Favorite 2013 Oscar-Qualifying Documentary
by dan_dassow | created - 20 Oct 2013 | updated - 21 Oct 2013 | PublicThe Wrap reported that there are 151 Oscar-qualifying documentaries. Which of the top 30 of these is your favorite?
The full list is here.
Discuss here.
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1. The Act of Killing (2012)
Not Rated | 117 min | Documentary, Biography, Crime
A documentary which challenges former Indonesian death-squad leaders to reenact their mass-killings in whichever cinematic genres they wish, including classic Hollywood crime scenarios and lavish musical numbers.
Directors: Joshua Oppenheimer, Anonymous, Christine Cynn | Stars: Anwar Congo, Herman Koto, Syamsul Arifin, Ibrahim Sinik
Votes: 40,829 | Gross: $0.49M
2. After Tiller (2013)
PG-13 | 85 min | Documentary, Biography, Drama
This thought provoking, sometimes troubling documentary examines the personal and ethical imperatives that drive abortion providers to continue in the face of often dangerous legal and personal harassment.
Directors: Martha Shane, Lana Wilson | Stars: George Tiller, Warren Hern, Leroy Carhart, Susan Robinson
Votes: 1,116 | Gross: $0.07M
3. Approved for Adoption (2012)
Not Rated | 70 min | Animation, Biography, Drama
Comic-book artist Jung returns to Seoul for the first time since he was abandoned at the age of 5.
Directors: Laurent Boileau, Jung Henin | Stars: Maxym Anciaux, Mahé Collet, Christelle Cornil, William Coryn
Votes: 628 | Gross: $0.00M
4. Blackfish (2013)
PG-13 | 83 min | Documentary
A documentary following the controversial captivity of killer whales, and its dangers for both humans and whales.
Director: Gabriela Cowperthwaite | Stars: Tilikum, Dave Duffus, Samantha Berg, Dean Gomersall
Votes: 72,485 | Gross: $2.07M
5. Call Me Kuchu (2012)
Not Rated | 87 min | Documentary
In Uganda, a new bill threatens to make homosexuality punishable by death. David Kato - Uganda's first openly gay man - and his fellow activists work against the clock to defeat the ... See full summary »
Directors: Katherine Fairfax Wright, Malika Zouhali-Worrall | Stars: David Bahati, Lou Engle, Long John, David Kato
Votes: 830 | Gross: $0.01M
6. Casting By (2012)
TV-14 | 89 min | Documentary, Biography
The surprising, never-before-told tale of the indispensable yet unsung Casting Director - Iconoclasts whose keen eye, exquisite taste and gut instincts redefined Hollywood.
Director: Tom Donahue | Stars: Deborah Aquila, Risa Bramon Garcia, Ellen Chenoweth, Marion Dougherty
Votes: 1,638 | Gross: $0.01M
7. The Crash Reel (2013)
Not Rated | 108 min | Documentary, Biography, Sport
Fifteen years of verite footage show the epic rivalry between half-pipe legends Shaun White and Kevin Pearce, childhood friends who become number one and two in the world leading up to the ... See full summary »
Director: Lucy Walker | Stars: Kevin Pearce, Shaun White, Mason Aguirre, Daniel Amen
Votes: 5,080
8. Cutie and the Boxer (2013)
R | 82 min | Documentary, Biography
This candid New York love story explores the chaotic 40-year marriage of famed boxing painter Ushio Shinohara and his wife, Noriko. Anxious to shed her role as her overbearing husband's assistant, Noriko finds an identity of her own.
Director: Zach Heinzerling | Stars: Ushio Shinohara, Noriko Shinohara, Alex Shinohara, Ethan Cohen
Votes: 4,738 | Gross: $0.20M
9. Dirty Wars (2013)
Not Rated | 87 min | Documentary, Crime, History
Investigative journalist Jeremy Scahill is pulled into an unexpected journey as he chases down the hidden truth behind America's expanding covert wars.
