Posted by editor@vimooz.com on November 14, 2009 under Awards, Documentary | 
"Diary of a Times Square Thief" Directed & Written by Klaas Bense
The nominees for the International Documentary Association’s 2009 IDA Documentary Awards competition were announced this week. The winners will be announced December 4th at the Directors Guild in Los Angeles, in a ceremony hosted by This American Life’s Ira Glass.
Read more of this article »
Posted by editor@vimooz.com on November 12, 2008 under Awards, Documentary |
The nominees for the International Documentary Association’s 2008 IDA Documentary Awards competition were announced last month, including many of the year’s most buzzed-about titles and festival favorites. Winners will be feted on December 5th at the Directors Guild in Los Angeles, in a ceremony hosted by Academy Award® nominated documentary filmmaker and star Morgan Spurlock.
“Innovative storytelling, digital editing and sophisticated audiences have opened up the playing field of what a documentary can be. So, in choosing a master of ceremonies for this year’s event, no one better exemplifies that renegade creative spirit than Morgan Spurlock,” said IDA’s Interim Executive Director Eddie Schmidt. Spurlock, known for SUPERSIZE ME, 30 DAYS, and WHERE IN THE WORLD IS OSAMA BIN LADEN?, will take a brief sojourn from postproduction on the upcoming FREAKONOMICS to handle hosting duties.
The five nominated films for Distinguished Documentary Achievement in IDA’s feature category are: KASSIM THE DREAM, the powerful story of Ugandan-born World Champion boxer Kassim “The Dream” Ouima, who must confront his difficult past as a child soldier while training for his next world title; MAN ON WIRE, an evocative chronicle of tightrope walker Philippe Petit’s high-wire (and highly illegal) routine between New York’s former Twin Towers, circa 1974; STRANDED: I HAVE COME FROM A PLANE THAT CRASHED ON THE MOUNTAINS, the harrowing tale of the famous 1972 Andes plane crash, as told by its survivors today; WALTZ WITH BASHIR, an unprecedented animated documentary examining the consequences of war by unraveling the memories of Ari Folman and other Israeli soldiers who fought in the 1982 Lebanon conflict; and, finally, YOUNG@HEART, a warm and human look at a Massachusetts chorus of senior citizens who perform rock songs with camaraderie and gusto.
The five nominated short films are: KICK LIKE A GIRL, LA CORONA, REDEMPTION STONE, SMILE PINKI, TONGZHI IN LOVE. LA CORONA was nominated for last year’s Best Documentary Short Academy Award®, while SMILE PINKI and TONGZHI IN LOVE currently reside on this year’s Oscar shortlist. KICK LIKE A GIRL played in this year’s IDA Docuweek program.
In the Limited Series category, the four nominees are: CNN PRESENTS: GOD’S WARRIORS, THE JEWISH AMERICANS, THE WAR, and SIN CITY LAW. Continuing Series nominees are NOVA, AMERICAN MASTERS, THIS AMERICAN LIFE and WIDE ANGLE.
Other IDA competition categories include the Alan Ett Music Award (now in its second year), the David L. Wolper Student Documentary Award, the ABC News Video Source Award, for best use of television news footage as an integral component, as well as the Pare Lorentz Award, presented to the filmmaker whose documentary best represents the activist spirit and lyrical vision of the acclaimed Pare Lorentz. For a complete list of nominees and finalists (in some categories), please see the attached.
In addition to competitive awards for the year’s current crop of outstanding documentaries, IDA also acknowledges exemplary creative contributions to the genre at large. This year’s IDA Career Achievement honoree, to be celebrated during December’s event, was previously announced as ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD and GRIZZLY MAN director Werner Herzog.
Other career awards to be handed out at the ceremony include: the Pioneer Award, to groundbreaking filmmaker Rob Epstein (THE CELLULOID CLOSET; THE TIMES OF HARVEY MILK), the Preservation & Scholarship Award, to beloved UCLA professor, author, and filmmaker Marina Goldovskaya (THE PRINCE IS BACK), and the inaugural Avid Excellence in Editing Award, sponsored by Avid Technology the digital editing giant, to master editor and filmmaker Sam Pollard (WHEN THE LEVEES BROKE: A REQUIEM IN FOUR ACTS; 4 LITTLE GIRLS).
The Jacqueline Donnet Emerging Filmmaker Award will go to helmer Stefan Forbes, whose prescient and provocative BOOGIE MAN: THE LEE ATWATER STORY, is currently in theatrical release.
Tags: 30 DAYS, AMERICAN MASTERS, CNN PRESENTS: GOD'S WARRIORS, IDA Documentary Awards, International Documentary Association, Kassim "The Dream" Ouima, KASSIM THE DREAM, KICK LIKE A GIRL, LA CORONA, Man On Wire, Morgan Spurlock, NOVA, REDEMPTION STONE, Rob Epstein, SIN CITY LAW, SMILE PINKI, STRANDED: I HAVE COME FROM A PLANE THAT CRASHED ON THE, SUPERSIZE ME, THE JEWISH AMERICANS, THE WAR, THIS AMERICAN LIFE, TONGZHI IN LOVE, Waltz with Bashir, Werner Herzog, WHERE IN THE WORLD IS OSAMA BIN LADEN?, WIDE ANGLE, Young@Heart