The Freeman papers document the production of four documentary films produced, directed, written, filmed, and / or edited by Mark Freeman while he was on the faculty at San Diego State University. The papers date from 1997-2005, with the bulk of documents created in 2003 for Families and Flowers and 2005 for Talking Peace. The collection consists of production files, published materials, and film in varying formats. While the records in this collection were created during Freeman’s time at San Diego State, they do not include any information about other aspects of his professional or personal life, particularly his position as Associate Professor in the School of Theatre, Television and Film. Their contents are limited to those records generated during production of the four above-mentioned documentaries. The collection is divided into four series, one for each film, each documenting the creative and production processes behind the creation of the respective documentaries. The series are Edmund's Island, Families and Flowers, Lines in the Sand, and Talking Peace. The Edmund's Island series includes Production Files and miniDVs; the Families and Flowers series includes Production Files, Published Works, VHS, Beta SP, and miniDVs; the Lines in the Sand series includes Production Files, miniDVs, and one DVD; and the Talking Peace series includes Production Files, VHS, Beta SP, miniDVs, and CDs. The Talking Peace Production Files are further divided into Research and Subjects categories.

The Edmund’s Island series includes two different sets of records arranged according to media: Production Files and miniDVs. The Production Files contain e-mail correspondence, notes, photographs, and some published materials drawn upon during production, and are arranged alphabetically by file name. Also contained in this series is some documentation of a grassroots effort organized by Freeman to save the Union Tribune’s newspaper hawker program upon the paper’s decision to end it just after the film’s release.  Newspaper clippings are scattered throughout the series. The miniDVs contain the film’s original footage, and are in Freeman’s numerical order.

The Families and Flowers series includes five sub-series, arranged according to media: Production Files, 2002-2003; Published Works; VHS, 1999-2002; Beta SP, 2002; and miniDVs, 2000-2003.  The Production Files contain e-mail and traditional correspondence, notes, newspaper and magazine clippings, files drawn together in researching the film, and information about individuals featured in the film. They are filed in alphabetical order according to Freeman’s folder titles. The Published Works consist primarily of books and pamphlets about floriculture in southern California, and are arranged alphabetically by author. The VHS series directly corresponds to the miniDV series, and  includes tapes of raw footage, as well as some videos used for research purposes during the documentary’s production, and are arranged in Freeman’s numerical order. The Beta SP series also includes videos used for research purposes, and are arranged alpha-numerically. The final series, miniDVs, consists of master footage from the filming of the documentary, as well as some other videos used for research purposes, and are arranged according to number and title.

The Lines in the Sand series includes three subseries, arranged according to media: Production Files, 2004; miniDVs, 2003; and a DVD, 2003. The Production Files contain e-mail correspondence, notes, and photographs generated during production of the documentary, and are arranged alphabetically according to folder title. The miniDVs contain raw footage from the filming process, and are arranged numerically. The DVD contains the final, released version of the documentary.

The Talking Peace series includes six subseries, arranged according to media: Production Files, 2000-2005; VHS, 2003-2005; Beta SP, 2004; DVCam, 2003; CDs, 1997-2005, and miniDVs, 2002-2004. The Production Files contain two further subdivisions: Research and Subjects subseries. The Research subseries contains e-mail and traditional correspondence, publicity materials, newspaper and magazine clippings, and notes generated during production of the film. The Subjects subseries includes files for each subject appearing in the film, as well as some photographs, transcripts, and newspaper and magazine clippings, and are arranged alphabetically by Freeman’s folder titles. The VHS series is composed of raw footage, as well as videos used for research purposes throughout production of the film, and are arranged according to number and title. The Beta SP series consists of videos used for research purposes in production, and are arranged alphabetically by title. The CDs consist of recordings used in researching and creating the film, and are arranged alphabetically by title. The miniDVs consist of raw footage, as well as a few videos used for research purposes during production of the film. They are arranged alpha-numerically.

Several of Freeman's films have been digitized and are available here: https://digitalcollections.sdsu.edu/mark-freeman