The IDA Documentary Awards is the world's most prestigious event dedicated to the documentary genre, celebrating the best nonfiction films and programs of the year. It seeks to represent excellence in the documentary field from around the world, by emerging and established documentarians. The 2020 Awards was presented at a virtual ceremony hosted by Willie Garson on Saturday, January 16, 2021.
The show was ASL interpreted and captioned. Click "Watch on Youtube" to view the ceremony with timestamps.
Red Carpet Highlights
Filmmaker Nicole Newnham (right) and her husband (left). Newnhan is the director and producer of Best Feature and ABC News VideoSource Award-winning film, Crip Camp.
Shapearl Wells is the host of Somebody, the winner of the Best Audio Documentary Award. In the podcast, Wells investigates the shooting and death of her son, Courtney Copeland.
Members of the Dick Johnson is Dead team, from left to right, director Kirsten Johnson, unidentified, post-production supervisor Jean Lane, and producer Marilyn Ness.
Left: Poh Si Teng, Director of IDA Funds & Enterprise Program. Right: Editor and writer Nels Bangerter of Dick Johnson is Dead, winner of Best Writing and Best Editing.
Nicholas Capezzera, Director of Best Music Documentary Award-winning Universe.
Left: Producer Leah Natasha Thomas of Best Music Documentary Award-winning Universe. Right: Composer Kevin Smuts, winner of Best Music Score for My Octopus Teacher.
Winners and Nominees
Best Feature
Collective Director/Producer: Alexander Nanau Producer: Bianca Oana Romania / Magnolia Pictures, Participant
Crip Camp (winner) Directors/Producers: Nicole Newnham, Jim LeBrecht Producer: Sara Bolder USA / Netflix
Gunda Director: Victor Kossakovsky Producer: Anita Rehoff Larsen Norway, USA / NEON
MLK/FBI Director: Sam Pollard Producer: Benjamin Hedin USA / IFC Films
The Reason I Jump Director: Jerry Rothwell Producers: Jeremy Dear, Stevie Lee, Al Morrow USA, UK / Kino Lorber
Reunited Director: Mira Jargil Producer: Kirstine Barfod Denmark
Softie Director/Producer: Sam Soko Producer: Toni Kamau Kenya / POV
Time Director/Producer: Garrett Bradley Producers: Lauren Domino, Kellen Quinn USA / Amazon Studios, Concordia Studio, The New York Times
The Truffle Hunters Directors/Producers: Michael Dweck, Gregory Kershaw USA, Italy, Greece / Sony Pictures Classics
Welcome to Chechnya Director/Producer: David France Producers: Alice Henty, Joy A. Tomchin, and Askold Kurov USA / HBO
Best Short
Abortion Helpline, This is Lisa Directors/Producers: Barbara Attie, Mike Attie, Janet Goldwater USA / TOPIC, Woman Make Movies
All That Perishes at the Edge of Land Director/Producer: Hira Nabi Producer: Till Passow Pakistan
Huntsville Station Directors/Producers: Jamie Meltzer, Chris Filippone USA / New York Times Op-Docs
Hysterical Girl Director: Kate Novack Producer: Andrew Rossi USA / New York Times Op-Docs
John Was Trying to Contact Aliens (winner) Director/Producer: Matthew Killip USA / Netflix
The Lost Astronaut Director: Ben Proudfoot Producers: Abby Lynn Kang Davis, Gabriel Berk Godoi USA / New York Times Op-Docs
Mizuko Directors/Producers: Kira Dane, Katelyn Rebelo USA, Japan / TOPIC
sống ở đây Director/Producer: Melanie Ho USA / University of California, Santa Cruz
To Calm the Pig Inside (Ang Pagpakalma sa Unos) Director/Producer: Joanna Vasquez Arong Philippines
Unforgivable Director/Producer: Marlén Viñayo Producer: Carlos Martínez El Salvador
Best Director
Garrett Bradley (winner) Time USA / Amazon Studios, Concordia Studio, The New York Times
Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw The Truffle Hunters USA, Italy, Greece / Sony Pictures Classics
Nicole Newnham and Jim LeBrecht Crip Camp USA / Netflix
Sam Pollard MLK/FBI USA / IFC Films
Jerry Rothwell The Reason I Jump USA, UK / Kino Lorber
Best Curated Series
30 for 30 Executive Producers: John Dahl, Libby Geist, Rob King, Erin Leyden, Connor Schell USA / ESPN
American Experience (winner) Executive Producers: Susan Bellows and Mark Samels USA / PBS
American Masters Executive Producer: Michael Kantor USA / THIRTEEN Productions, LLC
Reel Midwest Executive Producer: Moss Bresnahan USA / Illinois Public Media
Reel South Executive Producers: Don Godish and Rachel Raney USA / PBS, World Channel
Best Episodic Series
Cheer Director and Executive Producer: Greg Whiteley Producers: Adam Leibowitz, Arielle Kilker, Chelsea Yarnell Executive Producers: Andrew Fried, Dane Lillegard, Jasper Thomlinson, Bert Hamelinck USA / Netflix
