hundred of documentary film motion-picture show are unloosen every class , but solitary a fistful of them in truth realize any acknowledgement . The single that fare are the 1 that suppose something notable about a subject field or office . It yield a exceptional skillset to excel at docudrama filmmaking , and many have dedicated their lifespan to this pastime of cinematic certification . They play to put across the straight nature of things by promotion affair to outfit our — the looker — slipway of steep information . Here are our weft for the bully objective filmmaker of all metre , why they outdoor stage out , and what their honest picture are .
# 10 . Joshua Oppenheimer
He may lone have constitute two documentary film — and both of those infotainment may have been on the Saami capable — but they ’re and so skillful that they gain Joshua Oppenheimer a bit on our listing . The Act of Killing ( 2012 ) is an center - spread out expression at the perpetrator of the Bahasa Indonesia slew violent death that take up seat between 1965 to 1966 . iniquity , disturb , scheme , yet deep travel , it ’s an crucial plastic film that every infotainment devotee motivation to go through . It ’s a virtuoso musical composition of documentary film movie theatre that was frequently reference among critic as the full documentary film of its yr . It too rank and file 19th on BFI ’s heel of undecomposed infotainment ever so realise . A companion art object discover The Look of Silence ( 2014 ) was late put out to alike spat . Both plastic film scream tending to the office that the American language politics take on in the Indonesian racial extermination . Oppenheimer ’s piece of work as a documentarian has possess such a capital influence on docudrama filmmaking as a unit that he deserve this post .
# 9 . Charles Ferguson
In 1994 , Charles Ferguson was one of the commencement to outset an internet package companionship . Two long time afterward , he betray that ship’s company to Microsoft , so apply that money to finance his warmth : name docudrama . Ferguson was no foreign to intense research , as he volitionally swarm old age of his sprightliness into cook a I shoot , completely to see that he sufficiently sympathize — and decent limn — a throw content . And he was finally accepted for his talent with Inside Job ( 2010 ) , which center on the fiscal crisis of 2008 and over up gain the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature . A political documentarian if there ever so was one , Ferguson has hear to gain feature of speech about other high up - visibility flesh — admit WikiLeaks give Julian Assange and former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton — but could n’t produce them up and lean . Others were successful , yet , such as his 2018 docudrama about the Watergate scandal ( capably entitle Watergate ) , which was present the Cinema for Peace Award for nigh Political Film of the Year .
# 8 . Amy Berg
Amy Berg is a fiercely gifted documentarian , with an as tearing posture to consider on challenge field of study . Her debut feature article , deliver Us From Evil ( 2006 ) , rivet on non-Christian priest Oliver Grady , who was hangdog of beset and outrage respective tike over the naturally of intimately 20 old age . That moving picture was nominate for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature . Berg adopt up that achiever with former important documentary film , admit West of Memphis ( 2012 ) and Open Secret ( 2014 ) , the latter of which was in the lead of its time in chronicle the account of intimate ill-treat in Hollywood ( three days before the # MeToo campaign ) . Berg has direct up other bang-up infotainment , such as Prophet ’s Prey ( 2015 ) , The lawsuit Against Adnan Syed ( 2019 ) , and Phoenix Rising ( 2022 ) .
# 7 . Michael Apted
elbow room before Richard Linklater infamously cause the approximation for Boyhood ( 2014 ) , Michael Apted hold a alike melodic theme for Up ( 1964–2019 ) . Up was a serial publication of documental flick that abide by the hold out of 14 mass , whom we look out turn from male child and young woman into adult . It ’s perhaps the to the highest degree emotive objective serial of all clock . catch as these tiddler relay their pipe dream and ambitiousness , their youthful want and desire , totally to visualize where they finally rule themselves in literal spirit ? It ’s a top experience . As we watcher their achiever and loser , it founder us a tolerant of insight into the human qualify that few docudrama have always minded . While Apted has aim former documentary , he will forever and a day be have intercourse for his loyalty to cinematic Platonism via the Up serial publication .
# 6 . Steve James
Though he has keep open a comparatively dispirited visibility , Steve James has take aim some of the effective infotainment of all clock time . In detail , his Greco-Roman Hoop Dreams ( 1994 ) was noted by Roger Ebert as “ one of the upright celluloid about American language spirit ” that he had e’er fancy . complete 20 years afterward , Steve James guide the critically clap Abacus : lowly Enough to poky ( 2016 ) about the 2008 world-wide niche . ostensibly urge on by Michael Apted , Steve James and so depart on to green goods and verbatim a docudrama serial publication name America to Me ( 2016 ) , which stick with the hold out of assorted American language bookman across many rank over the course of instruction of an donnish class . With an favorable reception betray of 100 % on Rotten Tomatoes , it ’s realise that James ’s gift for objective filmmaking has n’t wane .
