Doc Corner: The 2019 Oscar Nominees!

By Glenn Dunks (returning from a writing break, I hope y'all missed me)

Following last year’s surprising line-up for Best Documentary Feature that ignored multiple major box office hits and favoured critical and festival hits, I asked how much the Academy’s changing dynamics had affected the nominations in this category that was often considered a musty piece of furniture. It was undeniable that a significant shift had been made and I am thankful to say that it wasn’t a fluke. The 2019 nominations for documentary have yet again marked the branch as one on its own course through the greater Oscar season narrative. A narrative that is otherwise marked by predictability, a distinct lack of adventurousness, and even outright laziness.

This year’s nominees took us from the bombs and missiles of a warzone of Syria (two times! The Cave and For Sama) to the silent beekeeping traditions of North Macedonia (Honeyland), through the muddy democratic waters of Brazil (The Edge of Democracy) and the blue collar working yards of America's midwest (American Factory). They represent American and international filmmaking at their finest made by newcomers and veterans alike...

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"Apollo 11" and "American Factory" are big at the Cinema Eye Honors

by Nathaniel R

Cinema Eye is the only international documentary honor that surveys the whole craft of documentary filmmaking (like the Oscars, they look at cinematography, editing, and the like). They are now in their 12th year and have announced their latest batch of nominees. The nominations are determined by "top documentary programmers" from various festivals all over the world. The awards take place over an entire weekend, January 4th-6th, 2020, which serves as the finale of what is basically a multi-city travelling festival. 

This year Apollo 11 (Neon) and American Factory (Netflix) led the nominations (5 categories each) while Homecoming: A Film By Beyonce leads the Broadcast portion of the nominations with 3 nods. This year's "Legacy Award" will go to the trippy classic Koyaanisqatsi. Unfortunately Cinema Eye is one of those awards that appears to have no consistency of the number of nominees ranging anywhere from 4 to 8 nominations depending on the category.

The nominations are after the jump...

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2019 Critics Choice Documentary Award Nominations

By Glenn Dunks

they shall not grow old

We do a good job here covering documentaries. Especially since I have a 9 to 5-Monday to Friday day job. But we cover, I want to say, somewhere between 50 and 80 films a year in Doc Corner. I only say this to preface the news of the 2019 Critics Choice Documentary Awards because my gosh there are still just so many we do not or can not (or will not) get to. There are an estimated 300+ docs released every year. That is, to put it mildly, quite a lot.

Which brings us to their nominees for 2019. The list features many that we have already covered, more that we plan to upon their theatrical release or as we get deeper into the season, and even some that we do not want to review. Leading the pack with six nominations are Apollo 11, The Biggest Little Farm (more good news this week for Parasite distributor NEON) and Peter Jackson’s They Shall Not Grow Old (which some would consider a 2018 release).

Read on the see the nominations (AND NOW UPDATED WITH WINNERS) in full...

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Doc Corner: 50th Anniversary of the moon landing inspires multiple documentaries

By Glenn Dunks

It’s amazing to think that there can still be so much previously unseen footage from the biggest television event in history, and yet here we are at the 50th anniversary of the moon landing with a bus-load of new documentaries claiming new takes, new interviews and, yes, new footage. Don’t ask me what exactly is new to us, though. I watched three such films within days of each other and I, at times, felt like I was going nuts: the subject of one is a talking head in another who happens to be in different footage in the other movie, which is probably just a different angle to footage a few feet to the left in the first movie!

And on top of that, if you’ve watched even just one or two other works about the American space program – whether that be documentaries like For All Mankind, or dramatic features like Apollo 13 – then you will already be familiar with a lot, not to mention the moon landing itself. It’s exhausting. I even saw another moon landing documentary on the tele while I was at the gym the other night. And then there is the six-hour PBS documentary that I, quite frankly, just don’t know if I have the patience for after this triple-play. The three films I have watched all do have something in them that is ultimately worth the time. Especially if you’re in a particularly lunar mood on this landmark date. The best of the three, the most cinematic and effectively rousing, is Todd Douglas Williams’ Apollo 11…

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