The Road to the Oscar Documentary Shortlist Requires More Than Just Money for Most
In the last several years, it has become glaringly obvious that garnering a coveted spot on the Oscar documentary feature shortlist requires quality filmmaking and, perhaps more important, a whole lot of money.
If a film does not have both, the chances of making the 15-film shortlist is, arguably, near impossible. But this year, streaming services like Netflix, Amazon, and Apple have turned the doc distribution landscape into a tiny arena that supports a handful of documentarians in their quest for the little gold man. The number of filmmakers with streamer support is so small that docus that don’t have colossal award season campaign budgets have a shot at making this year’s shortlist, which will be announced on Dec. 21.
In all, the Academy’s documentary branch has 167 feature-length films to choose from this year. The majority of those docus were either self-distributed or have a theatrical distributor with nominal awards season campaign budgets.
One of those films is Jamie Boyle’s “Anonymous Sister,” which chronicles the director’s family’s collision with the opioid epidemic. The doc debuted at DOC NYC in November 2021 and eventually found distribution via Gravitas Ventures — an all-rights distributor that acquires and distributes narrative films and documentaries across all TVOD platforms and select films theatrically.
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Boyle raised money to hire boutique distributor Long Shot Factory’s Erin Owens to place the film in theaters in order to qualify “Anonymous Sister” for Academy Award consideration. Owens also works as a doc consultant, producer and awards strategist; in addition to Boyle’s film, she is also working with on two other docus vying for 2024 Oscar attention – “20 Days in Mariupol” and “A Still Small Voice.”
“We had no funds for a campaign, and we knew what we were up against in terms of spending power, so we weren’t really going do anything except to qualify it and get it on the (Academy) portal,” Boyle explains. “That was really all we had the funds for. Then we watched it garner a lot of love entirely by word of mouth.”
In October, “Anonymous Sister” made it onto the Intl. Documentary Assn. shortlist for the 39th IDA Documentary Awards. It was one of 17 feature docus selected from 669 films.
“It was really a shock,” Boyle says. “Not because we didn’t feel like it deserved to be there, but we hadn’t been campaigning at all, and we also know very well how many films deserve to be there compared to how few actually are. So, it was a reminder that this industry does appreciate good films, and sometimes you can stand apart in that way, even up against campaigns with hundreds of thousands of dollars or more.”
“Anonymous Sister” ultimately did not receive an IDA nomination when those were revealed in late November. Still, the fact that the film made the shortlist is notable because past IDA shortlist recipients, nominees, and winners often overlap with the Oscar doc shortlist, nominees, and winners.
Last year, “All That Breathes” took the IDA top prize for best feature and was later nominated for an Academy Award. The last two Oscar-winning documentaries — “Navalny” and “Summer of Soul” — were nominated in IDA’s best feature category. Interestingly, this year’s top Oscar doc contenders — “American Symphony,” “Stamped From the Beginning,” and “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie” did not receive IDA nominations in any IDA category.
Oscar nominee Elaine McMillion Sheldon’s “King Coal” scored an IDA nomination for best cinematography. Focused on post-coal Appalachia, the film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2023 and received rave reviews but ultimately did not snag a distribution deal. So, Sheldon, alongside the docu’s producers — Academy Award-winners Shane Boris and Diane Becker (“Navalny”) — self-distributed “King Coal.” The film has played to sold-out audiences across the country and has been qualified for Oscar consideration.
“We had an incredible launchpad at Sundance, and all of these amazing things happened around the film, but still, you have to pay your way into the awards arena,” says Sheldon. “We just thought, what if we don’t? What if we just put in a little bit of money and gather other films that have a little bit of money and just draw attention to the fact that there are a lot of independent films in the space that may not have the budgets to be competitive in the awards season, but should be recognized for their craft and talent and art.”
She is attempting to do that with DIY FYC – a New York and Los Angeles event aimed at Academy doc branch voters featuring fellow Sundance 2023 filmmakers Rebecca Landsberry-Baker and Joe Peeler (“Bad Press”), Sierra Urich (“Joonam”), plus Axel Danielson and Maximilien Van Aertryck (“Fantastic Machine”). While “Fantastic Machine” found distribution with Strand Releasing, the other three docus were self-distributed; all four have qualified for Oscar consideration. The New York event took place on Nov. 30, with the L.A. area event taking place Dec. 6 at Vidiots. Clips from each doc will be screened, followed by a moderated panel discussion and reception.
“At the end of the day, it’s not really about us winning awards,” says Sheldon. “None of us are delusional to think that you can win an Oscar with no campaign money. But (we want to) draw attention to the fact that awards aren’t all that makes films valuable.
“This effort with these four films and us filmmakers is not to say the efforts of films that have Netflix on board, and that have billboards and all these things, is something that needs to be banished,” she stresses. “The idea is to recognize the fact that there are all sorts of sizes of films, and they have audiences. Just because they don’t have a $500,000 awards campaign, which allows visibility, they are seen as losers. I feel like our film was a winner. We have had an incredible year.”
“Invisible Beauty,” a documentary about fashion maverick Bethann Hardison also premiered at Sundance 2023. Directed by Hardison and and Frédéric Tcheng (“Halston,” “Dior and I”) the docu played at several top tier film festivals including Hot Docs, Tribeca and San Francisco Intl. Film Festival. While Magnolia picked up the film in July, Hardison and Tcheng are using donated funds in their attempt to garner attention for the film. The duo have set up a screening for Academy voters in New York and L.A., and Tcheng has attended as many AMPAS events as he can in an attempt to get “Invisible Beauty” on voters’ radars.
“We feel like we owe it to the film,” says Tcheng. “I feel like if I put myself out there, it might be a little gross at times to do the self-promotion, but it’s a competitive race, and if that means maybe five more people are going watch the film, then it’s worth it.”
Hardison adds: “The most important thing is getting as many eyes on the film as possible that would normally not have seen it. That’s the objective for me.”
Danish filmmaker Christoffer Guldbrandsen has the same goal for his film “A Storm Foretold,” a documentary about Trump adviser Roger Stone. The docu debuted at CPH:DOX in March and was set to make its U.S. debut at the Camden Intl. Film Festival in September before a hurricane shut down the screening. Earlier this month Abramorama acquired North American rights to the doc.
“We have a zero budget,” Guldbrandsen says. “We are relying on the documentary community. I had a fantastic experience at Camden, except for the film not being shown. But my colleagues there have been generous and supportive, circulating the film amongst themselves, and helping out where they can. I’m really overwhelmed by how kind people were and have been afterward. So, I think that’s the core of our strategy – relying on the friends we had in advance and the friends we made at Camden.”
That being said, the director ponders the point of the Oscar race as a whole.
“Spending millions on trying to win an award, makes very little sense to me. Why not use the money to make more films?”
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