by Nathaniel R
Seven years ago documentaries got their own division of Critics Choice Awards with multiple categories and thus departed the main show where they were restricted to just one. For the seventh anniversary edition the box office hit Fire of Love (read Glenn's review) about married volcanologists and the space exploration doc Good Night Oppy (for which we just led a Q&A at Middleburg) lead the nominations in 17 categories. The ceremony will be held on November 13th at the Edison Ballroom in Manhattan.
UPDATED 11/14/22 What follows is the full list of nominees AND WINNERS with links going to reviews if we've done them. Thanks to Glenn's expert "Doc Corner" column and various festival peeks, we've reviewed quite a few of them...
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
- Aftershock (Hulu)
- The Automat (A Slice of Pie Productions)
- Descendant (Netflix)
- ★ [Silver] Fire of Love (National Geographic Documentary Films/Neon)
- Gabby Giffords Won’t Back Down (Briarcliff Entertainment)
- ★ [Gold] Good Night Oppy (Amazon Studios)
- The Janes (HBO)
- Moonage Daydream (HBO/Neon)
- ★ [Bronze] Navalny (HBO/CNN/Warner Bros. Pictures)
- Sidney (Apple TV+)
Good Night Oppy was the big winner of the awards, which were live-streamed for the first time this year, taking home five trophies. Fire of Love and Navalny, both looking strong for Oscar noms given other precursor notices, came in second and third respectively. This category is the only category with gold, silver, and bronze, the rest just getting one winner unless there's a tie.
The year's arguably most acclaimed doc All the Beauty and the Bloodshed somehow missed this list though it's in the next category...
BEST DIRECTOR
- Judd Apatow, Michael Bonfiglio – George Carlin’s American Dream (HBO)
- Margaret Brown – Descendant (Netflix)
- Sara Dosa – Fire of Love (National Geographic Documentary Films/Neon)
- Reginald Hudlin – Sidney (Apple TV+)
- Brett Morgen – Moonage Daydream (HBO/Neon)
- Laura Poitras – All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (HBO/Neon)
- Daniel Roher – Navalny (HBO/CNN/Warner Bros. Pictures)
- ★ Ryan White – Good Night Oppy (Amazon Studios)
BEST FIRST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
COW
- Andrea Arnold – Cow (IFC Films)
- Lisa Hurwitz – The Automat (A Slice of Pie Productions)
- Jono McLeod – My Old School (Magnolia Pictures)
- Amy Poehler – Lucy and Desi (Amazon Studios)
- Alex Pritz – The Territory (National Geographic Documentary Films)
- ★ David Siev – Bad Axe (IFC Films)
- Bianca Stigter – Three Minutes: A Lengthening (Neon)
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
- Benjamin Bernhard, Riju Das – All That Breathes (HBO)
- Magda Kowalczyk –Cow (IFC Films)
- Lucas Tucknott – McEnroe (Showtime)
- Gabriela Osio Vanden, Jack Weisman, Sam Holling – Nuisance Bear (The New Yorker)
- ★ The Cinematography Team – Our Great National Parks (Netflix)
- Alex Pritz, Tangãi Uru-eu-wau-wau – The Territory (National Geographic Documentary Films)
BEST EDITING
Three Minutes - A Lengthening
- Jabez Olssen – The Beatles: Get Back (Disney+)
- Erin Casper, Jocelyne Chaput – Fire of Love (National Geographic Documentary Films/Neon)
- Joe Beshenkovsky – George Carlin’s American Dream (HBO)
- Helen Kearns, Rejh Cabrera – Good Night Oppy (Amazon Studios)
- ★ Brett Morgen – Moonage Daydream (HBO/Neon)
- Langdon Page, Maya Daisy Hawke – Navalny (HBO/CNN/Warner Bros. Pictures)
- Katharina Wartena – Three Minutes: A Lengthening (Neon)
BEST SCORE
- Hummie Mann – The Automat (A Slice of Pie Productions)
- Nicolas Godin – Fire of Love (National Geographic Documentary Films/Neon)
- ★ Blake Neely – Good Night Oppy (Amazon Studios)
- Max Avery Lichtenstein – The Janes (HBO)
- David Schwartz – Lucy and Desi (Amazon Studios)
- Marius de Vries, Matt Robertson – Navalny (HBO/CNN/Warner Bros. Pictures)
BEST NARRATION
- Deep in the Heart: A Texas Wildlife Story (Fin and Fur Films) Written by Ben Masters Performed by Matthew McConaughey
