Awards are listed in no particular order
The 2015 Spotlight Documentary Film Awards is proud to have awarded nearly 250 films from over 40 countries: Antarctica, Aruba, Australia, Belarus, Belgium, Bhutan, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Cuba, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, French Polynesia, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Russian Federation, Sierra Leone, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sudan, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and USA. Congratulations to all the award-winning filmmakers!
Platinum Awards: celebrate truly remarkable films with the highest scores from our panel.
Gold Awards: celebrate incredible films with the second highest scores from our panel.
Silver Awards: awarded to unforgettable films with the third highest scores from our panel.
2015 Platinum Award Winners
Awards are listed in no particular order
2015 Spotlight Gold Award Winners
(78m, U S A) dir. by Jay Armitage, Jason Cooper
Paul Freakin' Stone (that's who)
(80m, ) dir. by Allison Quiller
(84m, U S A) dir. by Kendal Miller
A New Understanding: Science of Psilocybin
(55m, U S A) dir. by Robert J. Barnhart
(84m, USA ) by Bruce Spiegel
(70m, U S A) dir. by Jessica Sherry
(73m, U S A) dir. by Adam Pfleghaar
(97m, U S A) dir. by Adolfo Doring
(83m, U S A) dir. by Matt Rutherford
(50m, United Kingdom) dir. by Deeyah Khan
(99m, U S A) dir. by Chandler Wild
(64m, U S A) by Linda Chorney
(60m, Canada) dir. by Edwin Gailits
(69m, U S A) dir. by Carl Fondelheit IV
Growing Reason
(118m, U S A) dir. by Hunter Bradshaw
(51m, Netherlands) dir. by Fokke Baarssen
(65m, U S A) dir. by Chad Stevens
Nothing With Something: Death of a Diner
(65m, U S A) dir. by James Boo
(92m, U S A) dir. by Jordan Freeman, Mari-Lynn Evans
Faith in the Big House - The Remake
(57m, U S A) dir. by Jonathan Schwartz
Famous Last Words
(87m, U S A) dir. by Brian Boye
(73m, U S A) dir. by Benjamin Steger
(97m, U S A) dir. by Brent Baum
(80m, Canada, U S A) dir. by Brock LaBorde, Jonathan Evans
(88m, U S A) sub. by Glenn Holsten
(87m, U S A) dir. by Tony Vainuku , Erika Cohn
Honor thy Father and thy Mother, Damn It
(51m, Israel) dir. by Alexandra Rahmilevich
(84m, U S A) dir. by Ron Davis
(82m, Canada, U S A) dir. by Kevin Bryce
(88m, France) dir. by Nathanaël Coste, Marc de la Ménardière
(107m, U S A) dir. by Mark Moormann
(95m, U S A) dir. by Kayla McCormick
Spoon
(65m, Canada) sub. by Michka Saal
(60m, U S A) dir. by Michael Cardoza
(50m, U S A) dir. by Mercedes Kane
(93m, Brazil, French Polynesia, U S A) dir. by Cesar Terranova
(76m, Ireland) dir. by Nicky Larkin
(99m, U S A) dir. by Roger Weisberg
Antarctic Edge: 70 Degrees South
(72m, Antarctica) dir. by Dena Seidel
Compelling Love & Sexual Identity
(93m, U S A) dir. by Kurt Neale
Damari and Guyala
(10m, Australia) dir. by Marley Sharp, Benjiman Southwell
(22m, Canada) dir. by Dario Vrbanek
Outerspace Life: The Story of Jack Overby
(21m, U S A) dir. by Lance Johnson
(23m, U S A) dir. by AJ Oscarson
I Am Moral Courage: A New Yorker Escapes Forced Marriage In Egypt
(10m, USA ) dir. by Adam Grannick
(20m, U S A) dir. by Dress Code
(14m, U S A) dir. by Jane C. Wagner, Tina DiFeliciantonio
