeks™ has qualified over 161 short and feature length films for Oscar consideration and yielded 17 nominations and 7 winners. Documentaries presented in past DocuWeeks™ programs include Oscar® winners Smile Pinki (2008), Taxi To The Dark Side (2007) and The Blood of Yingzhou District (2006), as well as Oscar® Nominees Wasteland (2010), Sun Come Up (2010) Killing in the Name (2010), Rabbit à la Berlin (2009),The Betrayal (2008), War/Dance (2007), Salim Baba (2007) and Sari’s Mother (2007).

Listen to Eddie Schmidt, IDA's Board President, in conversation with Media Minutes' Stevie Converse and Candace Clement, as they discuss the Lee Storey IRS case, and IDA's Amicus Brief in support of documentary filmmakers.

Late (FINAL) Deadline: July 6, 2011

Submit your documentary now for consideration in the 2011 IDA Awards. Now in its 27th year, the IDA Awards is the foremost event dedicated to the art of documentary film. Winners are announced at the gala event at the DGA theater in Los Angeles on December 2, 2011.

Entry is open to any documentary, nonfiction or factual program completed between July 1, 2010 and June 30, 2011 that qualifies for one of the five main award categories. Projects submitted to prior IDA Awards shows are not eligible. Please contact awards@documentary.org with any questions. Multiple projects may be submitted, however each submission must be made separately. Submission fees paid online via Withoutabox.com are discounted $5.00.

Full listing of the 27th Annual IDA Awards rules and requirements available on Withoutabox or here.

Mon. July 18, 2011 at the Cinefamily

Join Academy Award® Coordinator Torene Svitil as she demystifies the eligibility and submission process for entering your documentary feature or short into the Academy Awards®. This is a first time ever opportunity to have all your questions answered in a workshop setting. Blank copies of the documentary feature and short submission forms will be provided. Rules and the submission forms are available on the AMPAS website.

No admission will be charged for this event, although RSVP is required.

Dear Documentary Community,

It's been said in many corners, and it's true from all of them: 2010 was a banner year for documentaries, creatively speaking. Whether you liked or loathed many of this past year's titles, three things are inarguable: (1) they were anything but boring, (2) the overall tide level of the craft has risen, and (3) Goddamn, there sure were a lot of them!

Serious or amusing, challenging or traditional, brazenly real or uncertainly unreal; they were all that and more. "A golden age," more than one news outlet called it. And yet, in view of mainstream media (and perhaps, mainstream corporate boardrooms), documentaries are still considered "ignored" by general audiences. A New York Times piece in January 2011 compared the total gross of all documentaries in 2010 to one medium-budget cookie-cutter studio film across the span of the entire year.

But waaaaait a minute! What one documentary appears on the same number of movie screens or has anything close to the amount of ad dollars of even the lamest studio fare? You can't compare Alex Gibney to Yogi Bear, I'm sorry to say. They're not the same average bears.

It's time we rethought what "success" means for documentaries. Our $4 million is like their $40 million, because their $40 million probably cost $60 million to procure. If only documentaries had the deep wellspring of marketing, promotion and business affairs muscle to draw upon that studio fare has for...well, anything...then maybe we'd have a level playing field. We don't.

And let us not dismiss that animal called television, as documentaries were seen, cherished and beloved by millions on pay and free television in 2010; the same millions who could not have been as affected nor as deeply moved by catching Sandra Bullock's All About Steve on an endless loop, "numbers" notwithstanding. Digital portals are only just beginning to gather a head of steam, of course, but many cater to the documentary lover unable to see the work any other way but very excited to take the reins in this user-driven world.  I'd like to see some data on Netflix, Hulu, etc.; my suspicion is that documentaries make up a much bigger percentage of downloads and streams than one might suspect.

We can't accept mainstream definitions of success unless the mainstream would like to share their resources. Or admit their failures. Or open their books and show their expenses.  

We're doing great. We just need to sell ourselves a little better. Fight the tide, go for the hearts and minds, define the debate. And rock on.

Excelsior!

Eddie Schmidt
IDA Board President

Tonight's Episode "Gateway to Heroin" with Vanguard Correspondent Mariana van Zeller

9/8c Only on Current TV 

Vanguard is a no-limits documentary series whose award-winning correspondents put themselves in extraordinary situations to immerse viewers in global issues that have a large social significance. Unlike sound-bite driven reporting, the show’s correspondents, Adam Yamaguchi, Christof Putzel and Mariana van Zeller, serve as trusted guides who take viewers on in-depth real life adventures in pursuit of some of the world’s most important stories.

In tonight's episode, Vanguard correspondent Mariana van Zeller travels to Boston, home to the nation's highest rate of opiate (heroin, oxycodone) addiction and overdose, and investigates the story behind the dramatic spike in drug abuse over the course of the last decade. Along the way she uncovers a disturbing new trend: an alarming escalation among addicts from prescription drugs to heroin, a cheaper and more potent alternative to OxyContin that's all too readily available on the streets of New England.

Click here for a sneak peek.

A&E Network and the New York Television Festival are introducing an innovative program seeking original unscripted television treatments from independent producers and production companies - the A&E Unscripted Development Pipeline. Concepts and treatments should center on individuals or small groups that represent unique points of view.

25 semi-finalists will be presented to A&E development executives. Five finalists, selected by A&E, will each receive notes on their projects and $2,500 to shoot additional tape. One winner, selected by A&E, will be awarded $10,000 and will participate in the production of the network pilot presentation. To be considered, producers must submit a short treatment (1-2 pages) along with a brief video introducing the subject(s).

