Nearly a decade after making his feature debut as a co-director of Albert Maysles’s final documentary, In Transit, David Usui finally went solo for this hidden gem of a film. Been Here Stay Here is a mostly observational portrait of a conservative, religious island community enduring under threat of climate change that they believe is God and nature’s will. Usui follows crabbers and oystermen, tour guides and churchgoers, elders and children in their lives on Tangier Island, located smack dab in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay. It’s a place that has lost two-thirds of its land to rising sea levels over the last 200 years.

That time span doesn’t make it seem like the problem is completely the fault of humans, but this isn’t a film dealing with details on the science or cause of the situation. It’s driven by the people, who are driven by their faith. Usui uses a few tricks to deliver more than mere people watching and landscape cinematography. He captures another documentary crew interviewing locals, snagging some of those discussions for his own film. He also introduces a young pastor focused on climate change through a Christian perspective in order to present that conversation between differing factions and generations. For another layer, the film includes a sprinkling of archival footage of life on the island from half a century ago.

Been Here Stay Here is a beautiful and serene documentary that may lull us toward a shared acceptance of our fates. The score by James William Blades is epically soothing. Every shot composed by Usui and Peter Steusloff is stunning and full of grace. I couldn’t help but be reminded of montages in disaster movies of people in their daily routines just before the cataclysmic events wipe them out, even if the looming calamity here isn’t as immediately life-threatening or destructive. It’s more of a pleasantly provocative stopover in a virtual journey of land and time.

This weekend is Mother’s Day, a time to celebrate the woman who raised us. It’s also an occasion to meet the mothers who were special or crazy enough to have a documentary made about them. Two years ago, I listed a bunch of documentaries worth watching on Mother’s Day, and they’re all still recommended.

Here’s an update with must-see films released since then: Mariska Hargitay’s My Mom Jayne, about her Hollywood icon mother, Jayne Mansfield; Rachel Elizabeth Seed’s A Photographic Memory, about her photojournalist mother, Sheila Turner Seed; Geeta Gandbhir’s The Perfect Neighbor, about the murder of a concerned mother of four; and Skye Borgman’s Unknown Number: The High School Catfish, the relevance of which would be a spoiler. The recently released film Modern Whore also has some nice moments involving the primary participant and her mom.

Before getting to this week’s highlighted recommendations, I wanted to share a piece on another Substack. The latest newsletter from filmmaker Penny Lane (Confessions of a Good Samaritan) is titled “What a Documentary Director Actually Does,” and it’s an enlightening read for those of us who watch a lot of nonfiction films (and especially for those of us who give out Best Director awards at events honoring documentaries). Though she recognizes that “the job can look extremely different, from person to person,” Lane also stresses two important things every documentary director should be doing. I won’t share what they are here. You have to visit her Substack to find out.

Without further ado, below are this week’s documentary highlights, followed by daily listings for all known releases and broadcasts, along with a brief look at what’s coming soon for doc fans (including the latest from Fire of Love director Sara Dosa!). Please consider becoming a paid subscriber to receive more in-depth highlights and reviews in the future, plus full access to special posts like our best-of lists, and to give me more time to watch more (if not everything) available. If you have a doc in need of coverage or a mention, you can reach me at christopherbartoncampbell (at) gmail.

Nonfics Picks Of The Week: The Python Hunt (2025)

One of my favorite new documentary filmmakers, Lance Oppenheim (Some Kind of Heaven, Ren Faire), produced this ensemble-driven feature and brought along many of his regular collaborators, including cinematographer David Bolen. While The Python Hunt often looks and feels like one of Oppenheim’s own films, the director this time is Xander Robin, and he’s an excellent substitute. As I wrote in conclusion in my review, “As much as I am a fan of Oppenheim’s own directorial projects, I have to admit I’m glad he had his friend helm this one, as Robin seems even more of a compassionate collaborator than curious observer when it comes to the subject matter.”

This documentary uses the Florida Python Challenge to examine that annual event, the larger issue of the invasive Burmese python population in the Everglades, and the region's ecological crisis. It’s the kind of film I consider a positive bait-and-switch, since it may lure in viewers expecting a lowbrow competition documentary with trashy characters and sensational situations, but it actually offers a deeper, more empathetic study of the people and the place at the center of this wild story. It’s no trick, though, as it’s still a very entertaining, occasionally amusing (respectfully so), and visually stunning. Read my full review of The Python Hunt to learn more.

