Woodstock won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature after recording the 1969 Woodstock festival.
Directed by Michael Wadleigh, the 1970 film combines concert footage, backstage scenes, crowd images, and interviews. The production used multiple cameras and extensive editing to condense a huge event into a theatrical documentary.
Warner Bros. released the film in 1970, and it became a major commercial and cultural success. Its split-screen sequences and close views of performers helped audiences experience the festival even if they had not attended it.
The film is often confused with Gimme Shelter, which documents the Rolling Stones’ 1969 tour and the Altamont Free Concert. Woodstock instead focuses on the Bethel, New York event and its performers, including Jimi Hendrix, Joan Baez, The Who, and Joe Cocker.