SilverDocs, now in its seventh year, is a film festival devoted to screening only documentaries. It was started by Nina Gilden Seavey, a GW professor and documentary filmmaker. The Hatchet got a chance to ask Seavey a few questions before the start of the festival.
Caroline Coppel: Why did you start the festival?
Nina Gilden Seavey: I’d been working with [the American Film Institute] for many years, and when they approached me with the idea, it seemed like a great opportunity. I also had personal motivation: there wasn’t a documentary festival in either New York or D.C., and I thought we would benefit from that.
CC: What was the initial reaction to the festival?
NGS: People were saying to me, ‘Do we really need another festival? There are so many!’ Especially one just for documentaries – people felt it wasn’t necessary.
CC: What makes SilverDocs different from other festivals in the country?
NGS: SilverDocs is now the preeminent documentary festival in the U.S. We received nearly 2,000 submissions this year. The prestige to open a film at SilverDocs – it’s a landmark for a filmmaker. And the audience for SilverDocs is just very different; there’s this all-over “Washingtoniana.”
CC: “Washingtoniana?”
NGS: People from the Obama administration, Congress, local government, policy makers – they all show up to the program. I once had to stop a volunteer from keeping [Supreme Court Justice] Sandra Day O’Connor from getting into a film because she didn’t have a ticket.
CC: But this isn’t just for people in the industry?
NGS: No, we usually sell $100,000 worth of tickets. People line up literally around the block: students, housewives, I don’t know, paupers. People just come out of the woodwork for SilverDocs.
CC: What are you looking forward to most this year?
NGS: I’m not really sure. In the past, the quality of the programming has been the best part. Last year, we screened all the Oscar nominated films. But, I’m always surprised, and that’s what I love about SilverDocs. You never know what’s going to happen.
CC: Have you ever shown any of your own films at Silverdocs?
NGS: No, it would be a huge conflict of interest. We talked about it when “The Matador” was released, but we decided against it. There’s actually another film about bull fighting this year, called “She is the Matador.”
SilverDocs runs from June 15-22 in Silver Spring, Md., so be sure to check out a film. Highlights include “More Than A Game,” which focuses on LeBron James’ high school basketball team, and “The Nine Lives of Marion Barry,” about D.C.’s most infamous mayor.