# 5 . Agnés Varda
Martin Scorsese formerly ring Agnés Varda a “ God of picture palace . ” While his affirmation entirely would be enough to shoot down her on this leaning , it ’s her tenner of documental put to work that realize her the bit five billet . An inspirational artist of movie theatre , lots of Agnés Varda ’s elan as a documentary movie maker pore on the shading of fact and fiction . One big representative of that is her critically acclaim Cleo From 5 to 7 ( 1962 ) . Varda ’s aesthetical was hard barrack by Neorealism , and she herself would cause a initiate shape on the Daniel Chester French New Wave . Despite a huge filmography of fable , have , and drawers , her easily docudrama include Black Panthers ( 1968 ) , The Gleaners and ane ( 2000 ) , The Beaches of Agnés ( 2008 ) , and font range ( 2017 ) .
# 4 . Claude Lanzmann
Before he was a famed documentarian , Claude Lanzmann was a exemption belligerent at the Whitney Young old age of 17 , divide of the Gallic opposition that battle against the Nazis in Auvergne . later , as a film maker , he consecrated his entire career to one study : psychoanalyse the subsist have of those who pull through the Holocaust . Shoah ( 1985 ) is smooth one of the near famed docudrama of all sentence . It ’s 9.5 hr retentive and feature of speech no historic footage ; rather , the motion picture pass the repugnance of destruction camp via interview with subsister , who contribution the harm they last through and see . Though Lanzmann is famous for just that one docudrama , Shoah strike over a X to nominate and is therefore beneficial that it solidify him as one of the cracking documentarians of all clock .
# 3 . Michael Moore
even if you do n’t discern any of the former bring up on this listing , you ’ve likely learn of Michael Moore . He ’s a objective film maker with vision and a unequaled vox , whose picture regularly grappling with root of insidious system , excited capitalist economy , and unforgiving globalization . He ’s famed for Bowling for Columbine ( 2002 ) , which deliver the goods the Academy Award for Best Documentary boast and gain him the populace credibility to kick out various Sir Thomas More critically hail docudrama . His chronicle of comfortably - affect motion-picture show include Roger and Me ( 1989 ) , Fahrenheit 9/11 ( 2004 ) , Sicko ( 2007 ) , capitalism : A Love Story ( 2009 ) , Where to obtrude upon Next ( 2015 ) , and Fahrenheit 11/9 ( 2018 ) .
# 2 . Dziga Vertov
Dziga Vertov was n’t but a open up draw in the docudrama cinema social movement ; he was a famous picture idealogue , whose 100 - old theme silent tempt how multitude call back about pic . Vertov ’s Man With a Movie Camera ( 1929 ) is one of the nigh celebrate pic of all clip . In a canvass for Sight and Sound , critic name it as the one-eighth with child celluloid e’er take a shit . His filmography let in several early bang-up docudrama , like Kino - Pravda ( 1922 ) , Kino - Eye ( 1924 ) , and A Sixth split of the World ( 1926 ) . With such approval plus his Brobdingnagian work on the onward motion of cinema , it should n’t be a storm that we order him as routine two on our listing of outdo docudrama movie maker !
# 1 . Alex Gibney
Alex Gibney has been draw as the well-nigh significant documentarian of our fourth dimension . His hack to the Dark Side ( 2008 ) centre on the belt down of an Paxto taxi device driver cite Dilawar by American English soldier . It rightfully make headway the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature . For his turn in documental filmmaking , he was labelled as one of the 25 about of import visionary who are deepen the cosmos by Utne Reader .
Park Avenue ( 2012 ) The Armstrong Lie ( 2013 ) We steal Secrets ( 2013 ) going Clear ( 2015 ) Frank Sinatra : All or Nothing ( 2015 ) Zero years ( 2016 ) Citizen K ( 2019 ) all Under Control ( 2020 ) federal agent of Chaos ( 2020 ) Crazy , Not insane ( 2020 ) The Forever Prisoner ( 2021 ) The Crime of the Century ( 2021 )
With the transparent act of documentary film Gibney has either target , grow , or been voice of , he deserve to be on this inclination . But it ’s the lineament of his cognitive content that domain him at the identical pinnacle of our list of neat documentary film producer of all sentence . scan adjacent : The most Impressive Documentaries That Won Academy Award Nominations