The NYTVF accepts entries from June 20 through July 15, 2011. Free to enter. More info: nytvf.com/2011_ae_pipeline.htm

The IDA joined forces with a coalition of media arts organizations and independent filmmakers to lend their names to an amicus brief filed on their behalf by entertainment attorney Michael C. Donaldson. The brief urges the United States Tax Court to recognize that documentary films are overwhelmingly undertaken in pursuit of profit.

To review the amicus brief in its entirety, click here.

The amicus brief was filed in a case examining the IRS' challenging of the deduction of business expenses from the production of Smile 'Til It Hurts: The Up With People Story by documentary filmmaker Lee Storey. Smile ‘Til It Hurts explores the history of the youth choir Up With People, from its founding in 1965 on conservative ideals and cult-like ideology to its present-day incarnation and departure from its origins. 

Following an audit in the tax years 2006, 2007 and 2008, the IRS challenged the deductions Storey made for business expenses, which amounted to a purported $311,809.90 (applicable interest and penalties included). According to their test for determining whether an activity is engaged in a for-profit activity, the IRS argued that Storey could not deduct business expenses because her production of a documentary was not a trade or business and was not carried on for profit. The IRS also pointed out that eight years have passed without Storey making any income.

During the trial at the United States Tax Court on March 9, 2011, Judge Diane Kroupa expressed her inclination to hold that Storey had satisfied several factors in the nine-factor test. At the same time, however, she questioned whether a documentary, in general, could be for profit, since, by its nature, it is designed "to educate and expose." Donaldson and the IDA understood that this statement could create a dangerous precedent for filmmakers if confirmed in a ruling. "We recognize that this issue, if left un-thwarted," says Donaldson, "could have devastating consequences to those artists whose livelihood hinges on enlightening the world at large on significant social subjects."

The amicus brief states that a judicial pronouncement that documentary filmmakers are not engaged in a profit-making activity would have a chilling effect on the documentary filmmaking industry, as documentarians would no longer be able to claim deductions for their business expenses pursuant to the Internal Revenue Code. The brief argues that while filmmakers certainly do make films to educate and expose, they are for the most part engaging in a for-profit endeavor and that the production of a documentary film entails a significant investment of time and money prior to any revenue generated from the film. The brief includes statements from several documentary filmmakers and other industry professionals to support these contentions.

IDA Board President and Academy Award-nominated documentary filmmaker Eddie Schmidt (Twist of Faith; Troubadours; This Film is Not Yet Rated) further affirms the notion that educational intent and profit are not mutually exclusive targets: "The fact that documentaries are generally made to appeal to hearts and minds, rather than fists and loins, does not diminish the intent of their creators--which is to say, the very same intent as creators of any kind of mass entertainment reaching a maximum number of potential eyeballs. Paying customers, in other words."

"For over 25 years, I've been making documentary films and it never occurred to me that this was not a profit-making business," says director/producer Robert Kenner, Academy Award-nominee for the 2009 documentary Food, Inc., which grossed approximately $4.5 million during its US theatrical release. "I've been making a good living doing it since I entered the field. I've been able to put my kids through college on the money I've made, and am proud to say they both have decided to enter this profession."

Academy Award-winner Rob Epstein (The Times of Harvey Milk; Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt), who  currently serves as the Chair of the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Documentary Branch, reiterates that the twin goals of raising awareness and creating profit are complementary to each other. "Most of my documentary films have focused on issues intended to bring about change--to educate and expose injustices in our world, and to entertain, delight, inspire and inform, all at the same time," he maintains. "For that is the beauty of documentary. Those same films all made healthy profits for me and my partners, had long lives in theaters, on television and in the DVD market, and continue to serve both masters well--generating continued profit for us, many years after initial release, and serving as historical documents of movements in our collective history, which can be used to educate and inspire new generations. I have never experienced any conflict between these two goals. And I would not have been able to sustain a professional career in this industry for all these years, if it were any different."

As IDA's executive director, Michael Lumpkin, maintains, "We hope to ensure that all filmmakers receive the respect they deserve, and that the many sacrifices they make in the pursuit of their art and livelihood will not be made in vain."

The amicus brief filed in Lee Storey's case represents the most recent effort undertaken by Michael Donaldson at the behest of IDA in its role as a dedicated advocate for the rights of the documentary filmmaking community. Previous cases to which Donaldson and IDA have contributed include such topics as: freedom of speech, fair use, filmmaker exemptions to the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act), net neutrality, use of trademarks and copyrights, the ability to depict animal cruelty without fear of criminal prosecution, and supporting Crude director Joe Berlinger's battle to prevent turning the entirety of his film's dailies over to oil company Chevron.

The coalition of signatories to the amicus brief includes the following:

Organizations:

• International Documentary Association
• Film Independent
• National Association of Latino Independent Producers
• Women Make Movies
• National Alliance for Media Art and Culture
• University Film & Video Association

Individuals:

• Robert Kenner (Food, Inc.)
• Liz Garbus (Moxie Firecracker Films)
• Annie Roney (ro*co Films International)
• Meyer Shwarzstein (Brainstorm Media)
• Rob Epstein (Chair of the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Documentary Branch)
• Eddie Schmidt (This Film Is Not Yet Rated)
• Jeffrey Blitz (Spellbound)
• Jaimie D'Cruz(Exit Through the Gift Shop)