(40m, U S A) dir. by Inaya Yusuf
(14m, U S A) dir. by Stephen Pettit
Positions
(6m, Canada) dir. by Emily Preston
(40m, Cuba, U S A) dir. by Marcos Antonio
A Journey to Namie
(15m, Singapore) sub. by sulfikar amir
(20m, U S A) dir. by Jeremy Seifert
The Whale Overboard
(26m, France) by Paul Sourice
The Key of B
(17m, U S A) dir. by Jayden Rathsam Hua
(38m, U S A) dir. by Myles Shank
2015 SPOTLIGHT SILVER AWARD WINNERS
Paul Sharits
(85m, Canada) dir. by Francois Miron
A Farmer's Road
(74m, U S A) dir. by John Murray
In Our Backyard
(80m, U S A) dir. by Danielle Rose
Hano! A Century in the Bleachers
(53m, ) by Jon Leonoudakis
A Struggle for Home: The Crimean Tatars
(44m, Qatar) dir. by Christina Paschyn
Just Listen
(50m, Netherlands) dir. by Lian Priemus
The Silenced Walls
(88m, France) dir. by Sabrina Van Tassel
A Touch of Cruelty
(48m, Netherlands) dir. by Frank van Osch
Insatiable: The Homaro Cantu Story
(98m, U S A) dir. by Brett Schwartz
Many Scars
(55m, ) by Deborah Sayer
Get Busy Living
(88m, USA) by Chris Burket
Lordville
(67m, U S A) dir. by Rea Tajiri
Apocalyptica Theme & Variations
(77m, U S A) dir. by Kevin J. Custer
The Greatest Freedom Show on Earth
(120m, Canada, U S A) dir. by RJ Huggins
Vertical Slum
(50m, U S A) dir. by Irene Sosa
Sweethearts of the Gridiron
(89m, U S A) by Michael Wayne
Life on Earth
(180m, China) dir. by Guosheng Ming
The Pilgrim
(62m, Poland) dir. by Paweł Jóźwiak-Rodan
The Spirit Echoes
(61m, Switzerland) dir. by Rainer Hoffmann and Erika Harzer
Exiled Mothers
(99m, Canada) dir. by Sharon Alward
Honoring a Commitment
(71m, U S A) by Jed Henry
The Last Tear
(53m, South Korea, U S A) dir. by Christopher H.K. Lee
Homie UP: Stories of Love and Redemption
(63m, U S A) dir. by Jennifer Myhre
John Paul II in America: Uniting a Continent
(57m, U S A) dir. by David Naglieri
Guns to Mics
(85m, Canada, Sierra Leone) dir. by Jem Garrard, Greg Crompton
Birds of a Feather
(68m, New Zealand) dir. by Nina Wells
For the Love of Life: Living for Tomorrow
(84m, Japan) dir. by Hanae Uchida
Yemeniettes
(59m, U S A) dir. by Shawn Thompson, Leon Shahabian
Dixie
(83m, U S A) dir. by Ryan Kelley
The Good Breast
(94m, U S A) dir. by Bernadette Wegenstein
The Disobeying Teachers
(96m, South Korea) dir. by Dongill Seo
The Missing
(86m, China) dir. by Han Tao
Beyond Laughter and Tears: A Journey of Hope
(84m, U S A) dir. by Lisa Klein, Doug Blush
Stopper: The Rise and Fall of the Bastard Squad
(100m, U S A) dir. by Jason C. Wilson
City of Trees
(74m, U S A) dir. by Brandon Kramer
After the Last River
(91m, Canada) dir. by Victoria Lean
Nathan East: For The Record
(85m, U S A) dir. by Chris Gero
The Landscape Within
(103m, Philippines) dir. by Andrea Capranico
The Undertaker
(81m, Philippines) dir. by Andrea Capranico
When Giants Fall
(78m, U S A) dir. by Leslie Griffith
Datuna: Portrait of America
(77m, U S A) dir. by Brian Bayerl
Manislam- Islam and Masculinity
(62m, Norway) dir. by Nefise Özkal Lorentzen
Makoshika
(49m, U S A) dir. by Jessica Jane Hart
Happygram
(80m, U S A) dir. by Julie Marron
Singing in Exile
(77m, Belgium, France, Poland) dir. by Nathalie Rossetti, Turi Finocchiaro
Portraits of Professional Caregivers: Their Passion. Their Pain.
