Documentary Feature Oscar Winners & Nomination History
The AwardWentTo archive contains 390 Academy Award records for Documentary Feature, including 87 wins, across 83 film years (1942–2025).
Years follow the source film eligibility/dataset year, which may differ from the ceremony calendar year. Counts describe film-linked archive records, including historical and special-award context where supplied.
Archive film years: 1927–2025. Leave either field blank to include the earliest or latest available year.
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Winner history
87 winning records in the selected film-year range. Follow a year to see its other category results.
| Film year | Film | Credited nominee / recipient |
|---|---|---|
| Film year2025 | FilmMr. Nobody against Putin IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientNominees to be determinedSource contextSource category: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM |
| Film year2024 | FilmNo Other Land IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientBasel Adra, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal and Yuval AbrahamSource contextSource category: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM |
| Film year2023 | Film20 Days in Mariupol IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientMstyslav Chernov, Michelle Mizner and Raney Aronson-RathSource contextSource category: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM |
| Film year2022 | FilmNavalny IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientDaniel Roher, Odessa Rae, Diane Becker, Melanie Miller and Shane BorisSource contextSource category: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM |
| Film year2021 | FilmSummer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientAhmir \"Questlove\" Thompson, Joseph Patel, Robert Fyvolent and David Dinerstein |
| Film year2020 | FilmMy Octopus Teacher IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientPippa Ehrlich, James Reed and Craig Foster |
| Film year2019 | FilmAmerican Factory IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientSteven Bognar, Julia Reichert and Jeff Reichert |
| Film year2018 | FilmFree Solo IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientElizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin, Evan Hayes and Shannon Dill |
| Film year2017 | FilmIcarus IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientBryan Fogel and Dan Cogan |
| Film year2016 | FilmO.J.: Made in America IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientEzra Edelman and Caroline Waterlow |
| Film year2015 | FilmAmy IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientAsif Kapadia and James Gay-Rees |
| Film year2014 | FilmCitizenFour IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientLaura Poitras, Mathilde Bonnefoy and Dirk Wilutzky |
| Film year2013 | Film20 Feet from Stardom IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientMorgan Neville, Gil Friesen and Caitrin Rogers |
| Film year2012 | FilmSearching for Sugar Man IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientMalik Bendjelloul and Simon Chinn |
| Film year2011 | FilmUndefeated IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientTJ Martin, Dan Lindsay and Rich Middlemas |
| Film year2010 | FilmInside Job IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientCharles Ferguson and Audrey Marrs |
| Film year2009 | FilmThe Cove IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientLouie Psihoyos and Fisher Stevens |
| Film year2008 | FilmMan on Wire IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientJames Marsh and Simon Chinn |
| Film year2007 | FilmTaxi to the Dark Side IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientAlex Gibney and Eva Orner |
| Film year2006 | FilmAn Inconvenient Truth IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientDavis Guggenheim |
| Film year2005 | FilmMarch of the Penguins IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientLuc Jacquet and Yves Darondeau |
| Film year2004 | FilmBorn into Brothels IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientRoss Kauffman and Zana Briski |
| Film year2003 | FilmThe Fog of War IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientErrol Morris and Michael Williams |
| Film year2002 | FilmBowling for Columbine IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientMichael Moore, Michael Donovan |
| Film year2001 | FilmMurder on a Sunday Morning IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientJean-Xavier de Lestrade, Denis Poncet |
| Film year2000 | FilmInto the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientMark Jonathan Harris, Deborah Oppenheimer |
| Film year1999 | FilmOne Day in September IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientArthur Cohn, Kevin Macdonald |
| Film year1998 | FilmThe Last Days IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientJames Moll, Ken Lipper |
| Film year1997 | FilmThe Long Way Home IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientRabbi Marvin Hier, Richard Trank |
| Film year1996 | FilmWhen We Were Kings IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientLeon Gast, David Sonenberg |
