AMERICAN EXPERIENCE: Woodstock: Three Days That Defined A Generation

—Celebrate The 50th Anniversary Of The Concert That Defined A Generation—

In August 1969, half a million young people from all walks of life journeyed from every corner of the country to a dairy farm in upstate New York for a concert unprecedented in scope and influence.

“Woodstock” examines the tumultuous decade that led to those three historic days — years that saw the nation deeply divided by Vietnam and racial, generational and sexual politics — through the voices of those who were present for the event that would become the defining moment of the counterculture revolution.

In conjunction with the 50th anniversary, "Woodstock: Three Days That Defined A Generation," premiered in August 2019.

Filmmaker Quotes:

“For three days in August, 1969, the values of ‘peace and love,’ loudly championed by the counterculture movement, were actually put to the test in the miserable conditions at Woodstock,” said Director Barak Goodman. “The more than 400,000 people who attended the festival proved that they were more than just words. For a surprising number of people, that brief encounter with sacrifice, cooperation and generosity changed their lives. I think Woodstock continues to inspire because the grace demonstrated there was real and enduring.”

“Unlike Michael Wadleigh’s classic 1970 documentary, our film turns the cameras around, into the audience,” said AMERICAN EXPERIENCE Executive Producer Mark Samels. “By focusing on individuals — from concert goers to security guards to performers to local residents — Woodstock expands our understanding of the event as not only an unparalleled musical milestone, but a once-in-a-century cultural phenomena that served as a coda to the sixties and a harbinger of the decades to come.”

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Aerial view of Woodstock festival attendees and stage, Bethel, N.Y., Aug. 1969.

Courtesy of Barry Z Levine, WoodstockWitness.com

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Opening ceremony at Woodstock. Swami Satchidananda giving the opening speech, Bethel, N.Y., Aug. 15, 1969.

Mark Goff / public domain

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In Aug. 1969, half a million people journeyed to a dairy farm in upstate New York for a concert unprecedented in scope and influence.

Courtesy of Museum at Bethel Woods © Doug Lenier

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Festival attendees waiting to get provisions from a local market. Bethel, N.Y., Aug. 1969

Courtesy of Museum at Bethel Woods © Gary Geyer

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Attendees at Woodstock music festival, Bethel, N.Y., Aug. 18, 1969. Photo was taken near the festival by Ric Manning.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Woodstock-kids.jpg Ric Manning, CC BY 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)

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The crowd and people sitting on the sound tower. Bethel, N.Y., Aug. 1969.

Courtesy of Elliott Landy/The Image Works

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Crowd listening to John Sebastian perform at the Woodstock Festival, Bethel, N.Y. 1969.

Courtesy of Henry Diltz

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Sly and the Family Stone performing at the Woodstock Festival, Bethel, N.Y., Aug. 1969.

Courtesy of © 1969 Jason Laure

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Roger Daltrey from The Who performing on stage at the Woodstock Festival, Bethel, N.Y., Aug. 1969.

Courtesy of Henry Diltz

Interviewees include festival producers and staff including Donald Goldmacher, Carol Green, Michael Lang, John Morris, John Roberts and Joel Rosenman; activist Wavy Gravy; festival attendees and others.

THE MUSIC:

Listen to the music that played at the Woodstock Music and Art Fair in August 1969

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CREDITS:

Directed by Barak Goodman. Co-director: Jamila Ephron. Written by Barak Goodman and Don Kelsey. Edited by Don Kelsey. Produced by Jamila Ephron, Barak Goodman and Mark Samels. AMERICAN EXPERIENCE is a production of WGBH Boston. Senior Producer: Susan Bellows. Executive Producer: Mark Samels.