The Python Hunt will be released in theaters on Friday, May 8, 2026, via Oscilloscope Laboratories.

Other Documentary Highlights

The A List: 15 Stories From Asian And Pacific Diasporas (2025)

Looking at the more famous interviewees assembled for The A List: 15 Stories from Asian and Pacific Diasporas, including Sandra Oh, Kumail Nanjiani, Bowen Yang, and Connie Chung, I expected this film to be more along the lines of an AAPI equivalent to Number One on the Call Sheet. It’s not as much of a conversation, though, as 15 isolated monologues in which a variety of AAPI representatives talk about their AAPI identity and how it has related to their successes in their respective entertainment, journalism, science, and athletic professions.

Some of them play a bit more randomly and specifically than others, not adding to the generalized discussions of representation and identity. Nanjiani’s bit is familiar if you’ve followed his career and especially if you’ve seen his semi-autobiographical movie The Big Sick. The film starts with what I found to be the best segment, in which Oh talks about the evolution of having to assimilate and not stand out, then being able to be part of stories centered on people of her background. She and one or two others also express a catch with these kinds of showcases: no white person is ever asked what it’s like to be white in their spaces. But there’s a lack of such cohesive discourse.

The A-List: 15 Stories from Asian and Pacific Diasporas premieres on HBO and HBO Max on Wednesday, May 13, 2026.

Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard And Soft: The Tour (2026)

If you’re a Billie Eilish fan, you’re going to want to watch Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour, which captures a single concert experience filmed in Manchester, England, last summer. You may even want to see it exhibited in 3D to feel like you were really there. Otherwise, you can skip this concert film co-directed by Eilish and James Cameron. There’s not a lot to Eilish’s stage show that warrants the 3D format, as well-shot and mechanically advanced as it is, in Cameron fashion. Maybe forgetting that you’re watching 3D means is a win on some technical level, but that can still be frustrating for the paying audience expecting more spectacle.

Meanwhile, I zoned out during many of the numbers. There isn’t much visual variety to these sequences. In one of the documentary’s behind-the-scenes bits, Eilish notes that each song has a unique aesthetic, but that doesn’t come across as well in this presentation. The film is very choppy anyway, rarely allowing a single shot to last long enough to appreciate what’s in the frame. I could have done without all the reminders of why I don’t attend concerts in person: the screaming, sing-along attendees holding up their phones and recording the whole show. But I get that for that crowd, and for Eilish, it’s the communal experience they desire. If you missed it live or couldn’t get enough in person, you now have a second chance.

Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour will be released in theaters in 3D on Friday, May 8, 2026, via Paramount Pictures.

David Attenborough Documentaries

Sir David Attenborough turns 100 this Friday. He was born on May 8, 1926, and halfway through his life, he changed the game for nature and wildlife documentaries with the BBC series Life on Earth. Over the next 50 years, he has also become known for his prolific narration credits, and his brand of programming showcasing the wonders of the planet and its many ecosystems and habitats has inspired everything from the Disneynature film franchise to real scientific discoveries and developments. He’s been around long enough to be a part of many retrospectives of his work already.

For his centenary, various streamers have been celebrating his career with new works, including Netflix’s A Gorilla Story: Told by David Attenborough and the PBS special Life On Earth: Attenborough’s Greatest Adventure, both of which look back at his achievements with Life on Earth. National Geographic is highlighting its recent award-winning film Ocean with David Attenborough, while Pluto TV is running an extensive marathon of Attenborough’s programs, including several installments of Natural World, on its BBC Earth channel every Thursday and Friday in May. We also recommend Netflix’s Critics Choice Award winners Our Planet, David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet, and Life in Color with David Attenborough.

Marty, Life Is Short (2026)

Selena Gomez and Steve Martin have gotten the documentary treatment in recent years, so now it’s time for their Only Murders in the Building co-star to get his. Marty, Life is Short is a biographical feature celebrating the life and career of Martin Short. Making this one stand out in the sea of celebrity showcases is its director, Lawrence Kasdan, who has previously only helmed two documentaries: a short about a favorite West Hollywood diner and a six-part series about Industrial Light & Magic.

