The second edition of the Cinema Eye Honors kicked off Thursday with the announcement of the 2009 CEH Shortlist. Fifteen films - those that had received the most total points across nine categories - were named to this year's shortlist and are now considered the leading contenders for this year's nominations. Although, it should be said, that one need not be on the shortlist to end up with a nomination in one or more categories. Last year, 11 films received nominations that were not previously on the shortlist (and one film on the shortlist did not receive a nomination).
What excites me most about this year's shortlist is that it represents every facet of nonfiction filmmaking. Some are working classically, some are experimenting with new visions. It's amazing that nonfiction filmmaking, or more commonly for some, documentary - a word that at various times has conveyed a very specific idea of format - now can encompass films as stylistically different as MY WINNIPEG and STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE, FORBIDDEN LIES and TROUBLE THE WATER. It's no doubt that it's a tremendously exciting time to be working in and writing about this kind of filmmaking.
As a point of personal privelege, I want to express my sincere thanks to our nominations committee, comprised of many programmers from some of the top film festivals in the world (list of members at bottom of post). A total of 117 films qualified for this year's awards and 72 (nearly 2/3) of those films received at least one vote from one of our committee members. Two years in a row, I think they have collectively come up with a great list of some of the year's most memorable and artistically meaningful films and I'm excited to see their nominations unveiled in 10 days in Park City.
Here's a look at this year's Cinema Eye Shortlist and some of the details:
The Sundance Screening
Eight of this year's fifteen films screened at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, including six that premiered there in competition (both STRANDED and UP THE YANGTZE had world premieres elsewhere). Since six of the Oscar shortlisted films - including three that vary from the CEH list - also premiered in Park City, one can't help but look over this year's Sundance schedule and wonder which of these films we will be talking about one year from now.
Omissions No More
Most of the surprises/controversy leading up to this year's Oscar shortlist were revelations over the films that were ineligible for the Academy Award due to a television broadcast or a late festival screenings. Three of these films - STRANDED, UP THE YANGTZE and WALTZ WITH BASHIR - are on the CEH shortlist. Also making the cut were three films directed by women that were widely expected to be in the mix for the Academy yet weren't - AMERICAN TEEN, THE ORDER OF MYTHS and ROMAN POLANSKI: WANTED AND DESIRED.
Zeitgeist at 20
The twentieth anniversary of distributor Zeitgeist came last year. At the first CEH, Zeitgeist had nine nominations for its two nominated films - INTO GREAT SILENCE and MANUFACTURED LANDSCAPES. This year, Zeitgeist leads all distributors with three films on the shortlist - STRANDED, TROUBLE THE WATER and UP THE YANGTZE. HBO also has connections to a trio of films - ROMAN POLANSKI, which they acquired at Sundance, as well as television deals for IN A DREAM and TROUBLE THE WATER. Cinema Guild, Sony Pictures Classics and THINKFilm each are represented by two films.
Film International
Six of this year's films are from outside the states - THE ENGLISH SURGEON, FORBIDDEN LIES, MY WINNIPEG, STRANDED, UP THE YANGTZE and WALTZ WITH BASHIR - while a seventh, MAN ON WIRE, has a mixed US/UK pedigree. Last year, there were five international films on the CEH shortlist.
Gender Balance
While for the past two years women have faired poorly on the Oscar shortlist (despite the much higher percentage of female filmmakers in nonfiction), they've done a bit better at the CEH. Last year, 4 films on the shortlist were directed by women, with a fifth that was co-directed. Two women - Jennifer Venditti for BILLY THE KID and Pernille Rose Grønkjær for THE MONASTERY - MR. VIG AND THE NUN - received Cinema Eye Honors last year for their films (and the cinematography award went to MANDA BALA's Heloisa Passos). This year, while there were only 3 films on the Oscar shortlist that were directed or co-directed by women, 6 titles on the CEH shortlist bare that distinction.
A New Honor
This year, we'll unveil a tenth award for Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Score. This will be added to the previously presented awards for Audience Choice, Debut Feature, International Feature, Graphic Design and Animation, Editing, Cinematography, Producing, Directing and Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking.
Here is the 2009 Cinema Eye Honors Feature Film Shortlist:
15 feature films, representing nearly every facet of the current state of nonfiction filmmaking, were named today to the 2008 Cinema Eye Honors for Nonfiction Filmmaking Shortlist. Full list after the jump.
