For years, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has recognized the genre of documentary filmmaking for its pathbreaking contributions to cinema and society. The Oscar category for Best Documentary Feature Film was introduced in 1941.
Last year, the Best Documentary Feature Film award went to Navalny, directed by Daniel Roher. Navalny showcased the story of Alexei Navalny, a Russian opposition leader who died recently aged 47.
The 2024 Academy Awards will be held in Hollywood, Los Angeles, on March 10, 2024, at 4 p.m. PT/7 p.m. ET. American comedian and TV host Jimmy Kimmel will anchor the event for the fourth time. This year, the documentaries nominated for Best Documentary Feature Film are:
- Bobi Wine: The People’s President
- The Eternal Memory
- Four Daughters
- To Kill a Tiger
- 20 Days in Mariupol
There have been many such films in the past that have made a huge impact on audiences. Here is a list of some of the unmissable Oscar-winning documentaries.
Hearts and Minds
Directed by Peter Davis, Hearts and Minds won the Oscar for Best Documentary at the 47th Academy Awards in 1975. This project shed light on the infamous Vietnam War and the US involvement in it. The war lasted for two decades and only ended after the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It resulted in the deaths of thousands of people, including soldiers and civilians.
Hearts and Minds was filmed and released during the Vietnam War itself. It includes archival footage and interviews with key figures, such as U.S. Army Chief of Staff William C. Westmoreland. Describing the anti-war documentary, Rotten Tomatoes states, “Many times during his presidency, Lyndon B. Johnson said that ultimate victory in the Vietnam War depended upon the U.S. military winning the ‘hearts and minds’ of the Vietnamese people. Filmmaker Peter Davis uses Johnson’s phrase in an ironic context.”
O.J.: Made in America
O.J.: Made in America won Best Documentary at the 89th Academy Awards 2017. Directed by Ezra Edelman, this project follows the life of O.J. Simpson, a former American football running back. He was accused of killing his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman. The trial of O. J. Simpson began in 1994 and ended with his acquittance in 1995.
According to IMDb, the synopsis reads, “A chronicle of the rise and fall of O.J. Simpson, whose high-profile murder trial exposed the extent of American racial tensions, revealing a fractured and divided nation.” Apart from Ezra Edelman, the producers of O.J.: Made in America were Caroline Waterlow, Tamara Rosenberg, Nina Krstic, and more.
When We Were Kings
This sports documentary, directed by Leon Gast, won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature in 1996. The cast features George Foreman, Muhammad Ali, James Brown, B.B. King, Norman Mailer, George Plimpton, and more.
The documentary highlights the famous 1974 bout between Foreman and Ali during the World Heavyweight Championship. Contested in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, this fight grossed an estimated $100 million in revenue. The match ended with Ali knocking Foreman out in the eighth round. One of the reviews on IMDb describes this fight as “arguably the greatest sporting event of the 20th century”.