The connection between the subject and the Oscar-nominated writer/director seems only to be that Kasdan produced Short’s 1987 rom-com Cross My Heart and directed him among the ensemble of his 1999 movie Mumford. Netflix shared this one too late for coverage and has set the usual day-of-release review embargo, so I’m not sure of any additional relevance. But as a longtime fan of the comedic actor who even rushed to see such duds as Pure Luck and Captain Ron in the theater, I’ll definitely be making time for it. Here’s hoping it adds to the Three Amigos! appreciation we got in Lorne.

Marty, Life is Short premieres on Netflix on Tuesday, May 12, 2026.

Natchez (2025)

Given both the film’s original runtime and the PBS broadcast window being around 90 minutes, I don’t expect anything to be cut for the Independent Lens airing of Suzannah Herbert’s Natchez. That’s good since it’s a feature without any fat to trim. We highlighted the film as our Pick of the Week at the end of January for its true theatrical release. We also included it on our list of the best documentaries of 2025 since it had an Oscar-qualifying run (I was shocked it didn’t at least make the shortlist). Here’s the same excerpt I’ve shared previously from the end-of-year list:

“What starts seemingly as a curious look at one Mississippi town’s legacy regarding slavery winds up as a deeper exploration of how history should be represented, especially when it comes to humanity’s mistakes. By the end of this uniquely photographed documentary, Natchez’s past is anything but a black or white issue (or, not just a black and white issue, if we’re talking race) as Herbert bursts bubbles filled with expectations and stereotypes.”

Natchez will make its broadcast premiere on PBS as an episode of Independent Lens on Monday, May 11, 2026.

Startup.com (2001)

There are a few notable documentary anniversaries this week, including Madonna: Truth or Dare turning 30, Emile de Antonio’s Underground turning 50, and Pare Lorentz’s The Plow That Broke the Plains turning 90, but the one I want to highlight and recommend is Chris Hegedus and Jehane Noujaim’s Startup.com. Produced by D. A. Pennebaker, the little-remembered film opened in theaters on May 11, 2001, following its debut at Sundance. While it’s become visually dated over the 25 years since its release, the DV-shot documentary remains an essential time capsule of the era, perfectly chronicling the dot-com bubble and burst.

As I wrote in the film’s entry on our list of the best documentaries about the internet, “Startup.com is one of the most representative films of the late ’90s and the initial e-commerce craze that took the world by storm and left it shipwrecked.” It’s also significant now for being the debut of Jehane Noujaim, who knew the right people to be there at the right time. She would go on to make one of the best films about broadcast journalism (Control Room) and then received an Oscar nomination nearly a decade later for her feature covering the 2011 Egyptian Revolution (The Square). Next month, she and Vikram Gandhi will release a four-part docuseries about Burning Man called The Man Will Burn, and I can’t wait for it.

Startup.com is available to purchase on DVD or VHS. The latter might be the most suitable format for optimal nostalgia. Or you can find bootlegs all over YouTube.

Tucci In Italy Season 2

Stanley Tucci is having a big month. He reprises his supporting role as fashion magazine art director Nigel Kipling in the movie sequel The Devil Wears Prada 2 (now in theaters) and his part as tech genius secret agent Bernard Orlick in the second season of Citadel (now on Amazon Prime Video). He also returns as himself in the second season of Tucci in Italy, the docuseries where he travels around the Beautiful Country eating amazing food. Not only that, but he and the series were just nominated for three Critics Choice Real TV Awards, recognizing them in the categories for Best Culinary Show, Best Travel/Adventure Show, and Best Show Host.

Tucci in Italy Season 2 premieres its first two episodes on National Geographic on Monday, May 11, 2026, with new episodes airing throughout the month. However, all five of this season’s episodes also begin streaming exclusively on Disney+ and Hulu on Tuesday, May 12, 2026.

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Documentary Release Calendar 5/8/26 - 5/14/26

Friday, May 8, 2026

Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (2026) - A concert film directed by James Cameron and Billie Eilish and starring Billie Eilish, presented in 3D. See our highlights section for more info and a brief review. (In Theaters)

Deadliest Catch Season 22, Episode 1: “Kings of the Frozen North” - The return of a nonfiction series that follows Alaskan crab fishermen. (Discovery Channel)

Linda Perry: Let it Die Here (2024) - A documentary feature about the titular singer-songwriter. (In Theaters)

Louder Than Guns (2024) - A music documentary directed by Doug Pray (Hype!) that addresses the issue of gun violence. (In Theaters)