Hip Hop: The Songs That Shook America Executive Producers: Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter, Shawn Gee, Alex Gibney, Stacey Offman, Richard Perello, Shea Serrano, Angie Day, One9, Erik Parker, Isaac Bolden USA / AMC
Last Chance U (winner) Director and Executive Producer: Greg Whiteley Executive Producers: Joe LaBracio, James D. Stern, Lucas Smith, Andrew Fried, Dane Lillegard USA / Netflix
Seven Worlds, One Planet Directors: Fredi Devas, Emma Napper, Giles Badger, Chadden Hunter Executive Producer: Jonny Keeling United Kingdom / BBC America
We’re Here Executive Producers: Eli Holzman, Aaron Saidman, Stephen Warren, Johnnie Ingram, Peter LoGreco USA / HBO
Best Multi-Part Documentary
Asian Americans Directors: Leo Chiang, Geeta Gandbhir, Grace Lee Producers: Renee Tajima-Peña, Mark Jonathan Harris Executive Producers: Jeff Bieber, Sally Jo Fifer, Stephen Gong, Jean Tsien, Donald Young USA / PBS
Hillary Director: Nanette Burstein Producers: Isabel San Vargas, Timothy Moran, Chi-Young Park, Tal Ben-David Executive Producers: Ben Silverman, Howard T. Owens, Nanette Burstein, Sierra Kos, Laurie Girion USA / Hulu
City So Real Director and Producer: Steve James Producer: Zak Piper Executive Producers: Jeff Skoll, Diane Weyermann, Alex Kotlowitz, Gordon Quinn, Betsy Steinberg, Jolene Pinder USA / National Geographic
Lenox Hill Directors and Executive Producers: Adi Barash and Ruthie Shatz Executive Producer: Josh Braun USA / Netflix
Atlanta's Missing and Murdered (winner) Directors and Executive Producers: Sam Pollard, Maro Chermayeff, Joshua Bennett, Jeff Dupre Executive Producers: John Legend, Mike Jackson, Ty Stiklorious, Nancy Abraham, Lisa Heller USA / HBO
Best Short Form Series
Almost Famous Director: Ben Proudfoot Producers: Abby Lynn Kang Davis, Gabriel Berk Godoi and Jeremy Lambert Executive Producer: Adam Ellick USA / New York Times Op-Docs
Guardian Documentaries Directors: Irene Baque, Laurence Topham, Sara Khaki, Mohammad Reza Eyni, Rebecca Lloyd-Evans, Laura Dodsworth, Dan McDougall Producers: Shanida Scotland, Natasha Dack Ojumu and Nikki Parrott Executive Producers: Charlie Phillips, Lindsay Poulton, Jess Gormley United Kingdom, Iran / The Guardian
Last Call For The Bayou: 5 Stories from Louisiana's Disappearing Delta Director: Dominic Gill Producer: Nadia Gill Executive Producer: Gina Hutchinson USA / Smithsonian Channel Plus
POV Shorts (winner) Producer: Opal H. Bennett Executive Producers: Justine Nagan and Chris White USA / PBS
Run This City Director: Brent Hodge Producer: Prince Vaughn Executive Producers: Mark Wahlberg, Stephen Levinson, Archie Gips, Brent Hodge USA / Quibi
Best Audio Documentary
Crosses in the Desert / Cruces en el desierto Reporter: Dennis Maxwell Producers: Catalina May, Martín Cruz Executive Producer: Martina Castro Chile, USA / Las Raras Podcast
Fiasco: Bush v. Gore Producers: Leon Neyfakh, Andrew Parsons USA / Luminary
Girl Taken Reporter: Sue Mitchell Producer: Richard Hannaford Executive Producer: Philip Sellars United Kingdom / British Broadcasting Corporation
Heavyweight - The Marshes Reporter, Producer and Executive Producer: Jonathan Goldstein Reporter and Producer: Kalila Holt Producers: Stevie Lane, Jorge Just, BA Parker, Bobby Lord USA / Gimlet Media
Somebody (winner) Reporters and Producers: Alison Flowers, Bill Healy and Sarah Geis Host: Shapearl Wells Reporters: Sam Stecklow, Annie Nguyen, Kahari Blackburn, Rajiv Sinclair, Henri Adams, Matilda Vojak, Dana Brozost-Kelleher, Frances McDonald, Diana Akmajian, Andrew Fan and Maddie Anderson Associate Producer: Ellen Glover Executive Producers: Jamie Kalven, Maria Zuckerman, Christy Gressman, Leital Molad USA / Topic Studios, The Intercept, the Invisible Institute, and iHeartRadio, in association with Tenderfoot TV
Best Music Documentary
Beastie Boys Story Director/Producer: Spike Jonze Producers: Jason Baum and Amanda Adelson USA / Apple TV+
Billie Director: James Erskine United Kingdom / Greenwich Entertainment
Crock of Gold Director/Producer: Julien Temple Producers: Johnny Depp, Stephen Deuters, Stephen Malit USA / Magnolia Pictures
Los Hermanos/The Brothers Directors/Producers: Marcia Jarmel and Ken Schneider USA / PatchWorks Films, PBS
Universe (winner) Directors: Sam Osborn and Nicholas Capezzera Producers: Esther Dere and Leah Natasha Thomas USA
David L. Wolper Student Documentary Award
This award recognizes exceptional achievement in non-fiction film and video production at the university level and brings greater public and industry awareness to the work of students in the documentary field.
