Monica & David, which explores the marriage of two adults with Down syndrome and the family who strives to support their needs, earned the Best Documentary Feature award at the Tribeca Film Festival in a ceremony at the W Union Square in New York City. The film, directed by Monica's cousin, Alexandra Codina, was praised by the jury for taking "an incredibly intimate situation and beautifully translates it in a way that makes you think about your own life. It's a clear and observant look at a family and the purity of love, fueled by an organic sense of the sadness, joy and everyday humor that fill this epic journey that is life."
Julia Bacha's Budrus, about a Palestinian community organizer who brings together members of Fatah and Hamas, as well as Israeli supporters to save their village from destruction, earned a Special Jury Mention. The jury deemed the film "a journey that stretches beyond borders to provide hope."
The Best New Documentary Filmmaker honor went to Clio Barnard, maker of The Arbor, about a housing project in Northern England, where playwright Andrea Dunbar grew up. Barnard has taken a bold step in rendering both the memory of the place and the memory of the late playwright, conducting audio interviews with those who knew Dunbar, then filming actors lip-synching the interviews, and staging scenes from Dunbar's plays on the street where she lived. The jury commented, "Imagination is a word you don't often associate with documentary filmmaking, but this director bends the boundaries of the form, beautifully crafting an innovative and detailed film wherein great storytelling is paramount."
The Best New York Documentary went to The Woodmans, by C. Scott Willis, about a family of artists beset with tragedy when their daughter Francesca, a well-regarded photographer, took her life at age 22. Travis Senger's White Lines & The Fever: The Death of DJ Junebug took Best Documentary Short honors, while Out of Infamy: Michi Nishiura Weglyn, by Nancy Kapitanoff and Sharon Yamato earned a Special Jury Mention. Of White Lines, which also won an award at SXSW, the jury said, "We chose a film that we feel effectively showed the evolution of hip-hop through its captivating visuals, riveting interviews and exciting exploration of the music and the culture behind the phenomenon."