10th Critics' Choice Documentary Awards

10th Critics' Choice Documentary Awards
Date	November 9, 2025
Site	Edison Ballroom, New York City, United States
Hosted by	Aasif Mandvi
Most nominations	Orwell: 2+2=5 (7)
Television/radio coverage
Network	Facebook Live YouTube X
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The 10th Critics Choice Documentary Awards, presented by the Critics Choice Association, are scheduled to be held on November 9, 2025, at the Edison Ballroom in New York City, to honor finest achievements in documentary filmmaking and non-fiction television. British-American comedian Aasif Mandvi will host the ceremony. ^[1]

Nominations were announced on October 14, 2025. ^[2] Orwell: 2+2=5 led the nominations with seven, followed by The Perfect Neighbor with six; 2000 Meters to Andriivka and The Alabama Solution , both with five each; and Apocalypse in the Tropics and Deaf President Now! , with four nods each. ^[3]

American filmmaker Ken Burns will be honored with the Critics Choice Impact Award, while American filmmakers Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady will received the Pennebaker Award. ^[4]

Winners and nominees

The nominations were announced on October 14, 2025. ^[5] Winners will be listed first and in bold.

Best Documentary Feature 2000 Meters to Andriivka (Frontline Features / The Associated Press) The Alabama Solution (HBO Max) Apocalypse in the Tropics (Netflix) Cover-Up (Netflix) Deaf President Now! (Apple TV+) Orwell: 2+2=5 (Neon) Pee-wee as Himself (HBO Max) The Perfect Neighbor (Netflix) Riefenstahl (Kino Lorber) The Tale of Silyan (National Geographic)	Best Director Mstyslav Chernov – 2000 Meters to Andriivka (Frontline Features / The Associated Press) Petra Costa – Apocalypse in the Tropics (Netflix) Nyle DiMarco and Davis Guggenheim – Deaf President Now! (Apple TV+) Geeta Gandbhir – The Perfect Neighbor (Netflix) Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman – The Alabama Solution (HBO Max) Raoul Peck – Orwell: 2+2=5 (Neon)
Best First Documentary Feature Art for Everybody – Miranda Yousef (Tremolo Productions) Grand Theft Hamlet – San Crane and Pinny Grylls (Mubi) My Mom Jayne: A Film by Mariska Hargitay – Mariska Hargitay (HBO Max) Seeds – Brittany Shyne (Interior Films) Stiller & Meara: Nothing Is Lost – Ben Stiller (Apple TV+) Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror – Linus O'Brien (Margot Station)	Best True Crime Documentary The Alabama Solution (HBO Max) Gone Girls: The Long Island Serial Killer (Netflix) The Perfect Neighbor (Netflix) Predators (MTV Documentary Films / Paramount+) Unknown Number: The High School Catfish (Netflix) The Yogurt Shop Murders (HBO Max)
Best Archival Documentary One to One: John & Yoko (Magnolia Pictures) Orwell: 2+2=5 (Neon) The Perfect Neighbor (Netflix) Riefenstahl (Kino Lorber) Trains (EPF Media / Drygas Film Production) WTO/99 (Foghorn Features)	Best Biographical Documentary John Candy: I Like Me (Prime Video) Love + War (National Geographic) Mr. Scorsese (Apple TV+) My Mom Jayne: A Film by Mariska Hargitay (HBO Max) Pee-wee as Himself (HBO Max) Stiller & Meara: Nothing Is Lost (Apple TV+)
Best Political Documentary The Alabama Solution (HBO Max) Apocalypse in the Tropics (Netflix) Deaf President Now! (Apple TV+) The Librarians (Independent Lens) My Undesirable Friends: Part I — Last Air in Moscow (Marminchilla) Orwell: 2+2=5 (Neon)	Best Sports Documentary America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders (Netflix) America's Team: The Gambler and His Cowboys (Netflix) Big Dreams: Little League World Series 2024 (ESPN Films) Full Court Press (ESPN+) Southpaw: The Life and Legacy of Jim Abbott (ESPN) We Beat the Dream Team (HBO Max)
Best Historical Documentary The American Revolution (PBS) Cover-Up (Netflix) Eyes on the Prize III: We Who Believe in Freedom Cannot Rest 1977-2015 (HBO Max) Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time (National Geographic) Number One on the Call Sheet (Apple TV+) Riefenstahl (Kino Lorber)	Best Science/Nature Documentary The Americas (NBC) Checkpoint Zoo (Abramorama) The Last Rhinos: A New Hope (National Geographic) Ocean with David Attenborough (National Geographic) Octopus! (Prime Video) Pangolin: Kulu's Journey (Netflix)
Best Music Documentary Becoming Led Zeppelin (Sony Pictures Classics) Billy Joel: And So It Goes (HBO Max) Bono: Stories of Surrender (Apple TV+) It's Never Over, Jeff Buckley (Magnolia Pictures) Ladies & Gentlemen... 50 Years of SNL Music (NBC) Sly Lives! (aka The Burden of Black Genius) (Hulu)	Best Short Documentary All the Empty Rooms (Netflix) Classroom 4 (PBS) The Devil is Busy (HBO Max) Exodus (Park County) Fiddler on the Moon: Judaism in Space (Ironbound Films) Sallie's Ashes (Robi Creative) Saving Superman (Switchboard) Shanti Rides Shotgun (Voyager)
Best Ongoing Documentary Series 30 for 30 (ESPN Films) American Masters (PBS) The Reluctant Traveler (Apple TV+) Solo Traveling with Tracee Ellis Ross (Roku Channel) Trafficked with Mariana van Zeller (National Geographic) Trainwreck (Netflix)	Best Limited Documentary Series The American Revolution (PBS) Eyes on the Prize III: We Who Believe in Freedom Cannot Rest 1977-2015 (HBO Max) Gone Girls: The Long Island Serial Killer (Netflix) Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time (National Geographic) Magic City: An American Fantasy (Starz) Mr. Scorsese (Apple TV+) SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night (Peacock) The Yogurt Shop Murders (HBO Max)
Best Narration 2000 Meters to Andriivka – Written and performed by Mstyslav Chernov (Frontline Features / The Associated Press) The American Revolution – Written by Geoffrey C. Ward; Performed by Peter Coyote (PBS) The Americas – Written by Michael Gunton, Holly Spearing, Steve Cole, Kathryn Jeffs, Matt Richards, Giles Badger, Victoria Buckley, Alex Griffiths, Hannah Hoare, Poppy Riddle, Gillian Taylor, Nikki Waldron, Evie Wright, Charlotte Bostock, Victoria Bobin, and Ingrid Kvale; Performed by Tom Hanks (NBC) Apocalypse in the Tropics – Written and performed by Petra Costa (Netflix) Octopus! – Written by Gabriel Bisset-Smith; Performed by Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Prime Video) Orwell: 2+2=5 – Written by George Orwell; Adapted by Raoul Peck; Performed by Damian Lewis (Neon)	Best Score Orwell: 2+2=5 – Alexei Aigui (Neon) The Eyes of Ghana – Kris Bowers (Breakwater Studios / Higher Ground Media) The Perfect Neighbor – Laura Heinzinger (Netflix) Love + War – Claudia Sarne (National Geographic) 2000 Meters to Andriivka (Frontline Features / The Associated Press) – Sam Slater (Frontline Features / The Associated Press) Trains – Paweł Szymański (EPF Media / Drygas Film Production)
Best Cinematography Architecton – Ben Bernhard (A24) The Tale of Silyan – Jean Dakar (National Geographic) Mistress Dispeller – Elizabeth Lo (Oscilloscope) Folktales – Lars Erlend Tubaas Øymo and Tor Edvin Eliassen (Magnolia Pictures) Seeds – Brittany Shyne (Interior Films) Ocean with David Attenborough – Toby Strong and Doug Anderson (National Geographic)	Best Editing Deaf President Now! – Michael Harte (Apple TV+) Ladies & Gentlemen... 50 Years of SNL Music – James Lester, Oz Rodríguez, and John MacDonald (NBC) The Perfect Neighbor – Viridiana Lieberman (Netflix) The Alabama Solution – Page Marsella (HBO Max) 2000 Meters to Andriivka – Michelle Mizner (Frontline Features / The Associated Press) Orwell: 2+2=5 – Alexandra Strauss (Neon)

