Today, we announced the 16 feature-length and 12 short-length documentaries shortlisted for the 42nd IDA Documentary Awards. This year’s Awards will be an evening of celebration and community held on December 4, 2026, at The Ebell of Los Angeles, hosted by documentary field leader Tabitha Jackson. At a time when filmmakers face critical distribution and funding challenges, IDA looks forward to gathering and uplifting this irrepressible global community and introducing their work to new audiences. Tickets for the ceremony are now available to purchase here.
IDA received 650 entries across all categories from 95 countries, an increase over last year in both the total number of entries and the number of countries represented. IDA members will have access to view shortlisted films on the IDA Virtual Cinema starting on November 3, 2026.
The five nominees for the Best Feature and Best Short categories will be selected from the shortlists. Starting with the announcement of nominees on November 17, 2026, thousands of IDA members from 100 countries will view and vote for the Best Feature and Best Short category winners until voting closes on November 29, 2026. For information on how to become an IDA member, visit here.
Additional IDA Awards will be presented in the following categories with winners selected by jurors consisting of 200+ documentary professionals from 60+ countries: Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Original Music Score, Best Production, Best Sound Design, Best Writing, Best Curated Series, Best Episodic Series, Best Documentary Not in the English Language, Best Music Documentary, Best Student Documentary Award, the ABC News VideoSource Award, and the Pare Lorentz Award.
Best Feature Documentary Shortlist
In alphabetical order by film title.
- A Fox Under a Pink Moon (Iran, Türkiye, Greece | KINO LORBER | Director: Mehrdad Oskouei, Co-Director Soraya Akhlaghi | Producers: Mehrdad Oskouei, Siavash Jamali)
- A Life Illuminated (United States | Fourth Act Film | Director: Tasha Van Zandt | Producers: Tasha Van Zandt, Sebastian Zeck, Jessica Harrop, Kathryn Everett)
- Birds of War (Syria, Lebanon, United Kingdom | Dogwoof | Directors: Janay Boulos, Abd Alkader Habak | Producers: Sonja Henrici, Janay Boulos, Abd Alkader Habak)
- Concrete Land (Jordan, Palestine, Qatar | Director: Asmahan Bkerat | Producers: Ban Maraqa, Asmahan Bkerat)
- Do You Love Me (Lebanon, France, Germany | ICARUS/ Rapid Eye Movies | Director: Lana Daher | Producers: Jean-Laurent Csinidis, Lana Daher)
- Filthy (Spain | Directors: Bàrbara Mestanza, Marc Pujolar | Producer: Pau Sanclemente)
- My Undesirable Friends: Part II — Exile (United States | MUBI | Director: Julia Loktev | Producer: Julia Loktev)
- Nuestra Tierra (Our Land) (Argentina, United States, Mexico | Strand Releasing | Director: Lucrecia Martel | Producers: Benjamín Domenech, Santiago Gallelli, Matías Roveda, Joslyn Barnes, Javier Leoz, Julio Chavezmontes)
- Nuisance Bear (United States, Canada, United Kingdom | MUBI | Directors: Jack Weisman, Gabriela Osio Vanden | Producers: Will N. Miller, Michael Code, Teddy Leifer, Jack Weisman, Gabriela Osio Vanden)
- One in a Million (United Kingdom, United States | PBS Distribution | Directors: Itab Azzam, Jack MacInnes | Producers: Itab Azzam, Jack MacInnes, Will Anderson, James Bluemel, Andrew Palmer, Raney Aronson-Rath)
- Rehearsals for a Revolution (Czech Republic, Spain | Sony Pictures Classics | Director: Pegah Ahangarani | Producers: Kaveh Farnam, Adria Mones)
- Silver (Poland, Germany, Norway, Bolivia | Director: Natalia Koniarz | Producer: Maciej Kubicki)
- The Eyes of Ghana (United States, United Kingdom, Ghana | Director: Ben Proudfoot | Producers: Nana Adwoa Frimpong, Ben Proudfoot, Anita Afonu, Moses Bwayo, Brandon Somerhalder, Ethan Lewis, Vinnie Malhotra)
- The Fabulous Time Machine (Brazil | Split Screen | Director: Eliza Capai | Producer: Mariana Genescá)
- To Hold a Mountain (Serbia, Montenegro, France | Submarine | Directors: Biljana Tutorov, Petar Glomazić | Producer: Biljana Tutorov)
- You Can See Everything (United States | A24 | Directors: Nathan Fielder, Lance Oppenheim | Producers: Nathan Fielder, Lance Oppenheim, Tatiana Bears, Maggie Ambrose, Jack Davis)
Best Short Documentary Shortlist
In alphabetical order by film title.
- A Wolf in the Suburbs (Canada | The New York Times Op-Docs | Director: Amélie Hardy | Producer: Rosalie Chicoine Perreault)
- Free Joan Little (United States | PBS | Director: Yoruba Richen | Producer: Christalyn Hampton, Bonnie Bertram)
- Fruits of Despair (Iran | Raina Film Festival Distribution | Director: Nima Nassaj | Producers: Faezeh Davoodi, Asghar Torabi, Nima Nassaj, Mahshid Afzali)
- How to Catch a Butterfly (Netherlands | Director: Kiriko Mechanicus | Producer: Ilja Roomans)
- Lost Songs of Sundari (India | Director: Sudarshan Sawant | Producers: Sudarshan Sawant, Charles Correa Foundation)
- Maybe Tomorrow (United Kingdom, Germany, Syria | Channel 4 | Directors: Waad Al-Kateab, Wafa Mustafa | Producers: Waad Al-Kateab, Joanna Natasegara, Abigail Anketell-Jones)
- Sanyi Kakas (Sanyi the Rooster) (Hungary, Netherlands | The New York Times Op-Docs/Amsterdam University of the Arts | Director: Lotte Salomons | Producers: Raphael Hogers, Nova Nagel, Kes Raven)
- Sawyer Avenue, Sunday Afternoon (United States | The New Yorker | Director: Bill Morrison | Producers: Bill Morrison, Jamie Kalven, María Inés Zamudio)
- Son (Sweden | The New York Times Op-Docs | Director: Leona Cauklija | Producers: Balder Ljunggren, Joel Viksten Abrahamsson)
- Stalin Boys (United States | The New York Times Op-Docs | Directors: Bianca Giaever, Ora DeKornfeld | Producers: Bianca Giaever, Ora DeKornfeld, Alejandra Vasquez, Sam Osborn)
- The Hotline (United States | HBO Max | Directors: Ricki Stern, Jesse Sweet | Producers: Ricki Stern, Simon Killmurry)
- They're Here (United States | Directors: Laura Poitras, Rachel Lauren Mueller | Producers: Rachel Lauren Mueller, Laura Poitras, Yoni Golijov)
42nd IDA Documentary Awards Key Dates
- IDA Member Viewing (Shortlist ONLY): November 3 - November 17, 2026
- Nominee Announcement: November 17, 2026
- IDA Member Viewing (Nominees ONLY): November 17 - November 29, 2026
- IDA Member Voting Period**: November 17 - November 29, 2026
- IDA Member Viewing (Shortlist and Select films): November 30 - December 31, 2026
- Awards Ceremony: December 4, 2026, The Ebell Los Angeles
- IDA Virtual Viewing Platform closes: December 31, 2026
Learn more and purchase tickets for the 2026 IDA Documentary Awards at https://www.documentary.org/awards2026.