Filmmaker Asif Kapadia was on the 2015 Short List for his Oscar®-winning film Amy. Now he returns with this stunning portrait of Argentine football star Diego Maradona, focusing on the player’s legend-making years in Italy. Since Kapadia’s breakthrough documentary Senna, he’s employed a virtuoso approach to archival footage that’s used to depict Maradona’s exploits on […]
2019 SHORT LIST: PRODUCING AWARD When Dayton, Ohio’s General Motors plant closed in 2008, thousands of blue-collar workers lost their livelihood in a community hard hit by the recession. Eight years later, a Chinese billionaire opens a new factory on the same site, bringing back jobs and inspiring newfound hope—until Chinese labor practices clash with […]
2019 SHORT LIST: EDITING AWARD The story of man’s first trip to the moon in 1969 has been told in many versions, but this stunning new documentary, drawing upon never-before-seen NASA footage, brings a level of drama and suspense that makes it feel brand new. Director Todd Douglas Miller uncovered a trove of 65mm footage from the NASA […]
Dr. Ruth Westheimer may be over 90 years old, but she’s lost none of her energy, humor or candor on sexuality. This delightful documentary traces her remarkable life, from being saved as a German Jew by the Kindertransport to training as a sniper with the Jewish paramilitary Haganah. Director Ryan White was on the 2014 […]
In this Cannes and SXSW Film Festival winner, filmmaker Waad al-Kateab—working with director Edward Watts—courageously captures life in Syria through five years of civil war, bearing witness to the brutal conflict. During this time, she falls in love with a young doctor, marries and has a daughter, Sama. Once a mother, al-Kateab must decide between […]
In the remote mountains of Macedonia, beekeeper Hatidze tends to her hives using ancient techniques and following the golden rule for sustainable honey cultivation: take half, but leave half for the bees. When an itinerant Turkish family moves in next door, Hatidze’s peaceful existence—and nature’s delicate balance—is threatened. This visually stunning film was the winner […]
Director Rachel Lears won the 2014 DOC NYC Audience Award for The Hand That Feeds. Now Lears captures Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez as she conducts a surprise campaign for Congress while still working as a bartender. Lears also follows three other first-time female candidates, revealing that AOC’s effort wasn’t a fluke but part of a fervent grassroots […]
China’s one-child policy ended in 2015, but it has had a haunting impact on several generations of Chinese families. After the birth of her own child, filmmaker Nanfu Wang (Hooligan Sparrow) returns to her village, where she begins an investigation into the controversial population control program. Posing difficult questions to family members, local party officials, […]
Filmmaker John Chester and his wife, Molly, a culinary writer, leave city life behind to start their own farm on a stretch of depleted soil outside Los Angeles. John chronicles their efforts for more than eight years in this sweeping epic of twists and turns. After playing as DOC NYC’s 2018 Opening Night film, The Biggest Little Farm went […]
2019 SHORT LIST: CINEMATOGRAPHY AWARD This extraordinary portrait of African elephants focuses on the matriarch Athena as she leads her extended family on an epic journey in search of water. The sensitive story appeals to all ages with suspense, humor and hope. The stunning cinematography captures a whole ecosystem, from the majestic giant tusked mammals […]