POV's daily list of essential reading for the documentary and independent filmmaking community.

The documentary community breathed a deep sigh of relief last night when Laura Poitras won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature, but her speech was a missed opportunity.

Last week, the shortlist of films eligible for the 2014 best documentary Academy Award was announced. Doc Soup Man Tom Roston reviews the list and shares what he thinks will make the top 5 nominations.

Tom Roston reflects on Sarah Polley's 'Stories We Tell' after a first weekend of box office success.

Tom Roston takes a look at this years docs which are contenders for Academy nominations, referencing that the list proves it was a strong year for documentaries.

Watch the Oscar-nominated short film online and ask the director. Tuesday, October 16, 2012, at 4PM ET (1PM PT).

Nerd out to our infographic of the top documentaries of 2011, based on lists from critics, documentary festivals, industry organizations and online voting!

Doc Soup Man Tom Roston's Documentary Oscar streak is over, but he's planning a come back next year with a new standard for predicting the winner.

Who will win? Doc Soup Man has picked it for four years running. But this year, he says, is one of the closest races in years.

Wow. The Oscar nominees were just announced this morning and I have to admit I was shocked. I was so expecting a number of popular and incredibly well-made films to get the nods, but I was wrong.

The Academy has announced its nominees for 2011's Best Documentary Feature and Documentary Short Subject, which includes two POV films: If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front and The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement.

Heather McIntosh talks with Michael Moore about the new process for documentary Oscar eligibility, and rounds up the flurry of commentary about the changes in the film press.

Media reports suggest that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences will be announcing new rules connected to the documentary Oscars this week, including the use of The New York Times and Los Angeles Times as eligibility sieves. Guest blogger Edward J. Delaney considers the impact of the move.

According to who you ask, the best documentary of 2011 could have been one of 67 films. Could it be The Interrupters? Nostalgia for the Light? Project Nim? Cave of Forgotten Dreams? We've constructed a handy graphic to help you make your own decision.

It’s been said many times before — heck, I’ve said it more times than I could count — that truth is stranger than fiction. But that doesn’t mean that fiction can’t sometimes trump truth. Take, for example, the retelling of Aron Ralston’s (pictured, far right) true-life story of falling in a canyon in Utah and […]

The Oscar short list is here! The Oscar short list is here! Last week, to the joy of some and the consternation of others, the 15 films that the Academy documentary committee deemed worthy of a nomination were presented. From those, five films will be picked to be the nominees to win the Oscar. I […]

Leaves have fallen and there’s a nip in the air… which means, it must be movie awards season. Yes, in recent weeks, we’ve seen nomination lists released from three outlets: the International Documentary Association, the Gotham Awards and the Cinema Eye Honors. Here are their nominations for Best Doc Feature: Cinema Eye Honors Armadillo — […]

After watching last night’s exciting win for Kathryn Bigelow and realizing that today is the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day, I found myself wondering who had been the first woman director to win Best Documentary? And for that matter, how many documentaries directed by women have won Oscars in the history of the Academy […]