(75m, U S A) dir. by Vic Compher
The Touch of an Angel
(62m, Germany, Poland) dir. by Marek Tomasz Pawlowski
Painted Land: In Search of the Group of Seven
(90m, Canada) dir. by Phyllis Ellis
Tell Spring Not To Come This Year
(82m, United Kingdom) dir. by Michael McEvoy, Saeed Taji Farouky
Scadia: The Known World
(100m, U S A) dir. by Christopher LeClere
Schoolidarity
(92m, U S A) dir. by Andrew Friend
Riz Cantonais
(50m, France) dir. by Mia Ma
Blind Crossing
(57m, Greece) dir. by Andreas Vakalios, Yannis Kalantidis
The Price of Providence
(63m, U S A) dir. by Merajur Rahman Baruah
Eavesdropping on Souls: A Journey into Haitian Arts
(51m, Canada) dir. by Jacqueline Jean-Baptiste
Zabaleen
(64m, Egypt) dir. by Justin Kramer
Gigolo
(75m, Belgium) dir. by Marecaille Hubert
The Pilgrimage in the Sky
(50m, Japan) dir. by Toshikazu Otani
Brotherhood of the Popcorn
(83m, U S A) dir. by Inda Reid
Ron Pope: One Way Ticket
(52m, U S A) dir. by Kelly Teacher
Our Soldier
(47m, Netherlands) dir. by Jotja Bessems
Goodbye Theresienstadt
(58m, Czech Republic, Denmark) dir. by Carl Otto Dethlefsen, Jonatan Jerichow
Waiting
(77m, U S A) dir. by Cristian Piazza
Extra Innings Documentary
(84m, U S A) by James Iverson
Children of the Arctic
(94m, Switzerland) dir. by Nick Brandestini
The Power of One Voice: A 50-Year Perspective on the Life of Rachel Carson
(52m, U S A) dir. by Mark Dixon
Living the Fantasy
(78m, U S A) dir. by Joshua Adler
People Who Come
(61m, Australia) dir. by Dan Noah
Kid Cohen
(92m, U S A) dir. by Christopher McKenna
Box 25
(72m, Panama) dir. by Mercedes Arias, Delfina Vidal
Cousin Madenn
(73m, France) dir. by Gregoire Thoby
Cold Love
(64m, Canada, Denmark, Russian Federation, U S A) dir. by Deia Schlosberg, Lonnie Dupre
This is My Land
(93m, France) sub. by Tamara Erde
One Million Dubliners
(80m, Ireland) dir. by Aoife Kelleher
Grado Mission
(83m, Italy) dir. by Carlo Christian Spano
Many Beautiful Things
(70m, U S A) dir. by Laura Waters Hinson
The Poet of Havana
(97m, Canada) dir. by Ron Chapman
When the Blues Come to Town
(58m, Canada) dir. by Paul Campsall, Tom Knowlton
On Location
(54m, Switzerland) dir. by Jean Paul Fuenzalida
My Voice, My Life
(91m, Hong Kong) dir. by Ruby Yang
Hermits
(87m, China) dir. by He Shiping
Escape From Firebase Kate
(60m, U S A) dir. by Paul Kakert
Power's War
(66m, U S A) dir. by Cameron Trejo
Kandahar Journals
(76m, Canada) dir. by Louie Palu, Devin Gallagher
Jikoo, a Wish
(52m, France) dir. by Leroy Christophe
Curly
(50m, U S A) dir. by Gianina Ferreyra
STORIS: The Galloping Ghost of the Alaskan Coast
(100m, U S A) dir. by Damon Stuebner
Women of '69, Unboxed
(59m, U S A) dir. by Peter Barton
The Penguin Counters
(67m, U S A) dir. by Harriet Getzels, Peter Getzels
La Mia Strada - My Road
(72m, U S A) dir. by Michael DiLauro
Walking in Two Worlds
(63m, U S A) dir. by Bo Boudart
Draw Back the Curtain
(57m, U S A) dir. by Shir Bodner
Christopher's Music