Director: Rick Rowley | Stars: Jeremy Scahill, Nasser Al Aulaqi, Saleha Al Aulaqi, Muqbal Al Kazemi
Votes: 9,397 | Gross: $0.38M
10.
Independent Lens (1999– )
Episode:
Don't Stop Believin': Everyman's Journey
(2013)
R | 105 min | Documentary
A documentary on Arnel Pineda, who was plucked from YouTube to become the new singer for the rock & roll band, Journey.
Director: Ramona S. Diaz | Stars: Arnel Pineda, Neal Schon, Jonathan Cain, Ross Valory
Votes: 1,249
11. Downloaded (2013)
Not Rated | 106 min | Documentary
A documentary that explores the downloading revolution; the kids that created it, the bands and the businesses that were affected by it, and its impact on the world at large.
Director: Alex Winter | Stars: Mike D, Henry Rollins, Noel Gallagher, Cindy Margolis
Votes: 2,823 | Gross: $0.01M
12. Gasland Part II (2013)
Not Rated | 125 min | Documentary
A documentary that declares the gas industry's portrayal of natural gas as a clean and safe alternative to oil is a myth, and that fracked wells inevitably leak over time, contaminating ... See full summary »
Director: Josh Fox | Stars: Al Armendariz, Kindra Arnesen, Lon Burnam, Lois Capps
Votes: 1,731
13. Generation Iron (2013)
PG-13 | 106 min | Documentary, Drama, Sport
A documentary that follows top bodybuilders as they train to compete in the Mr. Olympia competition.
Director: Vlad Yudin | Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mickey Rourke, Michael Jai White, Lou Ferrigno
Votes: 8,037 | Gross: $0.85M
14. The Ghosts in Our Machine (2013)
93 min | Documentary
A cinematic documentary that illuminates the lives of individual animals living within and rescued from the machine of our modern world.
Director: Liz Marshall | Stars: Marcel Saba, Lori Reese, Perrie Wardell, Martin Rowe
Votes: 680 | Gross: $0.02M
15. Girl Rising (2013)
PG-13 | 101 min | Documentary, Drama
This film follows 9 girls from Haiti, Nepal, Ethiopia, India, Egypt, Peru, Cambodia, Sierra Leone, and Afghanistan on their journey to education.
Director: Richard Robbins | Stars: Amina, Azmera, Arindol Bagchi, Rekha Banerjee
Votes: 1,279
16. Good Ol' Freda (2013)
PG | 86 min | Documentary, Biography, History
A documentary in which Freda Kelly looks back at her career as lifelong secretary for The Beatles.
Director: Ryan White | Stars: Freda Kelly, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison
Votes: 2,114 | Gross: $0.14M
17. Hawking (2013)
TV-PG | 86 min | Documentary, Biography, Comedy
Hawking is the extraordinary story of the planet's most famous living scientist, told for the first time in his own words and by those closest to him. Made with unique access to Hawking's ... See full summary »
Director: Stephen Finnigan | Stars: Stephen Hawking, Arthur Pelling, Finlay Macrae, Nathan Chapple
Votes: 1,716
18. Leviathan (I) (2012)
Not Rated | 87 min | Documentary
A documentary shot in the North Atlantic and focused on the commercial fishing industry.
Directors: Lucien Castaing-Taylor, Verena Paravel | Stars: Brian Jannelle, Adrian Guillette, Arthur Smith, Asterias Vulgaris
Votes: 3,795 | Gross: $1.09M
19. Liv & Ingmar (2012)
Not Rated | 89 min | Documentary
The 42 year long relationship between legendary actress Liv Ullmann and master filmmaker Ingmar Bergman.
Director: Dheeraj Akolkar | Stars: Liv Ullmann, Ingmar Bergman, Samuel Fröler, Erland Josephson
Votes: 1,780 | Gross: $0.01M
20. The Missing Picture (2013)
Not Rated | 92 min | Documentary
Rithy Panh uses clay figures, archival footage, and his narration to recreate the atrocities Cambodia's Khmer Rouge committed between 1975 and 1979.
