The Documentary Foundation was a nonprofit organization that produced and distributed documentary films focused on the American experience. The Documentary Foundation produced films that combine personal stories with social and political commentary. Of the Documentary Foundation’s four films, two of them take place outside of the U.S., in China and Mongolia. ¹

In 2021, the Documentary Foundation granted $690,000 to the National Progress Alliance, a nonprofit organization that seeks to defend free expression and encourage civil discourse. ²

The Documentary Foundation was administratively dissolved in February 2023. ³ Its former executive director and president, Christopher Rufo, is the director of the initiative on critical race theory at the Manhattan Institute. ⁴

Films

While active, the Documentary Foundation produced four films, which have been distributed by PBS, Netflix, Amazon, and international television. ⁵

Age of Champions follows athletes from different parts of the U.S. preparing for the 2009 National Senior Olympics held in San Francisco. The film features footage of the athletes training, discussions about why the athletes compete, and commentary from the athletes’ friends and family. ⁶

America Lost explores life in three American cities in decline, Youngstown, Ohio; Memphis, Tennessee; and Stockton, California. The film combines personal stories with conservative commentary and provides a hopeful perspective on rebuilding families and communities. ⁷ The film’s director, Christopher Rufo, claimed that the problems faced by these cities were not primarily economic or political, as expected, but instead were caused by dysfunction in society, family, and culture. ⁸

Diamond in the Dunes tells the story of the racial divide between Uyghur Muslims living in the Chinese region of Xinjiang and the Han Chinese ethnic majority of the country and how these groups came together despite ethnic differences to play college baseball in China’s Xinjiang Province. ⁹

Roughing It: Mongolia is an adventure travel documentary featuring Mongolian throat singers, native shamans, and nomadic reindeer herders. ¹⁰

Funding

The Documentary Foundation was funded by donations from individuals, foundations, and businesses. While the Documentary Foundation did not disclose its donors, tax filings confirm donations from the Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund ($496,995 in 2021), ¹¹ the Discovery Institute ($225,000 in 2021), ¹² and the Thomas W. Smith Foundation ($75,000 in 2021). ¹⁴  Rufo is a contributing editor at City Journal, a former research fellow at the Discovery Institute’s Center on Wealth and Poverty, and a former Lincoln Fellow at the Claremont Institute. ¹⁵

Other members of the board included Adam Cate, secretary; Mark Pacheco, treasurer; and Sam Dollenmayer. ¹⁶

1. “Home.” Documentary Foundation. Archived from the original March 23, 2023. Accessed July 23, 2023. http://web.archive.org/web/20230303022304/https://documentaryfoundation.org/.
2. Documentary Foundation, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2021, Schedule I, Part II.
3. “Business Information: Documentary Foundation.” Washington Corporations and Charities Filing System. Accessed July 23, 2023. https://ccfs.sos.wa.gov/?_gl=1*1lrfyu8*_ga*MTEzNTA4ODYwNy4xNjkwMjEyMTA1*_ga_7B08VE04WV*MTY5MDIxMjEwNS4xLjEuMTY5MDIxMjEyNS4wLjAuMA..#/BusinessSearch/BusinessInformation.
4. “Christopher F. Rufo.” Manhattan Institute. Accessed July 23, 2023. https://manhattan.institute/person/christopher-f-rufo.
5.  Home.” Documentary Foundation. Archived from the original March 23, 2023. Accessed July 23, 2023. http://web.archive.org/web/20230303022304/https://documentaryfoundation.org/.
6. “Age of Champions.” IMDB. Accessed July 23, 2023. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2141589/plotsummary/.
7. “Home.” Documentary Foundation. Archived from the original March 23, 2023. Accessed July 23, 2023. http://web.archive.org/web/20230303022304/https://documentaryfoundation.org/.
8. McElwee, Charles F. and Rufo, Christopher F. “Documenting America’s Forgotten Cities.” City Journal, February 29, 2020. Accessed July 23, 2023. https://www.city-journal.org/article/documenting-americas-forgotten-cities.
9. “Diamond in the Dunes.” IMDB. Accessed July 23, 2023. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1367181/plotsummary/?ref_=tt_ov_pl.
10. “Home.” Documentary Foundation. Archived from the original March 23, 2023. Accessed July 23, 2023. http://web.archive.org/web/20230303022304/https://documentaryfoundation.org/.
11. Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2021, Schedule I, Part II.
12. Discovery Institute, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2021, Schedule I, Part II.

14. Board of Directors

    Christopher Rufo was the executive director and president of the Documentary Foundation and is a senior fellow and director of the initiative on critical race theory at the Manhattan Institute. ¹³ “Christopher F. Rufo.” Manhattan Institute. Accessed July 23, 2023. https://manhattan.institute/person/christopher-f-rufo.

15. “Home.” Documentary Foundation. Archived from the original March 23, 2023. Accessed July 23, 2023. http://web.archive.org/web/20230303022304/https://documentaryfoundation.org/.
16. Documentary Foundation, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax (Form 990), 2021, Part VII, Section A, Line 1a.