(90m, United Kingdom, U S A) dir. by Diane Kern
Carpe Kilimanjaro: An Alzheimer's Project
(76m, U S A) dir. by Zach Jordan
Until It Hurts
(67m, U S A) dir. by Scott Hansen
Outermost Radio
(60m, U S A) dir. by Alan Chebot
Crying Earth Rise Up
(57m, U S A) dir. by Suree Towfighnia
The War After
(66m, U S A) dir. by Dena Seidel
Run Free - The True Story of Caballo Blanco
(92m, U S A) dir. by Sterling Noren
Das Modell, The Dancer and Lola
(49m, United Kingdom, U S A) dir. by Darshan Singh Bhuller
Lessons In Dissent
(98m, United Kingdom, Hong Kong) dir. by Matthew Torne
Bury Them and Keep Quiet
(82m, Spain, France) dir. by Anna Lopez Luna
Extreme Brat Camp
(48m, United Kingdom) dir. by Andrew Parkin
Sex Addiction
(52m, U S A) dir. by Nicolas Roquefort-Villeneuve
The Trial
(60m, Sudan) dir. by Sam Lukudu
Vieillir a l'ombre
(59m, France) produced by Marie Agnely
Korla
(77m, U S A) dir. by John Turner
Tourism Salvation: The Land of the Thunder Dragon
(45m, Bhutan) by Backpacker Films
Fort..A Spearfish Canyon Rhapsody
(29m, U S A) dir. by Bill Harlan
The Course
(15m, U S A) dir. by Audra Blake
The Bicknell
(17m, United Kingdom) dir. by Genevieve Bicknell
To Her Own Rhythm
(20m, U S A) dir. by Adia Joelle
To Dance Again
(6m, U S A) dir. by Neil Kimball, Caisy Lun, Charles Leisenring
The Foolish Old Man
(20m, China) dir. by YiXin Huo
Golden Age
(19m, Finland) dir. by Maija Blåfield
Gutenberg in the Cyberstorm
(26m, Germany) dir. by Susanne Lenz-Gleißner
The Twelve-Foot-Tall Rabbits Of Rokeby Farm
(22m, U S A) dir. by Samuel Crow, Rubi Rose
The Sons of Mapes
(14m, Aruba, U S A) dir. by Aaron Hose
First Degree
(25m, U S A) dir. by Roger Weisberg
A Chance To Dress
(39m, U S A) dir. by Alice Bouvrie
Bladfold
(45m, U S A) dir. by David Nixon
Gather Up The Fragments: Concept to Creation
(16m, U S A)
Gonna Sip That Sip, Hit That Dip: The Emerging Queer Hip Hop Movement
(13m, U S A) dir. by Chasson Gracie
Generation Right
(41m, United Kingdom) dir. by Michelle Coomber
Taking the Plunge
(40m, U S A) dir. by Shawnelle King
Looking At Animals
(18m, U S A) dir. by Jessica Kingdon
Prisons for Profit
(22m, U S A) dir. by Craig Knowles
We Sing Where I'm From
(44m, U S A) dir. by Dee Garceau
Life is But a Dream
(40m, Canada) dir. by Courtney James
The Creative Method
(27m, U S A) dir. by Jessica McGaugh
Heroin in the Suburbs: The New Face
(20m, U S A) dir. by Julie Ciannavei
Fog Of War
(30m, Belarus) dir. by Viachaslau Makshun
Gambling with Massachusetts
(43m, U S A) dir. by Kevin McCrea
Jeanne & Mike: Original Art
(14m, U S A) dir. by Kathy Drasky
The Portrait of an Artist: When the Lights Turn Off
(23m, United Kingdom, U S A) by Tiannah Bruce
The Persecution of Falun Gong
(10m, U S A) dir. by Mathias Magnason
Sir Shadow
(11m, U S A) by Ravish Patwardhan
Fitting the Description in North Portland
(26m, U S A) dir. by Jarratt Taylor
Ron Taylor: Dr. Baseball
(20m, Canada) dir. by Drew Taylor, Matt Taylor
Ants
(16m, Bulgaria) dir. by Stoyan Nikolaev