In alphabetical order, they are:
AMERICAN TEEN
Directed by Nanette Burstein
Premiere: Sundance Film Festival 2008
Distributor: Paramount Vantage
Television Partner: A&E (Premiere TBA)
Major Awards:
Sundance Film Festival - Best Director
National Board of Review - Runner-up
THE BETRAYAL (NERAHKOON)
Directed by Ellen Kuras and Thavisouk Phrasavath
Premiere: Sundance Film Festival 2008
Distributor: Cinema Guild
Television Partner: P.O.V. (Premiere Summer 2009)
Major Awards:
Oscar Shortlist
Full Frame Film Festival - Spectrum Award
National Board of Review - Runner-up
ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD
Directed by Werner Herzog
Premiere: Toronto International Film Festival 2007
U.S. Premiere: Telluride 2007
Distributor: THINKFilm
Television Partner: Discovery (Premiere TBA)
Major Awards:
Oscar Shortlist
Film Independent Spirit Award Nominee
IDA Awards Career Achievement Award
Gotham Awards - Best Documentary Nominee
Edinburgh Film Festival - Best Documentary
National Board of Review - Runner-up
THE ENGLISH SURGEON
Directed by Geoffrey Smith
Premiere: London 2007
Qualifying Premiere: Hot Docs 2008
U.S. Premiere: San Francisco 2008
U.S. Distribution: Indiepix
Television Partner: BBC Storyville
Major Awards:
Hot Docs - Best International Feature
Silverdocs - World Feature Award
FORBIDDEN LIES
Directed by Anna Broinowski
Premiere: Adelaide Film Festival 2007
Qualifying Premiere: Hot Docs 2007
U.S. Premiere: True/False 2008
U.S. Distribution: Pending
U.S. Television: Pending
Major Awards:
Silverdocs - Screenplay Award
IN A DREAM
Directed by Jeremiah Zagar
Premiere: SXSW Film 2008
Distributor: Pending
Television Partner: HBO
Major Awards:
Oscar Shortlist
SXSW - Emerging Vision Award
Full Frame - Emerging Artist Award
Woodstock - Best Documentary
MAN ON WIRE
Directed by James Marsh
Premiere: Sundance Film Festival 2008
Distributor: Magnolia
Television Partner: Discovery Channel (Premiere TBA)
Major Awards:
Oscar Shortlist
Film Independent Spirit Award Nominee
IDA Award for Best Documentary Feature (tie)
Gotham Awards - Best Documentary Nominee
Critics Choice Awards - Best Documentary
Sundance Film Festival - World Cinema Grand Jury Prize
Full Frame - Special Jury Award
BritDoc - Best Documentary
New York Film Critics - Best Non-Fiction Film
Los Angeles Film Critics - Best Documentary
National Board of Review - Best Documentary
MY WINNIPEG
Directed by Guy Maddin
Premiere: Toronto International Film Festival 2007
U.S. Premiere: Tribeca 2008
Distributor: IFC Films
Television Partner: The Documentary Channel (Canada)
Major Awards:
San Francisco Film Critics - Best Documentary
THE ORDER OF MYTHS
Directed by Margaret Brown
Premiere: Sundance Film Festival 2008
Distributor: Cinema Guild
Television Partner: Independent Lens (February 24, 2009)
Major Awards:
Film Independent Spirit Award - Best Documentary Nominee
Film Independent Spirit Award - Truer Than Fiction Award
Silverdocs - Cinematic Vision Award
Sheffield DocFest - Grierson Youth Jury Award
ROMAN POLANSKI: WANTED AND DESIRED
Directed by Marina Zenovich
Premiere: Sundance Film Festival 2008
Distributor: THINKFilm
Television Partner: HBO
Major Awards:
Gotham Awards - Best Documentary Nominee
Sundance Film Festival - Best Editing
National Board of Review - Runner-up
STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE
Directed by Errol Morris
Premiere: Berlin Film Festival 2008
Qualified via threatrical run
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Major Awards:
Oscar Shortlist
Berlin Film Festival - Silver Bear
STRANDED, I'VE COME FROM A PLANE THAT CRASHED ON THE MOUNTAINS
Directed by Gonzalo Arijon
Premiere: IDFA 2007
US Premiere: Sundance 2008
Distributor: Zeitgeist Films
Television Partner: Independent Lens (May 19, 2009)
Major Awards:
IDA Awards - Best Documentary Feature Nominee
IDFA - Joris Ivens Award Best Documentary
Sarasota - Best Documentary
TROUBLE THE WATER
Directed by Carl Deal and Tia Lessin
Premiere: Sundance Film Festival 2008
Distributor: Zeitgeist Films
Television Partner: HBO
Major Awards:
Oscar Shortlist
Gotham Awards - Best Documentary Winner
Sundance Film Festival - Grand Jury Prize
Full Frame - Grand Jury Prize
Full Frame - Working Films Award (tie)
Full Frame - Human Rights Award
Silverdocs - Special Jury Prize
UP THE YANGTZE
Directed by Yung Chang
Premiere: Vancouver International Film Festival 2007
Qualifying Festival: IDFA 2007
U.S. Premiere: Sundance 2008
Distributor: Zeitgeist Films
Television Partner: P.O.V.
Major Awards:
Film Independent Spirit Awards - Best Documentary Nominee
Golden Horse Awards - Best Documentary
Full Frame - Emerging Artist, Honorable Mention
Full Frame - Spectrum, Honorable Mention
San Francisco - Grand Jury Prize
WALTZ WITH BASHIR
Directed by Ari Folman
Premiere: Cannes Film Festival 2008
US Premiere: New York Film Festival 2008
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Major Awards:
National Society of Film Critics - Best Picture of the Year
IDA Award for Best Documentary Feature (tie)
Golden Globes - Best Foreign Language Film Nominee
Here are this year's 15 members of the CEH Nominations Committee:
Meira Blaustein, Woodstock Film Festival
Phoebe Brush, Full Frame Film Festival
David Courier, Sundance Film Festival
Heather Croall, Sheffield Doc/Fest
Sean Farnel, Hot Docs
Tine Fischer, CPH:DOX (Copenhagen)
Tom Hall, Sarasota Film Festival
David Kwok, Tribeca Film Festival
David Nugent, Hamptons Film Festival
Janet Pierson, SXSW Film Festival
Thom Powers, Toronto International Film Festival
Rachel Rosen, LA Film Festival
Sky Sitney, AFI Silverdocs
David Wilson, True/False Film Festival
Brit Withey, Denver Film Festival
Nominations will be announced Monday, January 19 at a reception in Park City, Utah during the Sundance Film Festival. Ceremonies will be held in New York City on March 29, 2009.
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