15 films shortlisted for Best Documentary Oscar

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has revealed the shortlist of 15 documentary feature films still being considered for a nomination as Best Documentary Feature.

Among the nominees were films such as Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky's Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory which played an important part in helping to release the innocent group known as the West Memphis Three who were jailed nearly two decades. Wim Wenders' film Pina is already being considered for the Best Foreign Language Film category. The shortlisted film Undefeated is not the badly-reviewed Sarah Palin puff piece (0% on Rotten Tomatoes), but the gritty look at three underprivileged student-athletes from inner-city Memphis.

There were some notable omissions. Among the missing are Steve James' The Interrupters (99% on Rotten Tomatoes), Asif Kapadia'a Senna, and Patricio Guzmán's Nostalgia for the Light which has been nominated for the the IDA Documentary Awards and the Cinema Eye Honors. Also missing are Werner Herzog's Into the Abyss and Errol Morris' Tabloid.

Under Fire: Journalists in Combat is a Canadian-made doc by Toronto filmmaker Martyn Burke. His previous credits include co-writing the comedy Top Secret! and directing documentaries such as Witnesses: Afghanistan, the Untold Story.

The fifteen shortlisted titles will be reduced to 5 and announced with all the nominations on Tuesday, January 24, 2012. The 84th Academy Awards takes place on Sunday, February 26, 2012, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center.

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15 Documentary Features Advance in 2011 Oscar® Race

Beverly Hills, CA (November 18, 2011) – The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 15 films in the Documentary Feature category will advance in the voting process for the 84th Academy Awards®. One hundred twenty-four pictures had originally qualified in the category.

The 15 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production company:

Battle for Brooklyn (RUMUR Inc.)

Bill Cunningham New York (First Thought Films)

Buck (Cedar Creek Productions)

Hell and Back Again (Roast Beef Productions Limited)

If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front (Marshall Curry Productions, LLC)

Jane's Journey (NEOS Film GmbH & Co. KG)

The Loving Story (Augusta Films)

Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory (@radical.media)

Pina (Neue Road Movies GmbH)

Project Nim (Red Box Films)

Semper Fi: Always Faithful (Tied to the Tracks Films, Inc.)

Sing Your Song (S2BN Belafonte Productions, LLC)

Undefeated (Spitfire Pictures)

Under Fire: Journalists in Combat (JUF Pictures, Inc.)

We Were Here (Weissman Projects, LLC)

The Documentary Branch Screening Committee viewed all the eligible documentaries for the preliminary round of voting. Documentary Branch members will now select the five nominees from among the 15 titles on the shortlist.

The 84th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Tuesday, January 24, 2012, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy's Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2011 will be presented on Sunday, February 26, 2012, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.