“For Sama” took home the top honor at this year’s IDA Documentary Awards, held Saturday in LA. Waad al-Kateab and Edward Watts received the Best Feature Documentary Award for the doc, which chronicles life in Aleppo through five years of the Syrian revolution.
Al-Kateab was also honored with the Courage Under Fire Award, “presented to documentarians displaying conspicuous bravery in the pursuit of truth, as a recognition from their peers for putting the freedom of speech — represented in the crafts of documentary filmmaking and journalism — above all else, even their own personal safety.”
The night’s other special honorees included directors Freida Lee Mock (“Anita”) and Rachel Lears (“Knock Down the House”). The former took home the Career Achievement Award and the latter the Emerging Doc Filmmaker Award.
Julia Reichert and Steven Bognar snagged the Best Director honor for “American Factory,” their look inside what happens when a Chinese billionaire buys a former GM plant in Ohio.
The award for Best Short went to Carol Dysinger’s “Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (if you’re a girl),” a portrait of Afghan girls in Kabul learning to read, write, and skateboard.
“Homecoming: A Film by Beyoncé” was named Best Music Documentary. Beyoncé co-directed the acclaimed concert film with Ed Burke.
Head over to The Hollywood Reporter to check out all of the winners.
