Cinema Eye Honors nominations: ‘Kokomo City’ leads with six

Cinema Eye Honors, a group the recognizes excellence in the artistry and craft of nonfiction filmmaking, announced the nominees for its 17th annual awards on Thursday, November 16th. The seven films nominated for Outstanding Nonfiction Feature are “20 Days in Mariupol,” “32 Sounds,” “The Eternal Memory,” “Four Daughters,” “Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project,” “Kokomo City,” and “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie.” CEH will present the winners at the annual awards ceremony to be held on January 12, 2024.

Leading the pack with six overall nominations is “Kokomo City,” a debut film from director D. Smith about the lives of four black trans sex workers. Smith was nominated for Outstanding Debut and Outstanding Direction. The film’s other three nominations were for Cinematography and Sound Design, as well as among The Unforgettables selection.

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Also earning nominations for their debut film was Mstyslav Chernov for the Outstanding Nonfiction Feature nominee “20 Days in Mariupol.” Though Chernov missed in the Direction field, the film had three other mentions in Editing, Production, and Audience Choice. Sam Green‘s “32 Sounds” also had a haul of five nominations, including Direction, Editing, Original Score, and Sound Design. Maite Alberdi‘s “The Eternal Memory” also brought in five, including Direction, Editing, Audience Choice, and The Unforgettables. The other filmmakers up for Outstanding Direction are Wim Wenders for “Anselm,” Kaouther Ben Hania for “Four Daughters,” and Claire Simon for “Our Body.”

In 2022, four of the five eventual Academy Award nominated Documentary Feature films were nominated by CEH earlier in the season, including the Oscar winner “Navalny” and the CEH winner “All That Breathes.” The last two films to win the Oscar without first being recognized with a nomination by CEH were “My Octopus Teacher” in 2020 and “Free Solo” in 2018.

See the full list of 2023 nominees below.

Outstanding Nonfiction Feature
20 Days in Mariupol
32 Sounds
The Eternal Memory
Four Daughters
Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
Kokomo City
Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie

Outstanding Direction
Sam Green – “32 Sounds”
Wim Wenders – “Anselm”
Maite Alberdi – “The Eternal Memory”
Kaouther Ben Hania – “Four Daughters”
D. Smith – “Kokomo City”
Claire Simon – “Our Body”

Outstanding Editing
20 Days in Mariupol
32 Sounds
The Eternal Memory
Fantastic Machine
Rewind & Play
Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie

Outstanding Production
20 Days in Mariupol
American Symphony
Between the Rains
Beyond Utopia
Bobi Wine: The People’s President
Songs of Earth

Outstanding Cinematography
Anselm
De Humani Corporis Fabrica
King Coal
Kokomo City
Smoke Sauna Sisterhood
Songs of Earth

Outstanding Original Score
32 Sounds
American Symphony
Anselm
Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
The Pigeon Tunnel
Songs of Earth

Outstanding Sound Design
32 Sounds
The Deepest Breath
De Humani Corporis Fabrica
Kokomo City
Smoke Sauna Sisterhood
The Tuba Thieves

Outstanding Visual Design
The Arc of Oblivion
Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
The Mission
Nam June Paik: Moon is the Oldest TV
They Shot the Piano Player

Outstanding Debut
20 Days in Mariupol – directed by Mstyslav Chernov
Bobi Wine: The People’s President – directed by Moses Bwayo and Christopher Sharp
Kokomo City – directed by D. Smith
Orlando, My Political Biography – directed by Paul B. Preciado
Smoke Sauna Sisterhood – directed by Anna Hints
The Tuba Thieves – directed by Alison O’Daniel

Outstanding Nonfiction Short
Away
Between Earth & Sky
Black Girls Play: The Story of Hand Games
Neighbour Abdi
Oasis
Will You Look at Me

Audience Choice Prize
20 Days in Mariupol
American Symphony
Beyond Utopia
Bobi Wine: The People’s President
Confessions of a Good Samaritan
The Deepest Breath
The Eternal Memory
Invisible Beauty
Joan Baez I Am a Noise
Smoke Sauna Sisterhood

Spotlight
Against the Tide
Anhell69
Bad Press
Cette Maison (This House)
Midwives
Q

Heterodox
The Buriti Flower
The Echo
Four Daughters
Past Lives
Reality
The Unknown Country

The Unforgettables (Non-Competitive Honor)
American Symphony
Apolonia, Apolonia
Bobi Wine: The People’s President
Confessions of a Good Samaritan
The Disappearance of Shere Hite
The Eternal Memory
Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
Invisible Beauty
Joan Baez I Am a Noise
Kokomo City
The Pigeon Tunnel
Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie
A Still Small Voice
Twice Colonized
While We Watched

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