Smack in the middle of these events, both in date and in volume of programs, we find the Newburyport Documentary Film Festival. Going into its fourth year, it’s a demure, eclectic specialty fest with its own distinct flavor, featuring 16 to 20 films each year at only two venues—the Firehouse and the Screening Room in downtown Newburyport. The event celebrates not just the films (like TbtS), or the filmmakers (like NHFF), but lays more focus on the audience and the human connections that film can create.

Newburyport Festival founder and director Michelle Fino says documentaries are the perfect form to make this happen. “They’re all about people talking, sharing experiences and speaking their minds. A good documentary starts the conversation, and we arrange for those conversations to continue with discussions and over coffee or a drink afterward,” Fino said. “Often, we’ll have the filmmakers there to join in, but mostly it’s about the audience being given a chance to talk amongst themselves about the movies and the subjects they’ve just seen.”

Fino began the festival after a long run organizing monthly individual film screenings. Beyond her personal need to lighten up after the substantial grind of arranging these ongoing events, she recognized an appetite in Newburyport for something with a little more focus. “With this festival, I’m not limited anymore to screening just the titles that I personally am aware of, but people can submit works that I might never have come across on my own,” Fino said.

The resulting increase in quality and diversity has become a trademark of the festival. Last year, Fino landed the critically acclaimed and award winning doc “The War Tapes,” by N.H. native Deb Scranton, which screened to a sold out crowd. This year’s festival will include 18 new films of an amazingly broad spectrum of subject matter. In “Beyond Belief” by Beth Murphy, a pair of Boston soccer moms cope with the loss of their husbands to terrorist strikes by working to empower oppressed widows in Afghanistan. “Bob’s Big Pumpkin,” by contrast, follows a Minnesota farmer’s quest to grow the biggest gourd in the state’s history.

A Newburyport resident for the past nine years, Fino has nothing but good things to say about the city. “The town is perfectly located, 40 miles north of Boston and only 20 minutes south of Portsmouth. It’s easy to get to, and there are lots of galleries and restaurants,” she said. “It’s got such good energy. There’s so much here to see and do, so we get a really smart group of people. The audience in Newburyport is great.”

And the movies are, too. “You just can’t go wrong with a documentary. They’re so simple, but can say so much, looking into other people’s lives and viewpoints,” Fino said. “I support all kinds of filmmaking and filmmakers, but really good narrative features can be especially hard to produce on the kind of tight budgets most filmmakers today have to work with. Documentaries are all good, and they can really get people talking, which is what we’re all about.”

The fourth annual Newburyport Documentary Film Festival takes place Sept. 28-30, in downtown Newburyport, Mass. To access the full program or to purchase passes or tickets, visit www.newburyportfilmfestival.org.