The 8th annual Cinema Eye Honors, recognizing achievements in non-fiction film from 2014, took place last night in a ceremony at the Museum of the Moving Image. Earlier in the week, the organization hosted its inaugural Honors Lunch, which celebrated this year’s Legacy Award winner, PARIS IS BURNING; as well as “The Influentials,” 24 additional classic nonfiction films which were singled out; “The Unforgettables,” a list if notable documentary subjects from 2014’s films; and BOYHOOD as the winner of the Heterodox Award, which annually goes to a fiction film that incorporates nonfiction strategies.
Here is the full list of winners announced at last night’s notably streamlined ceremony, which was hosted by Sam Green, with appearances by Cinema Eye founders AJ Schnack and Esther Robinson, documentary legends Al Maysles and DA Pennebaker, THE CRUISE’s Speed Levitch, PARIS IS BURNING‘s director Jennie Livingston and editor Jonathan Oppenheim, and, in a fun coup, the pre-recorded voice of SERIAL’s Sarah Koenig as the Voice of God introducing video montages of each set of nominees. I was honored to serve as one of the members of the Nominations Committee. Congratulations to all the nominees and to all the winners!
Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking
CITIZENFOUR (pictured above)
Audience Choice Prize
KEEP ON KEEPIN’ ON
Outstanding Achievement in Direction
Laura Poitras for CITIZENFOUR
Outstanding Achievement in Editing
Mathilde Bonnefoy for CITIZENFOUR
Outstanding Achievement in Production
Laura Poitras, Mathilde Bonnefoy, and Dirk Wilutzky for CITIZENFOUR
Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography
tie:
Erik Wilson for 20,000 DAYS ON EARTH
and
Franklin Dow and Orlando von Einsiedel for VIRUNGA
Outstanding Nonfiction Film for Television
THE PRICE OF GOLD by Nanette Burnstein for ESPN’s 30 for 30
Outstanding Achievement in a Debut Feature Film
Charlie Siskel and John Maloof for FINDING VIVIAN MAIER
Outstanding Achievement in an Original Music Score
Nick Cave and Warren Ellis for 20,000 DAYS ON EARTH
Outstanding Achievement in Graphic Design or Animation
tie:
Syd Garon for JODOROWSKY’S DUNE
and
Heather Brantman and Tim Fisher for PARTICLE FEVER
Spotlight Award
1971
Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Short Filmmaking
THE LION’S MOUTH OPENS by Lucy Walker
what (not) to doc 