MGM Parade Show #6 (1955) - The sixth installment of a documentary series devoted to promoting MGM’s films. This short spotlights the movies Anna Christie and Quentin Durward. (TCM)

The Proof is Out There Season 6, Episode 9: “Classic British UFO, Cheshire Cat Water Monsters, and Alabama Bigfoot Growl” - The latest installment of a docuseries investigating UFOs, conspiracies, and mythical creatures. (History)

The Python Hunt (2025) - A documentary feature about an annual public python hunt in the Everglades. See our highlights section for a link to our review. *NONFICS PICK* (In Theaters)

Sleeping Dog (2026) - A documentary feature about journalist Jeremy Corbell and his lifelong pursuit to find the truth about UAPs. (In Theaters)

Saturday, May 9, 2026

Daughters of the Voice (2018) - A documentary about women musicians from various religious traditions. (ChaiFlicks)

K-Everything (2026) - A docuseries about the global explosion of Korean pop culture. (CNN)

Kara Swisher Wants to Live Forever Episode 4: “The Korean Miracle” - The fourth installment of a six-part docuseries starring journalist Kara Swisher about the latest in longevity science. (CNN)

Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist (1979) - An Oscar-winning short documentary about the titular actor and activist. *NONFICS PICK* (TCM)

Philly Homicide Season 2, Episode 5: “Deadly Drive-Thru” - The latest installment of a docuseries following Philadelphia detectives. This episode involves the death of a school teacher. (Oxygen)

Some of the Best: Twenty-Five Years of Motion Picture Leadership (1949) - A short documentary on MGM’s major productions during their first 25 years. (TCM)

Sunday, May 10, 2026

Eva Longoria: Searching for France Episodes 7 & 8: “France in Seven Courses” & “Brittany” - The latest installments of an eight-part docuseries in the Searching For… travelogue franchise following Eva Longoria on a culinary tour of France. (CNN)

The Food That Built America Season 7, Episode 4: “Drive-Thru Burger Revolution” - The latest installment of a docuseries about popular American foods. This episode looks back at the origins of fast food drive-thru windows. (History)

Hazardous History with Henry Winkler Season 2, Episode 4: “Hell on Wheels” - The latest installment of a docuseries about dangerous toys and household items that used to be common. This episode involves dangerous parts of automobiles. (History)

Kara Swisher Wants to Live Forever Episode 4: “The Korean Miracle” - The fourth installment of a six-part docuseries starring journalist Kara Swisher about the latest in longevity science. (CNN All Access)

A Plan to Kill Season 2, Episode 10: “A Burning Plot” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries on the meticulous planning conducted by serial killers. (Oxygen)

Monday, May 11, 2026

96 Pounds of Dynamite (2026) - A documentary about a genetically diminutive billiards celebrity. (VOD)

Natchez (2025) - A documentary feature about the historical legacy of the titular town in Mississippi. Presented as an installment of Independent Lens. See where the film ranks on our list of the best documentaries of 2025. *NONFICS PICK* (PBS)

Operation Raintree (1957) - A short documentary about the making of the movie Raintree County. (TCM)

Tucci in Italy Season 2, Episodes 1 & 2: “Naples & Campania” & “Sicily” - The return of a docuseries starring actor Stanley Tucci as he explores Italy through its cuisine. (National Geographic)

Where It Lies Episode 2: “Rancho Park Golf Course in Los Angeles” - The second installment of a four-part docuseries about public golf. (ESPN App)

Tuesday, May 12, 2026

After the Rain: Putin’s Stolen Children Come Home - A documentary about Ukrainian children abducted by Russia. (DVD)

America’s Most Deadly UFO Encounters (2026) - A documentary about shocking UFO encounters. (DVD)

Betrayal: Secrets & Lies Episode 7: “Marked for Murder” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries involving stories of infidelity. (ABC, Disney+, and Hulu)

Botticelli’s Primavera (2025) - A documentary feature about the titular painting. (Blu-ray)

Dr. Cliff: Worldwide Vet (2023) - A documentary that follows a veterinarian and his daughter as they travel overseas to help animals. (DVD)

Frank Whittle: A Genius in the Family (2025) - A medium-length documentary about the pioneer of the jet plane. (DVD)

Frontline Season 44, Episode 13: “Caught in the Crackdown” - The latest installment of a long-running investigative documentary series. This episode looks into federal immigration sweeps. (PBS)

