Best Documentary Films

Tomas Kamphuis’ Poetic Documentary ‘Art Chooses Us’ Contemplates What It Means to Be an Artist in Africa

Tomas Kamphuis breaks down the free-flowing improvisational approach he used to delve into the African art scene through the eyes of four diverse artists.

Documentary, Film Festival

Sophie Compton & Daisy-May Hudson’s ‘Holloway’ Interrogates the Root Causes and Lasting Trauma of Incarceration

Sophie Compton & Daisy-May Hudson extol the benefits of the co-created trauma-informed filmmaking model underpinning their LFF award winning documentary.

Documentary, Film Festival, Podcasts

A Nun Untangles the Threads of Her Sense of Self in Cécile Embleton & Alys Tomlinson’s ‘Mother Vera’

Cécile Embleton & Alys Tomlinson speak to us about the multi-year journey of their Grierson Award winning doc about a young nun facing deep inner conflict.

Documentary

Miranda Stern’s Cathartic NFTS Documentary ‘milk’ Is an Intimate Exploration of Maternity, Addiction and Loss

Miranda Stern unpacks the cathartic and narrative reasons she opted for an abstract, mixed media scrapbook-style approach for her self-explorative doc short.

Documentary

Hervé Demers Tackles Themes of Deindustrialisation and Community in Documentary Short ‘Once the Dust Has Settled’

Hervé Demers returns to DN to discuss his new doc short set in Asbestos, a former mining town in Quebec, which explores notions of community and identity.

Awards, Documentary, Film Festival

Elahe Esmaili Documents the Reaction to the Woman, Life, Freedom Movement on a Familial Level in ‘A Move’

Elahe Esmaili explains the intimate, family-centric perspective of the Woman, Life, Freedom protest movement that she wanted to capture in her doc short.

Documentary, Film Festival

Duncan Cowles on His Signature Deadpan Style and ‘Silent Men’ the Feature Film Culmination of a Decade of Shorts

Duncan Cowles speaks to us about his new shorts 'Outlets' 'Sighscapes' and 'Desire Lines', and the upcoming premiere of his debut documentary feature film.

Documentary

The Voices of Palestine’s Oppressed and Colonised Speak Out in Zaya & Maurizio Benazzo’s ‘Where Olive Trees Weep’

Zaya & Maurizio Benazzo discuss how they safeguarded their team and contributors when documenting the struggles of Palestinian life under Israeli occupation.

Documentary

Martí Arbaizar Reveals a Shared Unity Through Dance and Rhythm in ‘I Shut My Eyes in Order to See’

Martí Arbaizar details the trial and error approach to editing that led to the unified feeling of his doc about disparate lives united by a passion for dance.

Documentary

Neil Fox Posits Why Concert Films and Music Docs Transcend Brand Marketing in New BFI Book ‘Music Films’

Neil Fox talks about shifting perspectives on cinematic depictions of music artists while assessing the role of these undersung films in the creation of myth.

Documentary

Gianna Mazzeo Chronicles an Unsung Symbol of Lesbian Community in Kinetic Doc ‘The History of the Carabiner’

Gianna Mazzeo details the importance of queer oral history when creating her film about a uniting and proud symbol of lesbian self-expression and community.

Documentary

Nick Bentgen Chronicles the Adventurous Outlook of a Teenage Self-Love Collective in Documentary Short ‘#LoveYourz’

Nick Bentgen reveals the free-flowing, mixed format, organic shooting process of his doc about a group of free spirited teens in the outer boroughs of NYC.

Documentary Category