Bananas Director/Producer: Sara Montoya Sepúlveda United Kingdom / National Film and Television School
Isle of Us Director: Laura Wadha United Kingdom / National Film and Television School
Na Luta Delas Directors/Producers: Orion Rose Kelly and Pedro Cota Brazil / UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism
People Like Me (winner) Director/Producer: Marrok Sedgwick USA / University of California Santa Cruz
Susana Director: Laura Gamse Producer: James Davis USA / Stanford University
Trees Director: Rosie Morris Producer: Jesse Romain United Kingdom / National Film and Television School
Best Cinematography
Acasă, My Home Cinematographers: Radu Ciorniciuc and Mircea Topoleanu Romania, Germany, Finland / Manifest Film, HBO Europe
Boys State Director of Photography: Thorsten Thielow USA / Apple, A24
The Earth is Blue as an Orange (winner) Cinematographer: Viacheslav Tsvietkov Ukraine, Lithuania
The Truffle Hunters Cinematographers: Michael Dweck, Gregory Kershaw USA, Italy, Greece / Sony Pictures Classics
Time Cinematographers: Zac Manuel, Justin Zweifach, Nisa East USA / Amazon Studios, Concordia Studio, The New York Times
Best Editing
Boys State Editor: Jeff Gilbert USA / Apple, A24
Crip Camp Editors: Eileen Meyer and Andrew Gersh USA / Netflix
Disclosure Editor: Stacy Goldate USA / Netflix
Dick Johnson is Dead (winner) Editor: Nels Bangerter USA / Netflix
Through the Night Editor: Malika Zouhali-Worrall USA / ITVS, POV
Best Music Score
Dancing with the Birds Composer: David Mitcham USA / Netflix
David Attenborough: Life On Our Planet Composer: Steven Price USA, United Kingdom / Netflix
Hope Frozen: A Quest to Live Twice Composer: Chapavich Temnitikul USA / Netflix
My Octopus Teacher (winner) Composer: Kevin Smuts USA, United Kingdom / Netflix
Rising Phoenix Composer: Daniel Pemberton USA / Netflix
Best Writing
Crip Camp Writers: Jim LeBrecht and Nicole Newnham USA / Netflix
Dick Johnson is Dead (winner) Writers: Nels Bangerter and Kirsten Johnson USA / Netflix
I Am Not Alone Writer: Garin Hovannisian USA
My Octopus Teacher Writers: Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed USA / Netflix
Socks on Fire Writers: Bo McGuire and Max Allman USA
ABC News VideoSource Award
The ABC News VideoSource Award is given each year for the best use of news footage as an integral component in a documentary.
#Unfit: The Psychology of Donald Trump Director/Producer: Dan Partland Producer: Art Horan USA / Dark Star
Bully. Coward. Victim.: The Story of Roy Cohn Director: Ivy Meerapol Producers: Julie Goldman, Christopher Clements, Carolyn Hepburn USA / HBO
Crip Camp (winner) Directors/Producers: Jim LeBrecht, Nicole Newnham Producer: Sara Bolder USA / Netflix
Kill Chain: The Cyber War on America's Elections Director: Sarah Teale Directors/Producers: Simon Ardizzone and Russell Michaels Producers: Michael Hirschorn and Jessica Antonini USA / HBO
MLK/FBI Director: Sam Pollard Producer: Benjamin Hedin USA / IFC Films
The First Rainbow Coalition Director/Producer: Ray Santisteban USA / Independent Lens, PBS, Latino Public Broadcasting, ITVS
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.
My Octopus Teacher (winner) Director: Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed Producer: Craig Foster USA / Netflix
Crip Camp (honorable mention) Directors/Producers: Jim LeBrecht, Nicole Newnham Producer: Sara Bolder USA / Netflix