George Stevens: A Filmmaker’s Journey (1984) - A documentary by George Stevens Jr. about the life and work of his father, the famous Hollywood director. (Blu-ray)

Guerrilla: The Taking of Patty Hearst (2004) - A documentary about the 1974 kidnapping of the heiress Patty Hearst. (VOD)

Janis: Little Girl Blue (2015) - A documentary feature by Amy Berg about Janis Joplin. (VOD)

Lucy Worsley Investigates: The American Revolution (2026) - A two-part documentary on the American Revolution. (DVD)

Marty, Life is Short (2026) - A biographical documentary directed by Lawrence Kasdan about actor and comedian Martin Short. See our highlights section for more info. (Netflix)

The Propagandist (2024) - A documentary about the Dutch Nazi filmmaker Jan Teunissen. (VOD)

Raphael’s School of Athens (2025) - A documentary feature about the titular painting. (DVD and Blu-ray)

S10 (2024) - A documentary about the titular singer and her participation in the Eurovision Song Contest. (Viaplay)

Secrets Declassified with David Duchovny Season 2, Episode 9: “Smoke and Mirrors” - The latest installment of a docuseries about declassified government activities. (History)

Silent Fallout (2023) - A documentary feature about victims of nuclear testing. (DVD)

Stagebound: Marla Mindelle’s Journey to Opening Night of “Titaníque” (2026) - The latest installment of a Great Performances series that looks behind the scenes at Broadway productions. (PBS)

Suburban Fury (2024) - A documentary about Sara Jane Moore, who attempted to assassinate President Ford in 1975. (Kino Film Collection)

Tucci in Italy Season 2 - The return of a docuseries starring actor Stanley Tucci as he explores Italy through its cuisine. (Disney+ and Hulu)

The Ubiquitous Compact Disc (2025) - A documentary about music CDs. (DVD)

U.S. Against the World: Four Years With the Men’s National Soccer Team (2026) - A five-part docuseries about the U.S. men’s national soccer team in the four years leading up to the 2026 World Cup. (HBO and HBO Max)

Wednesday, May 13, 2026

The A List: 15 Stories from Asian and Pacific Diasporas (2025) - A feature-length anthology by Eugene Yi of interviews with people, mostly celebrities, representing Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities in the U.S. See our highlights section for more info and a brief review. (HBO and HBO Max)

Anxious in Beirut (2023) - A documentary portrait of Beirut. (OVID)

Conspiracies & Coverups Episode 7: “Programmed by AI” - The latest installment of a docuseries starring ex-CIA officer Andrew Bustamente about the biggest conspiracies in pop culture today. (Discovery Channel)

The Face Doctors Season 2, Episode 1: “The Elephant’s Trunk” - The return of a nonfiction series about facial reconstruction specialists and their patients. (TLC)

On the Case with Paula Zahn Season 29, Episode 5: “Through the Smoke” - The latest installment of a true-crime documentary series starring journalist Paula Zahn. (Investigation Discovery)

We Loved Each Other So Much (2003) - A documentary about the Lebanese singer Fairuz. (OVID)

Thursday, May 14, 2026

More Than Honey (2012) - A documentary about honeybees around the world. (Kino Film Collection)

On the Roam Season 2, Episode 1 - The return of a nonfiction series that follows actor Jason Momoa as he meets extraordinary people around the country. (HBO Max)

The Perfect Meal - The Secrets of the Mediterranean Diet (2024) - A docuseries about the Mediterranean Diet. (OVID)

Welcome to Wrexham Season 5, Episodes 1 & 2: “The Heart of Wrexham” & “Joey Jones” - The return of a docuseries about a Welsh soccer team co-owned by actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. (FXX)

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Sneak Peek At What’s Coming Soon

5/15 - The Crash - A true-crime documentary feature about a teen girl who intentionally crashed her car into a wall, killing her boyfriend and his friend. (Netflix)

5/21 - Stolen Kingdom - A documentary feature about theft and other misdeeds committed at Walt Disney World over 30 years. (Theatrical Roadshow)

5/22 - The Yogurt Shop Murders Episode 5: “The End of Wondering” - A new feature-length bonus installment of a true-crime docuseries by Margaret Brown about the killing of four girls at a frozen yogurt shop in 1991. Watch the new trailer for the episode below. (HBO Max)