Then Then Then
(30m, Canada) dir. by Daniel Schioler
The Migrant Woman
(20m, Canada, Lebanon) dir. by Eli Jean Tahchi
Nashville in Harmony: Ten Years of Using Music to Build Community
(35m, U S A) dir. by Steven Knapp
What is God?/Seed of Abraham
(24m, U S A) dir. by PJ Woodside
Why We Stay
(16m, U S A) dir. by Crystal Kayiza
Actress
(13m, Belgium) dir. by Ivana Noa
Bronx Brothers
(30m, U S A) by Olivia Crellin
Angels with a Cause
(14m, U S A) dir. by Gary Novak
Brave
(27m, U S A) dir. by Keli Kittinger
The Road to Tighza
(5m, U S A) dir. by James Huang
Far Afield: A Conservation Love Story
(35m, U S A) dir. by Jennifer Tennican
RED - Delicious But Deadly
(28m, Canada) dir. by Riz Nasim
Crossing Waters
(40m, U S A) dir. by Jane D. Watson
Awards are listed in no particular order
SPOTLIGHT
DOCUMENTARY
FILM AWARDS
Out of Focus
(51m, United Kingdom) dir. by Shahriar Siami Shal
Forced Perspective
(97m, U S A) dir. by Nick Cavalier
The Way We Talk
(80m, U S A) dir. by Michael Turner
Becoming Bulletproof
(80m, U S A) dir. by Michael Barnett
Right Footed
(82m, U S A) dir. by Nick Spark
Stink!
(91m, U S A) dir. by Jon J. Whelan
Searching for Eddie Running Wolf
(98m, U S A) dir. by Thomas Hartmann
We're Not Blood
(91m, U S A) dir. by Jeffrey Togman
Dante's Down the Hatch
(91m, U S A) dir. by Jef Bredemeier
American Native
(84m, U S A) dir. by Steven Oritt
Southern Rites
(87m, U S A) dir. by Gillian Laub
120 Days
(79m, U S A) dir. by Ted Roach
I Think You're Totally Wrong: A Quarrell
(88m, U S A) dir. by James Franco
Backyard Blockbusters
(95m, U S A) dir. by John Hudgens
Our People
(13m, U S A) dir. by Payne Lindsey
Luchadora
(12m, U S A) dir. by River Finlay
Luchadora
(7m, U S A) dir. by Amber Cortes
Gallero
(14m, United Kingdom, Cuba) dir. by Andreas Hadjipateras
The Hollerin' Contest At Spivey's Corner
(17m, U S A) dir. by Brian Gersten, Liv Dubendorf
Born Into This
(23m, U S A) dir. by Lea Scruggs, Sean Ryon
Last Day of Freedom
(32m, U S A) dir. by Dee Hibbert-Jones and Nomi Talisman
In Memory
(11m, U S A) dir. by 72 U
Anna
(16m, U S A) dir. by Eric Latek
What Makes Dave Run
(13m, U S A) dir. by Peter Zander
Seven Ways From Sunday
(8m, U S A) dir. by Robert Sickels
Michael S., Versammelt
(3m, Austria) dir. by Steven Swirko
Jim Bird: Portrait of an American
(4m, U S A) by Nik Kleverov
Mystic Jungfraujoch - Top of Europe
(3m, Switzerland) dir. by Markus Eichenberger
Damon at 86th Street
(8m, U S A) dir. by Emily Sheskin
Bryn
(9m, U S A) dir. by Marc Menish
UBAH!
(14m, U S A) dir. by Joe Berlinger
The Nike Chariot Earring
(14m, U S A) dir. by Karen Audette
Live Fast, Draw Yung
(16m, U S A) dir. by Anthony Mathile, Stacey Lee
Calling the Cops on Jesus
(8m, U S A) dir. by Peter Carolla
Through The Fire
(29m, U S A) dir. by Olivia Lace-Evans and Nyasha Kadandara
Blade #1
(40m, U S A) dir. by Zuzka Kurtz
Beautiful By Night
(29m, U S A) dir. by James Hosking
Tomgirl
(14m, U S A) dir. by Jeremy Asher Lynch