- Fire of Love (National Geographic Documentary Films/Neon) Written by Shane Boris, Erin Casper, Jocelyne Chaput, Sara Dosa Performed by Miranda July
- ★ Good Night Oppy (Amazon Studios) Written by Helen Kearns, Ryan White Performed by Angela Bassett
- Our Great National Parks (Netflix) Performed by Barack Obama
- Riotsville, U.S.A. (Magnolia Pictures) Written by Tobi Haslett Performed by Charlene Modeste
- Three Minutes: A Lengthening (Neon)Written by Bianca Stigter Performed by Helena Bonham Carter
BEST ARCHIVAL DOCUMENTARY
- The Beatles: Get Back (Disney+)
- ★ Fire of Love (National Geographic Documentary Films/Neon)
- Moonage Daydream (HBO/Neon)
- Nothing Compares (Showtime)
- Riotsville, U.S.A. (Magnolia Pictures)
- Three Minutes: A Lengtheningg (Neon)
BEST HISTORICAL DOCUMENTARY
- The Automat (A Slice of Pie Productions)
- ★ Descendant (Netflix)
- The Janes (HBO)
- Lowndes County and the Road to Black Power (Peacock)
- Still Working 9 to 5 (Mighty Fine Entertainment)
- Three Minutes: A Lengtheningg (Neon)
- The U.S. and the Holocaust (PBS)
BEST BIOGRAPHICAL DOCUMENTARY
- George Carlin’s American Dream (HBO)
- The Last Movie Stars (HBO Max)
- Lucy and Desi (Amazon Studios)
- The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks (Peacock)
- Salvatore: Shoemaker of Dreams (Sony Pictures Classics)
- ★ Sidney (Apple TV+)
- Sr. (Netflix)
BEST MUSIC DOCUMENTARY
- ★ The Beatles: Get Back (Disney+)
- Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, a Journey, a Song (Sony Pictures Classics)
- If These Walls Could Sing (Disney Original Documentary)
- Louis Armstrong’s Black & Blues (Apple TV+)
- Moonage Daydream (HBO/Neon)
- Nothing Compares (Showtime)
- The Return of Tanya Tucker - Featuring Brandi Carlile (Sony Pictures Classics)
BEST POLITICAL DOCUMENTARY
- Aftershock (Hulu)
- All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (HBO/Neon)
- Gabby Giffords Won’t Back Down (Briarcliff Entertainment)
- The Janes (HBO)
- ★ Navalny(HBO/CNN/Warner Bros. Pictures)
- Retrograde (National Geographic Documentary Films)
- Freedom on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom (Netflix)
BEST SCIENCE/NATURE DOCUMENTARY
- All That Breathes (HBO)
- Cow (IFC Films)
- Fire of Love (National Geographic Documentary Films/Neon)
- ★ Good Night Oppy (Amazon Studios)
- Nuisance Bear (The New Yorker)
- Return to Space (Netflix)
- The Territory (National Geographic Documentary Films)
BEST SPORTS DOCUMENTARY
Hockeyland
- ★ Citizen Ashe (Magnolia/HBO)
- Hockeyland (Greenwich Entertainment)
- Kaepernick & America (Dark Star Pictures)
- McEnroe (Showtime)
- The Redeem Team (Netflix)
- ★ Welcome to Wrexham (FX/Hulu)
Citizen Ashe was eligible at the Oscars last year so you won't see it pop up in the discussion this time around.
BEST SHORT DOCUMENTARY
- 38 at the Garden (HBO)
- Angola Do You Hear Us? Voices From a Plantation Prison (MTV Documentary Films)
- The Flagmakers (National Geographic Documentary Films)
- Four Seasons Total Documentary (MSNBC)
- My Disability Roadmap (The New York Times Op Docs)
- ★ Nuisance Bear (The New Yorker)
- Stranger at the Gate (The New Yorker)
BEST LIMITED DOCUMENTARY SERIES
- ★ The Beatles: Get Back (Disney+)
- Hostages (HBO)
- The Last Movie Stars (HBO Max)
- The Lincoln Project (Showtime)
- Our Great National Parks (Netflix)
- The U.S. and the Holocaust (PBS)
- We Need to Talk About Cosby (Showtime)
Because these awards are on a different time table they don't align with the Emmys. For instance The Beatles Get Back and Our Great National Parks recently won Emmys and We Need To Talk About Cosby was nominated. The others will be eligible at the 2023 Emmys next September.
BEST ONGOING DOCUMENTARY SERIES
- ★ 30 for 30 (ESPN)
- American Masters (PBS)
- Cheer (Netflix)
- The Circus (Showtime)
- Unsolved Mysteries (Netflix)
- Welcome to Wrexham (FX/Hulu)
THE PENNEBAKER AWARD
- Barbara Kopple