| Film year1995 | FilmAnne Frank Remembered IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientJon Blair |
| Film year1994 | FilmMaya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientFreida Lee Mock, Terry Sanders |
| Film year1993 | FilmI Am a Promise: The Children of Stanton Elementary School IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientSusan Raymond, Alan Raymond |
| Film year1992 | FilmThe Panama Deception IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientBarbara Trent and David Kasper, Producers |
| Film year1991 | FilmIn the Shadow of the Stars IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientAllie Light and Irving Saraf, Producers |
| Film year1990 | FilmAmerican Dream IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientBarbara Kopple and Arthur Cohn, Producers |
| Film year1989 | FilmCommon Threads: Stories from the Quilt IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientRobert Epstein and Bill Couturié, Producers |
| Film year1988 | FilmHotel Terminus: The Life and Times of Klaus Barbie IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientMarcel Ophuls, Producer |
| Film year1987 | FilmThe Ten-Year Lunch: The Wit and Legend of the Algonquin Round Table IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientAviva Slesin, Producer |
| Film year1986 | FilmArtie Shaw: Time Is All You've Got IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientBrigitte Berman, ProducerSource contextNOTE: A tie. The other winning film in this category was Down and Out in America. |
| Film year1986 | FilmDown and Out in America IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientJoseph Feury and Milton Justice, ProducersSource contextNOTE: A tie. The other winning film in this category was Artie Shaw: Time Is All You've Got. |
| Film year1985 | FilmBroken Rainbow IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientMaria Florio and Victoria Mudd, Producers |
| Film year1984 | FilmThe Times of Harvey Milk IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientRobert Epstein and Richard Schmiechen, Producers |
| Film year1983 | FilmHe Makes Me Feel Like Dancin' IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientEmile Ardolino, Producer |
| Film year1982 | FilmJust Another Missing Kid IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientJohn Zaritsky, Producer |
| Film year1981 | FilmGenocide IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientArnold Schwartzman and Rabbi Marvin Hier, Producers |
| Film year1980 | FilmFrom Mao to Mozart: Isaac Stern in China IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientMurray Lerner, Producer |
| Film year1979 | FilmBest Boy IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientIra Wohl, Producer |
| Film year1978 | FilmScared Straight! IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientArnold Shapiro, Producer |
| Film year1977 | FilmWho Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids? IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientJohn Korty, Dan McCann and Warren L. Lockhart, Producers |
| Film year1976 | FilmHarlan County, U.S.A. IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientBarbara Kopple, Producer |
| Film year1975 | FilmThe Man Who Skied down Everest IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientF. R. Crawley, James Hager and Dale Hartleben, Producers |
| Film year1974 | FilmHearts and Minds IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientPeter Davis and Bert Schneider, Producers |
| Film year1973 | FilmThe Great American Cowboy IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientKieth Merrill, Producer |
| Film year1972 | FilmMarjoe IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientHoward Smith and Sarah Kernochan, Producers |
| Film year1971 | FilmThe Hellstrom Chronicle IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientWalon Green, Producer |
| Film year1970 | FilmWoodstock IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientBob Maurice, Producer |
| Film year1969 | FilmArthur Rubinstein - The Love of Life IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientBernard Chevry, Producer |
| Film year1968 | FilmJourney into Self IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientBill McGaw, ProducerSource contextNOTE: At the 41st Awards ceremony on April 14, 1969, Young Americans was announced as the winner of the Documentary Feature Oscar. On May 7, 1969, the film was declared ineligible after it was revealed that the film had played in October of 1967, therefore ineligible for a 1968 Award. The first runner-up, Journey into Self, was awarded the statuette on May 8, 1969. |
| Film year1967 | FilmThe Anderson Platoon IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientPierre Schoendoerffer, Producer |
| Film year1966 | FilmThe War Game IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientPeter Watkins, Producer |
| Film year1965 | FilmThe Eleanor Roosevelt Story IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientSidney Glazier, Producer |
| Film year1964 | FilmJacques-Yves Cousteau's World without Sun IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientJacques-Yves Cousteau, Producer |
| Film year1963 | FilmRobert Frost: A Lover's Quarrel with the World IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientRobert Hughes, Producer |