5/25 - The Many Lives of Benjaman Kyle - A two-part true-crime documentary about a man claiming to suffer from a rare form of amnesia who may have a shady past. (Investigation Discovery)

5/29 - Time and Water - A documentary feature directed by Sara Dosa (Fire of Love) about Icelandic author Andri Snær Magnason and his mission to preserve the memory of his nation’s glaciers. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (In Theaters)

5/29 - With Hasan in Gaza - A documentary feature directed by Kamal Aljafari that revisits footage he shot in 2001 about his search for a man he met in prison years earlier. (In Theaters)

6/1 - If I Could Stay - A documentary about two mothers trying ot keep their families together and avoid deportation. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (PBS)

6/5 - Underland - A documentary feature narrated by Sandra Hüller that explores underground worlds in nature. (In Theaters)

6/7 - This Land - A six-part docuseries that explores the history of America through six defining frontiers. (CNN)

6/9 - The Man Will Burn - A four-part docuseries by Jehane Noujaim (The Square) and Vikram Gandhi (Kumare) about Burning Man. (HBO and HBO Max)

8/7 - Cookie Queens - A documentary feature about Girl Scouts selling cookies. Read our review of Cookie Queens. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (In Theaters)

Bait-and-switch is a mostly negative term used for retail fraud, but I sometimes use it to describe documentaries that lure in audiences expecting one thing but deliver something better. Previously, I’ve used the term in my appreciations for The Queen of Versailles, No No: A Dockumentary, American Nightmare, and The Perfect Neighbor, all of which could easily draw in reality TV or true-crime aficionados with their sensational-sounding premise and then give them more depth than they’re used to. I’m adding The Python Hunt to the list since it seems like it’d be another wild showcase of “Florida Man” fodder, but it is really a complex and considerate ensemble-driven treasure. In fact, it’s one of the best documentaries of the year (to be added to our list next term).

Of course, if you’re already the sort of person who seeks out great documentaries instead of trashy delights, The Python Hunt has a lot of elements to draw you in. Visionary nonfiction auteur Lance Oppenheim produced the film and hired his longtime friend Xander Robin (Are We Not Cats) to direct it. One of its primary cinematographers, David Bolen, shot Oppenheim’s features Some Kind of Heaven and Spermworld (as well as a few of Ben Proudfoot’s shorts), so you know it’s going to look better, or at least more intently cinematographic, than most documentaries. Its editor, Max Allman, cut Oppeheim’s incredible series Ren Faire. The score is by Nick León, who isn’t known for documentaries, but his electronic music, celebrated for representing a dark Southern Florida mood, is a perfect match.

The documentary’s surface-level focus is the annual Florida Python Challenge, which brings people from all over the country (and some hopefuls from other parts of the world) to the Everglades for a contest promoting the (humane) slaughter of Burmese pythons. These snakes are invasive to the area, explained in a brief but mind-boggling backstory, and they are blamed for the devastation of the ecosystem and its wildlife. Robin begins by introducing some of the characters participating in the hunt, as if establishing the film as a typical competition documentary. They range in age, experience, and motives. For many, the thrill of the kill is worth more than the prize money. The all-night search for the snakes is also part of the fun, at least at first.

If that sounds appealing for its potential to shock and amuse with extraordinary scenarios and characters, you’re a good mark. And you will see your share of blood, danger, drunkenness, sexual tension, and python pithing (the last maybe not as graphically as anticipated). However, you’ll also experience a healthy debate about the competition from several sides, understand all of these properly portrayed characters’ reasons for entering or condemning the challenge, and view it all through sharp, stunning, deliberately lit visuals. Robin never sets his participants up for judgment or mockery. Even when the octogenarian hunter, Anne, is depicted regularly drinking her gin and (a minimal amount of) tonic, emphasized with insert shots, any cringe-induced laughter soon gives way to sympathy, if not empathy, for the woman.

The Python Hunt doesn’t conclude with a champion among its characters, or any concentration on the outcome other than its surprising kill count. Half of the people populating the film’s narrative aren’t even taking part in the main contest. Robin follows a man who was formerly employed by the state to exterminate pythons year-round, who is barred from the challenge. There are individuals in the documentary who defend against the state and its competition’s capitalization of the cultural vilification of snakes, and there are those who offer other theories on the causes of the Everglades’ ecological crisis. At times, the film veers more into the science and nature genre than audiences looking for an outrageous midnight movie will be prepared for.