Pennebaker Award

• Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady

Critics Choice Impact Award

• Ken Burns

Films with multiple nominations

Films with multiple nominations

Nominations	Film	Production company(ies)
7	Orwell: 2+2=5	Neon
6	The Perfect Neighbor	Netflix)
5	2000 Meters to Andriivka	Frontline Features / The Associated Press
	The Alabama Solution	HBO Max
4	Apocalypse in the Tropics	Netflix
	Deaf President Now!	Apple TV+
3	Riefenstahl	Kino Lorber
	The American Revolution	PBS
2	Cover-Up	Netflix
	Gone Girls: The Long Island Serial Killer
	Pee-wee as Himself	HBO Max
	My Mom Jayne: A Film by Mariska Hargitay
	Eyes on the Prize III: We Who Believe in Freedom Cannot Rest 1977-2015
	The Yogurt Shop Murders
	The Tale of Silyan	National Geographic
	Ocean with David Attenborough
	Love + War
	Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time
	Seeds	Interior Films
	Stiller & Meara: Nothing Is Lost	Apple TV+
	Mr. Scorsese
	Ladies & Gentlemen... 50 Years of SNL Music	NBC
	The Americas
	Trains	EPF Media / Drygas Film Production
	Octopus!	Prime Video

References

1. Verhoeven, Beatrice (October 14, 2025). "'Orwell: 2+2=5' Leads 2025 Critics Choice Documentary Awards Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved October 14, 2025.
2. Hipes, Patrick (October 14, 2025). "Raoul Peck's 'Orwell: 2+2=5', 'The Perfect Neighbor' Lead Nominees For Critics Choice Documentary Awards". Deadline . Retrieved October 14, 2025.
3. Kay, Jeremy (October 14, 2025). "'Orwell: 2+2=5' leads Critics Choice Documentary Awards nominees". ScreenDaily . Retrieved October 14, 2025.
4. "Documentarian Ken Burns To Receive Critics Choice Impact Award at the 10th Annual Critics Choice Documentary Awards". Critics' Choice. Retrieved October 14, 2025.
5. Davis, Clayton (October 14, 2025). "'Orwell: 2+2=5' and 'The Perfect Neighbor' Lead Critics Choice Documentary Awards Nominations". Variety . Retrieved October 14, 2025.

External links

• Official website