Over the past 22 years, Columbia has been home to one of the biggest all-documentary film festivals in the world. The True/False Film Festival is a four-day event that brings together filmmakers, artists, musicians and more into downtown Columbia. The festival is put on by the not-for-profit Ragtag Film Society. The festival draws in audiences from all over the world, with directors coming from all over. 

This year, the festival welcomed more than 31,000 attendees to the different film screenings and musical events, according to the festival organizers. Over the weekend, the festival showcased 30 feature documentaries and 24 shorts, along with art displays and music performances. This included world premieres of The Track, a documentary about young Bosnian athletes, and WTO/99, a documentary about protests that erupted in Seattle in 1999 around the World Trade Organization meeting. True/False has a mission “With cinema as a focal point […], to captivate and engage communities in immersive arts experiences that explore assumptions and elicit shared joy, wonder, and introspection.” Many of these documentaries help evolve their mission, all in the heart of Columbia.

For CPS students during their sophomore year, they get a free field trip to see one of the films being screened. This year, sophomores watched Time Bomb Y2K, a documentary directed by Marley McDonald and Brian Becker that originally premiered in 2023. The documentary followed the events of Y2K and the mass frenzy leading up to the event. “The film was interesting but repetitive. I liked it mostly because I know my parents were living when it was happening and how crazy of a time it was,” said sophomore Corbin Buechter. 

No matter who you are, the True/False Film Festival allows for audiences to view lots of different art, music, and film, all in downtown Columbia. Be sure to check out the 23rd edition next year.