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BAFTA Award for Best Documentary facts for kids

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BAFTA Award for Best Documentary
Presented by British Academy of Film and Television Arts
Country United Kingdom
First awarded 1948
Currently held by Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story (2024)

The BAFTA Award for Best Documentary is a special prize given out by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). This award celebrates the best documentary films shown in cinemas. Documentaries are non-fiction films that tell real stories about people, places, or events.

This award was once known as the Robert Flaherty Documentary Award. The films listed below won or were nominated for this important award. The winner for each year is shown in bold with a gold background. The years listed are when the films were released, not when the awards ceremony happened (which is usually the next year).

History of the Award

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) is a well-known organization in the United Kingdom. They host big awards shows every year for movies, TV shows, children's films, and even video games.

BAFTA first gave out an award for theatrical documentaries between 1948 and 1990. After that, documentaries were still honored, but mostly through the British Academy Television Awards. They could also be considered in other movie award categories.

Then, in 2012, BAFTA decided to bring back the "Best Documentary" category specifically for films shown in cinemas. They did this because so many excellent documentaries were being released in UK movie theaters each year.

Past Winners and Nominees

Here are some of the amazing films that have won or been nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Documentary over the years. This list shows a few examples, not every single winner and nominee.

1940s Winners

Year Film Director
1948
(2nd)
Louisiana Story Robert J. Flaherty
Farrebique Georges Rouquier
1949
(3rd)
Daybreak in Udi Terry Bishop
The Cornish Engine Bill Mason and Philip Armitage

1950s Winners

Year Film Director
1950
(4th)
The Undefeated Paul Dickson
Kon-Tiki Thor Heyerdahl
1953
(7th)
The Conquest of Everest George Lowe
White Mane (Crin Blanc) Albert Lamorisse
1958
(12th)
Glass (Glas) Bert Haanstra
The Forerunner John Heyer

1960s Winners

Year Film Recipient(s)
1961
(15th)
Le Rendezvous du diable Haroun Tazieff
1965
(19th)
Tokyo Olympiad Kon Ichikawa
Brute Force and Finesse Max Morgan-Witts

1970s Winners

Year Film Recipient(s)
1971
(25th)
The Hellstrom Chronicle Walon Green
Death of a Legend Bill Mason
1979
(33rd)
The Tree of Wooden Clogs Ermanno Olmi

1980s Winners

Year Film Recipient(s)
1981
(35th)
Soldier Girls Nick Broomfield and Joan Churchill
Best Boy Ira Wohl
1984
(38th)
28 Up Michael Apted
GI Brides Lavinia Warner

2010s Winners

Year Film Recipient(s)
2011
(65th)
Senna Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, James Gay-Rees, Asif Kapadia and Manish Pandey
Project Nim Simon Chinn and James Marsh
2015
(69th)
Amy James Gay-Rees and Asif Kapadia
Cartel Land Matthew Heineman and Tom Yellin

2020s Winners

Year Film Recipient(s)
2020
(74th)
My Octopus Teacher Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed and Craig Foster
David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet Alastair Fothergill, Jonnie Hughes and Keith Scholey
2023
(77th)
20 Days in Mariupol Mstyslav Chernov and Raney Aronson-Rath
American Symphony Matthew Heineman, Lauren Domino and Joedan Okun

See also

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In Spanish: Anexo:BAFTA al mejor documental para niños

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