| Film year1962 | FilmBlack Fox IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientLouis Clyde Stoumen, Producer |
| Film year1961 | FilmLe Ciel et la Boue (Sky Above and Mud Beneath) IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientArthur Cohn and Rene Lafuite, Producers |
| Film year1960 | FilmThe Horse with the Flying Tail IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientLarry Lansburgh, Producer |
| Film year1959 | FilmSerengeti Shall Not Die IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientBernhard Grzimek, Producer |
| Film year1958 | FilmWhite Wilderness IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientBen Sharpsteen, Producer |
| Film year1957 | FilmAlbert Schweitzer IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientJerome Hill, Producer |
| Film year1956 | FilmThe Silent World IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientJacques-Yves Cousteau, Producer |
| Film year1955 | FilmHelen Keller in Her Story IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientNancy Hamilton, Producer |
| Film year1954 | FilmThe Vanishing Prairie IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientWalt Disney, Producer |
| Film year1953 | FilmThe Living Desert IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientWalt Disney, Producer |
| Film year1952 | FilmThe Sea around Us IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientIrwin Allen, Producer |
| Film year1951 | FilmKon-Tiki IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientOlle Nordemar, Producer |
| Film year1950 | FilmThe Titan: Story of Michelangelo IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientRobert Snyder, Producer |
| Film year1949 | FilmDaybreak in Udi IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientCrown Film Unit |
| Film year1948 | FilmThe Secret Land IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientOrville O. Dull, Producer |
| Film year1947 | FilmDesign for Death IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientSid Rogell, Executive Producer; Theron Warth and Richard O. Fleischer, Producers |
| Film year1945 | FilmThe True Glory IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientThe Governments of Great Britain and the United States of America |
| Film year1944 | FilmThe Fighting Lady IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientUnited States Navy |
| Film year1943 | FilmDesert Victory IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientBritish Ministry of Information |
| Film year1942 | FilmKokoda Front Line! IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientAustralian News & Information BureauSource contextSource category: DOCUMENTARY NOTE: \"A special award to Kokoda Front Line! for its effectiveness in portraying, simply yet forcefully, the scene of war in New Guinea and for its moving presentation of the bravery and fortitude of our Australian comrades in arms.\" |
| Film year1942 | FilmMoscow Strikes Back IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientArtkinoSource contextSource category: DOCUMENTARY NOTE: \"A special award to Moscow Strikes Back for its vivid presentation of the heroism of the Russian Army and of the Russian people in the defense of Moscow, and for its achievement in so doing under conditions of extreme difficulty and danger.\" |
| Film year1942 | FilmPrelude to War IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientUnited States Army Special ServicesSource contextSource category: DOCUMENTARY NOTE: \"A special award to Prelude to War for its trenchant conception and authentic and stirring dramatization of the events which forced our nation into the war and of the ideals for which we fight.\" |
| Film year1942 | FilmThe Battle of Midway IMDb | Credited nominee / recipientUnited States NavySource contextSource category: DOCUMENTARY NOTE: \"A special award to Battle of Midway for the historical value of its achievement in offering a camera record of one of the decisive battles of the world - a record unique both for the courage of those who made it under fire, and for its magnificent portrayal of the gallantry of our armed forces in battle.\" |
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About these award records
This independent archive groups film-linked award records by film, credited name, category and eligibility year. The film year can differ from the year the ceremony took place. Ceremony numbers are shown where supplied by the records.
Each distinct performance, song or award credit remains a separate record, even when it belongs to the same film. Shared credits stay together. A person's page covers the name shown, without combining aliases or shared credits into a complete career total.
Totals can include honorary, special and historical awards alongside competitive nominations. Awards without a linked film are outside these page totals. Source notes and uncertain records are retained; category comparisons omit groups with unresolved notes, ties or conflicting identities.
For the official record, search the Academy Awards Database (opens in a new tab). Award Went To is an independent exploration tool and is not affiliated with the Academy.