The IDA Documentary Awards is the foremost event dedicated to the art of documentary film. View sponsors, honorees, and award recipients for the 2012 IDA Documentary Awards.

Sponsorship
Becoming a sponsor of the IDA Documentary Awards offers exposure to the documentary community at the premiere event recognizing documentary filmmaking. Join an elite group of organizations and individuals whose support of the IDA Documentary Awards ensures their prominence in the documentary community. Benefits of sponsorship include inclusion in the IDA Awards Program, a full color publication distributed to the 600 guests attending the awards ceremony, and extensive branding opportunities before, during and after the event.

Please contact Development Director Cindy Chyr at cindy@documentary.org to become a sponsor of the IDA Awards, as well as to learn about other IDA sponsorship opportunities.

Eligibility
Entry is open to any documentary, non-fiction or factual program completed between July 1 of last year and June 30 of this year that qualifies for one of the five main award categories. Projects submitted to prior IDA Awards shows are not eligible.

Categories
Entry is made into one of the five main award categories. In 2012, the five main award categories were Documentary Feature, Documentary Short, Documentary Continuing Series, Documentary Limited Series, and the David L. Wolper Student Documentary Award. Submissions in the main award categories are eligible for certain Special Recognition Awards, including the ABCNews VideoSource Award, the HUMANITAS Documentary Award, and the Pare Lorentz Award. View the full list of nominees and winners in the 2012 IDA Documentary Awards.

IDA Awards main award categories and the Creative Recognition and Special Recognition Award descriptions for the 2013 IDA Documentary Awards will be announced with the 2013 call for entries.

Submission
Typically, materials required for submission include: project title, synopsis, credits, running time, contact information, and viewing copies on DVD. Documentaries nominated in the Feature and Short categories will be uploaded to IDA’s secure screening portal for viewing by IDA members voting for the winners.

Deadlines
Mark your calendar! Submissions open May 29, 2013. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook and register on the website to receive emails from the IDA to be notified where submissions to the IDA Awards are being accepted.

Fees
In 2012, entry fees ranged from $30 (student submissions) to $150, depending on category and submission date.

Judging
Judging of the IDA Documentary Awards is based on overall creative excellence. Committees of filmmaking and industry professionals screen all entries and select all nominees. Nominations are typically announced in October, with the winners announced live at the IDA Awards gala event in December in Los Angeles.

Award winners in the Feature and Short categories are selected by IDA members from the nominees. For all other awards, blue ribbon panels select award winners from nominees.

Contact
Please contact Programs and Events Manager Amy Jelenko at awards@documentary.org with any questions. Thank you for your interest in the IDA Documentary Awards!