DOC NYC 2021 Visionaries Tribute honorees announced

Ceremony scheduled for Wednesday 10 November

by Anne-Katrin Titze

DOC NYC Visionaries Tribute honoree Raoul Peck to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award
DOC NYC Visionaries Tribute honoree Raoul Peck to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

The eighth annual Lifetime Achievement Award honorees in the 12th edition of DOC NYC are Raoul Peck, director of the Oscar-nominated documentary I Am Not Your Negro on James Baldwin, and cinematographer and BAFTA-winning director Joan Churchill for Soldier Girls (with Nick Broomfield). The Leading Light Award goes to an “individual making a critical contribution to documentary in a role other than as a filmmaker.” Chi-hui Yang, Senior Program Officer for Ford Foundation’s JustFilms initiative is the Leading Light recipient. The Robert and Anne Drew Award for Documentary Excellence “honours a mid-career filmmaker or partnership that excels in observational filmmaking.” Peter Nicks (co-founder of Proximity Media with Ryan Coogler) will receive the award which includes a $5,000 cash prize contributed by Drew Associates, under the helm of Jill Drew.

DOC NYC Artistic Director Thom Powers: “We look forward to welcoming documentary makers back to New York …
DOC NYC Artistic Director Thom Powers: “We look forward to welcoming documentary makers back to New York … Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

“We take inspiration from documentary filmmakers who persevere at telling stories under the most difficult circumstances,” said DOC NYC Artistic Director Thom Powers. “They’ve emboldened us to keep growing despite all the challenges of the pandemic. We look forward to welcoming documentary makers back to New York, while continuing to reach online audiences with films and panels across the United States and around the world.”

The Visionaries Tribute ceremony will take place as an in-person event on Wednesday, November 10 at Gotham Hall.

Juried sections the U.S. Competition and the International Competition are replacing the previous Viewfinders Competition. A new category, the Kaleidoscope Competition, is to “focus on work that’s more essayistic and poetic.” The Metropolis Competition that focuses on New York City stories and the Shorts Competition covering all the titles in the Shorts Program continues. The Short List: Features jury gives individual awards for Director, Producer, Editor and Cinematographer. The Short List: Shorts jury a Director Award. The Audience Award rounds out the list.

DOC NYC 2021 in cinemas (IFC Center - SVA Theatre - Cinépolis Chelsea) runs from November 10 through November 18 with select films screening online in the US from November 19 through November 28.

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