Director: Rithy Panh | Stars: Randal Douc, Jean-Baptiste Phou
Votes: 3,528 | Gross: $0.05M
21. More Than Honey (2012)
Unrated | 95 min | Documentary
An in-depth look at honeybee colonies in California, Switzerland, China and Australia.
Director: Markus Imhoof | Stars: Fred Jaggi, Randolf Menzel, John Miller, Liane Singer
Votes: 4,320 | Gross: $0.07M
22. A Place at the Table (2012)
PG | 84 min | Documentary
A documentary that investigates incidents of hunger experienced by millions of Americans, and proposed solutions to the problem.
Directors: Kristi Jacobson, Lori Silverbush | Stars: Jeff Bridges, Tom Colicchio, Ken Cook, Mariana Chilton
Votes: 1,236 | Gross: $0.23M
23. Pussy Riot - A Punk Prayer (2013)
Not Rated | 88 min | Documentary, Biography, Crime
Follows the court case of three members of the Russian feminist punk protest group Pussy Riot after their performance in a Russian Orthodox cathedral.
Directors: Mike Lerner, Maxim Pozdorovkin | Stars: Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Mariya Alyokhina, Yekaterina Samutsevich, Andrey Tolokonnikov
Votes: 2,030
24. Sound City (2013)
Not Rated | 107 min | Documentary, Music
A documentary on the fabled recording studio that was located in Van Nuys, California.
Director: Dave Grohl | Stars: Trent Reznor, Tom Petty, Mick Fleetwood, Vinny Appice
Votes: 13,443 | Gross: $0.42M
25. Stories We Tell (2012)
PG-13 | 108 min | Documentary
A film that excavates layers of myth and memory to find the elusive truth at the core of a family of storytellers.
Director: Sarah Polley | Stars: Michael Polley, John Buchan, Mark Polley, Joanna Polley
Votes: 14,121 | Gross: $1.60M
26. Terms and Conditions May Apply (2013)
Not Rated | 79 min | Documentary, News
A documentary that exposes what corporations and governments learn about people through Internet and cell phone usage, and what can be done about it ... if anything.
Director: Cullen Hoback | Stars: Max Schrems, Moby, Mark Zuckerberg, Orson Scott Card
Votes: 6,543 | Gross: $0.06M
27. Twenty Feet from Stardom (2013)
PG-13 | 91 min | Documentary, Biography, History
Backup singers live in a world that lies just beyond the spotlight. Their voices bring harmony to the biggest bands in popular music, but we've had no idea who these singers are or what lives they lead, until now.
Director: Morgan Neville | Stars: Darlene Love, Merry Clayton, Lisa Fischer, Judith Hill
Votes: 13,959 | Gross: $4.95M
28. The Unbelievers (2013)
Not Rated | 77 min | Documentary
Renowned scientists Richard Dawkins and Lawrence Krauss cross the globe as they speak publicly about the importance of science and reason in the modern world.
Director: Gus Holwerda | Stars: Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Woody Allen, Richard Dawkins, Daniel C. Dennett
Votes: 6,778
29. Valentine Road (2013)
TV-14 | 89 min | Documentary, Crime
On February 12, 2008 in Oxnard, California, eighth-grade student Brandon McInerney shot his classmate Larry King twice in the back of the head during first period. When Larry died two days ... See full summary »
Director: Marta Cunningham | Stars: James Bing, Jeremy Bing, Rosalie Black, Dawn Boldrin
Votes: 1,984
30. We Steal Secrets (2013)
R | 130 min | Documentary
A documentary that details the creation of Julian Assange's controversial website, which facilitated the largest security breach in U.S. history.
Director: Alex Gibney | Stars: Julian Assange, Adrian Lamo, John 'FuzzFace' McMahon, Alex Gibney
Votes: 8,179 | Gross: $0.16M
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