A film submitted to the Documentary category should be a non-fiction film that provides the audience with insight into real events, people, or issues (no more than 7 minutes in length, not including credits).

Documentary

Judging of all films will be conducted by an outside third party, and the linked rubric above will be used to score each film, based on the following description.

Judging Information - Content and Impact portion criteria:

Purpose - Presents an explicit aspect of an event or person for presenting insight and displays a clear rationale.

Documentary topics should be focused so that the audience can easily determine what exactly the filmmaker wants them to gain insight about. A documentary about a person's life may be too broad for just 7 minutes and should be focused on a specific aspect of that person.
The audience and judges should not only be able to learn about the aspect of the event or person but also the WHY of learning about it. Student filmmakers should strive to ensure that their audience understands why this information should interest them.

Research - Features primary research into events or people beyond common knowledge.

Student filmmakers should strive to do primary research (conducting interviews, taking pictures, filming b-roll, etc.) about aspects of the event or person that wouldn't be considered common knowledge or known by the average person. Submissions should just be a visual representation of an encyclopedia article.

Narration and Interviews - Displays clear evidence of narration rehearsal and balances narration and interviews effectively.

Narration (voiceovers) should be well-spoken and free of errors, showing evidence of rehearsal. Filmmakers should rerecord narration when necessary.
When including both narration and interviews, student filmmakers should strive to find a balance between the narration and interviews, using narration to present facts and interviews to present either opinions or first-hand insight. The whole documentary shouldn't consist of one long interview with no cuts.

BEFORE YOU SUBMIT

Use this checklist to be sure you have completed all requirements:

1) Was my film created AFTER last year's Film Festival submission date of March 14, 2025?

2) Is this the only film I'm submitting to THIS category?

3) Does my film meet the time limit requirements for THIS category (not including credits)?

4) Is my film appropriate for a K-12 school event?

5) Did I, or another student, do ALL the work on this film (brainstorming the idea, determining the structure, recording each shot, and editing the final product)?

Note: For K-2 students, teachers may offer direct guidance with these tasks; however, ultimately, the students are responsible for completing them.

6) Am I submitting my film to the correct category and division?

7) Did I include ALL required information in the film's credits (writer, director, actors, videographer, editor, cite all music and images, editing program)?

8) Did I verify none of the music I used in my film is copyrighted?

9) Does my film adhere to the Film Festival's AI policy?

If you answered "No" to any of the above questions, you should revisit that section before submitting, otherwise your film is subject to disqualification.