# 5th Critics' Choice Documentary Awards

The 5th Critics' Choice Documentary Awards were presented on November 16, 2020, honoring the finest achievements in documentary filmmaking and non-fiction television; due to the COVID-19 pandemic the ceremony was held via online. The nominees were announced on October 26, 2020, with Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution, Gunda and Mr. Soul! leading the nominations with five.

## Winners and nominees

| Best Documentary Feature Dick Johnson Is Dead (Netflix) Athlete A (Netflix) Belushi (Showtime) Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution (Netflix) Feels Good Man (Wavelength Productions/PBS Independent Lens) The Fight (Magnolia Pictures) The Go-Go's (Showtime) Gunda (Neon) Mr. Soul! (Shoes in the Bed Productions) My Octopus Teacher (Netflix) The Painter and the Thief (Neon) A Secret Love (Netflix) The Social Dilemma (Netflix) Time (Amazon Studios) | Best Director Kirsten Johnson – Dick Johnson Is Dead Garrett Bradley – Time Bonni Cohen and Jon Shenk – Athlete A Victor Kossakovsky – Gunda James Lebrecht and Nicole Newnham – Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution Dawn Porter – John Lewis: Good Trouble Benjamin Ree – The Painter and the Thief |
| Best First Documentary Feature Melissa Haizlip – Mr. Soul! Robert S. Bader – Ali & Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes Chris Bolan – A Secret Love Arthur Jones – Feels Good Man Elizabeth Leiter and Kim Woodard – Jane Goodall: The Hope Elizabeth Lo – Stray Sasha Joseph Neulinger – Rewind | Best Narration David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet – David Attenborough, narrator and writer Dick Johnson Is Dead – Kirsten Johnson, narrator and writer Fireball: Visitors from Darker Worlds – Werner Herzog, narrator and writer Mr. Soul! – Blair Underwood, narrator; Ellis Haizlip, writer My Octopus Teacher – Craig Foster, narrator and writer Time – Fox Rich, narrator and writer Totally Under Control – Alex Gibney, narrator and writer |
| Best Archival Documentary MLK/FBI (Field of Vision/IFC Films) Ali & Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes (HBO) Belushi (Showtime) Class Action Park (HBO Max) Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution (Netflix) Mr. Soul! (Shoes in the Bed Productions) Spaceship Earth (Neon) | Best Short Documentary St. Louis Superman (MTV Documentary Films) Blackfeet Boxing: Not Invisible (ESPN) The Claudia Kishi Club (Netflix) Crescendo! (Quibi) Elevator Pitch (Field of Vision) Hunger Ward (Spin Film/Vulcan Productions/RYOT Films) Into the Fire (National Geographic) My Father the Mover (MTV Documentary Films) The Rifleman (Field of Vision) The Speed Cubers (Netflix) |
| Best Political Documentary Boys State (Apple) All In: The Fight for Democracy (Amazon Studios) John Lewis: Good Trouble (Magnolia Pictures) MLK/FBI (Field of Vision/IFC Films) The Social Dilemma (Netflix) Totally Under Control (Neon) The Way I See It (Focus Features) | Best Sports Documentary Ali & Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes (HBO) Athlete A (Netflix) Be Water (ESPN) A Most Beautiful Thing (50 Eggs Films) Red Penguins (Universal Pictures) Rising Phoenix (Netflix) You Cannot Kill David Arquette (Super LTD) |
| Best Historical/Biographical Documentary John Lewis: Good Trouble (Magnolia Pictures) Belushi (Showtime) Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution (Netflix) Howard (Disney+) Mr. Soul! (Shoes in the Bed Production) Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado (Netflix) Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind (HBO) | Best Science/Nature Documentary My Octopus Teacher (Netflix) Coded Bias (7th Empire Media/PBS Independent Lens) Fantastic Fungi (Moving Art) Gunda (Neon) I Am Greta (Hulu) The Last Ice (National Geographic) Spaceship Earth (Neon) |
| Best Music Documentary Beastie Boys Story (Apple) The Go-Go's (Showtime) Crock of Gold: A Few Rounds with Shane MacGowan (Magnolia Pictures) Laurel Canyon (Epix) Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and the Band (Magnolia Pictures) Other Music (Factory 25) Zappa (Magnolia Pictures) | Best Score Marco Beltrami, Brandon Roberts and Buck Sanders – The Way I See It Ari Balouzian and Ryan Hope – Feels Good Man Tyler Durham, Sven Faulconer and Xander Rodzinski – The Last Ice Peter Nashel and Brian Deming – Totally Under Control Daniel Pemberton – Rising Phoenix Jeff Tweedy – Long Gone Summer Jeff Tweedy, Spencer Tweedy and Sammy Tweedy – Showbiz Kids |
| Best Cinematography Roger Horrocks – My Octopus Teacher Michael Dweck and Gregory Kershaw – The Truffle Hunters Kirsten Johnson – Dick Johnson Is Dead Victor Kossakovsky and Egil Håskjold Larsen, Gunda (Neon) Scott Ressler, Neil Gelinas and Stefan Wiesen – The Last Ice Gianfranco Rosi – Notturno Ruben Woodin Dechamps – The Reason I Jump | Best Editing Lindy Jankura and Alex Keipper – Totally Under Control Don Bernier – Athlete A Eli Despres, Greg Finton and Kim Roberts – The Fight Helen Kearns – Assassins Victor Kossakovsky and Ainara Vera – Gunda Eileen Meyer and Andrew Gersh – Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution Charlotte Munch Bengtsen – The Truffle Hunters |
| Most Compelling Living Subject of a Documentary Dr. Rick Bright – Totally Under Control Steven Garza – Boys State The Go-Go's – The Go-Go's Judith Heumann – Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution Dick Johnson – Dick Johnson Is Dead Maggie Nichols, Rachael Denhollander, Jamie Dantzscher – Athlete A Fox Rich – Time Pete Souza – The Way I See It Taylor Swift – Miss Americana Greta Thunberg – I Am Greta |

## Films by multiple nominations and wins

| Nominations | Film |
| 6 | Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution |
| 5 | Mr. Soul! |
| 5 | Dick Johnson Is Dead |
| 5 | Gunda |
| 5 | Totally Under Control |
| 5 | Athlete A |
| 4 | My Octopus Teacher |
| 4 | Time |
| 3 | Feels Good Man |
| 3 | The Go-Go's |
| 3 | Belushi |
| 3 | The Way I See It |
| 3 | Ali & Cavett: The Tale of the Tapes |
| 3 | The Last Ice |
| 3 | John Lewis: Good Trouble |
| 2 | Rising Phoenix |
| 2 | The Fight |
| 2 | The Truffle Hunters |
| 2 | MLK/FBI |
| 2 | Boys State |
| 2 | Spaceship Earth |
| 2 | I Am Greta |
| 2 | A Secret Love |
| 2 | The Social Dilemma |
| 2 | The Painter and the Thief |
| Wins | Film |
| 3 | Dick Johnson Is Dead |
| 2 | My Octopus Teacher |
| 2 | The Go-Go's |
| 2 | Athlete A |
| 2 | The Way I See It |
| 2 | Totally Under Control |
| 2 | Boys State |