For Sama directed by Waad al-Kateab and Edward Watts is the winner of the top prize for Best Feature at the 35th IDA (International Documentary Association) Awards. Other notable documentary films winning awards include Leaving Neverland for Best Multi-Part Documentary and Homecoming: A Film by Beyoncé for Best Music Documentary.
Best Feature
For Sama (winner)
Director/Producer: Waad al-Kateab
Director: Edward Watts
Best Short
Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (if you’re a girl) (winner)
Director: Carol Dysinger
Producer: Elena Andreicheva
Best Director
Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert (winner)
American Factory
Best Curated Series
Dokumania (winner)
Executive Producers: Anders Bruus
Best Episodic Series
Abstract: The Art of Design (winner)
Executive Producers: Scott Dadich, Morgan Neville, Dave O’Connor, Justin Wilkes and Jon Kamen
Best Multi-Part Documentary
Leaving Neverland (winner)
Director/Producer: Dan Reed
Executive Producers: Nancy Abraham and Lisa Heller
Best Short Form Series
A Moment in Mexico — The New York Times Op-Docs (winner)
Executive Producer: Kathleen Lingo. Coordinating Producer: Lindsay Crouse
Best Audio Documentary
A Sense of Quietness (winner)
Producer: Eleanor McDowall
Executive Producers: Alan Hall and Rachel Hooper
Best Music Documentary
Homecoming: A Film by Beyoncé (winner)
Director/Producer: Beyoncé Knowles-Carter
Director: Ed Burke
Producers: Steve Pamon and Erinn Williams
David L. Wolper Student Documentary Award
Brewed in Palestine (winner)
Director/Producer: Emma Schwartz
UC BERKELEY GRADUATE SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM
Best Cinematography
Honeyland (winner)
Cinematographers: Fejmi Daut and Samir Ljuma
Best Editing
Midnight Family (winner)
Editor: Luke Lorentzen and Paloma López Carrillo
Best Music Score
The Raft (winner)
Composer: Hans Appelqvist
Best Writing
The Cave (winner)
Writers: Alisar Hasan and Feras Fayyad
Pare Lorentz Award
THE PARE LORENTZ AWARD RECOGNIZES FILMS THAT DEMONSTRATE EXEMPLARY FILMMAKING WHILE FOCUSING ON THE APPROPRIATE USE OF THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT, JUSTICE FOR ALL AND THE ILLUMINATION OF PRESSING SOCIAL PROBLEMS.
Honeyland (Recipient)
Director: Tamara Kotevska
Director/Producer: Ljubomir Stefanov
Producer: Atanas Georgiev
Anthropocene: The Human Epoch (Honorable Mention)
Director: Jennifer Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier and Edward Burtynsky
Producer: Nadia Tavazzani
ABC News VideoSource Award
Mike Wallace is Here (winner)
Director: Avi Belkin
Producers: Rafael Marmor, John Battsek, Peggy Drexler, Avi Belkin and Christopher Leggett
Honorees
Freida Lee Mock
Career Achievement Award
Waad al-Kateab
Courage Under Fire Award
Rachel Lears
Emerging Documentary Filmmaker Award
Leah Remini
Truth to Power Award
Cinereach
Pioneer Award
The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press
Amicus Award