Road to the Oscars: Key dates for Best Documentary Feature contenders

In the race to win Best Documentary Feature of the year at the Oscars, there are a slew of precursor prizes along the way. The five groups that are the best at previewing the Academy Awards contenders are: the Critics’ Choice Documentary Awards (CCDA), the DOC NYC film festival, Cinema Eye Honors (CEH), International Documentary Association (IDA), and the Producers Guild Awards (PGA).

“Navalny” (2022), “Summer of Soul” (2021), and “American Factory (2019) were each recognized by all five groups before prevailing at the Oscars. Other recent champs earned prizes from a few of the groups as well: “My Octopus Teacher” (2020) began its run with a CCDA nomination and PGA win and “Free Solo” (2018) earned notices from all except CEH.

Below are key dates for announcements from these groups:

Critics’ Choice Documentary Awards

• Nominations: October 16, 2023
• Winners: November 12, 2023

DOC NYC

• Short List lineup: October 17, 2023

Cinema Eye Honors

• Nominations: TBA
• Winners: TBA

International Documentary Association

• Nominations: November 21, 2023
• Winners: Week of December 11. Exact date/venue TBA.

Producers Guild Awards

• Nominations for Documentary only: December 12, 2023
• Winners: February 25, 2024

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