I believe anyone who does arrive at The Python Hunt with certain expectations will still be more than satisfied with what they find. They shouldn’t be turned off by how smart it is; the film is not that heavy. Similar to the film’s characters, many of whom experience a different journey or reach a different destination than they assume, viewers may also go through their own arcs from beginning to end. There’s a lot of insight to be gleaned from all the varied participants. And it’s still a very entertaining film, just in a more rewarding fashion, and with a brilliant mix of style and substance. As much as I am a fan of Oppenheim’s own directorial projects, I have to admit I’m glad he had his friend helm this one, as Robin seems even more of a compassionate collaborator than curious observer when it comes to the subject matter.

Most years, the first draft of our best documentaries list is a struggle. We’ve usually seen some of what will be our favorites of the year, via Sundance, but these and other strong contenders won’t be officially released until later. (We anticipate Nuisance Bear, Soul Patrol, and One in a Million, all of which we saw in January, will rank well when that happens). This year, we waited a bit to share the first pass. It’s now been a third of the way through 2026, and we're struggling to keep the list to only a top 10.

We also decided to allow titles released through May 1, given how it fell on the calendar (ultimately, four of the titles to make the list were released in February, three in March, two in April, and two on the first of May). To see where other films rank, visit us on Letterboxd and follow us for updates to our list throughout the year. At the rate we’re going, we expect many more to be added to the upper rankings. Who knows how many of the titles below will still land in our top 26 at the end of 2026?

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A new month begins this week, and that means we have a very full listings section, mostly thanks to The Criterion Channel, as usual. The week’s listings section also might be populated with more *Nonfics Picks* than ever. I count 16, almost half of which are new releases (or at least re-releases or recent releases hitting a new format or platform for the first time). So, let’s get right into this week’s reviews and recs.

Without further ado, below are this week’s documentary highlights, followed by daily listings for all known releases and broadcasts, along with a brief look at what’s coming soon for doc fans (including a preview for the final Jackass movie). Please consider becoming a paid subscriber to receive more in-depth highlights and reviews in the future, plus full access to special posts like our best-of lists, and to give me more time to watch more (if not everything) available. If you have a doc in need of coverage or a mention, you can reach me at christopherbartoncampbell (at) gmail.

Nonfics Picks Of The Week: American Dream (1990) & Harlan County, USA (1976)

If you’ve followed Nonfics over the years, you’ll know that we have wanted to recommend Barbara Kopple’s American Dream forever. It’s rarely been available in any format except for an old DVD, but it deserves to be as easily streamed as Kopple’s other Oscar-winning documentary about a worker’s strike, Harlan County, U.S.A. Well, the 1990 masterpiece was recently restored with a new 4K print that is heading to theaters and will likely land on a streaming platform in the future. I’m assuming American Dream will join Harlan County, U.S.A. on The Criterion Channel since Janus Films and the Criterion Collection handled the restoration.

While not quite as perfect as Harlan County, U.S.A., which is on my list of the best documentaries of all time, American Dream is pretty damn close. The film follows a strike of Hormel Foods meatpacking workers in Minnesota in the 1980s after their wages and benefits were cut. It’s a familiar yet still enraging portrait of Reagan-era America. The characters in focus here are primarily leadership figures, including the local union president, its parent union head, and a consultant hired to help with negotiations. But it’s the scenes with the regular folk, the workers who risk losing everything while simply fighting for what’s fair, that hit the hardest.

As I wrote on our list of the best Sundance documentaries of all time, Kopple “throws us right in there, enough to make us feel as cold as the workers picketing outside the factory in the dead of winter.” It’s a different kind of cultural immersion than we get with Harlan County, U.S.A. Yet it complements that earlier classic as much as they contrast. And it is just as powerful in its aim to create empathy among its viewers, especially when it puts us in the passenger seat alongside strikebreakers. We want to be mad at them, given that we’ve been otherwise placed on the side of the picketing workers, but we are led to understand. Ultimately, these people are as much at the mercy of union leaders as of the corporate suits, whose exploitation begets desperation.

American Dream will be re-released in theaters on Friday, May 1, 2026 (International Workers’ Day!). Harlan County, U.S.A. will join the film in theaters the same weekend.

Other Documentary Highlights

Caribbean Activist Cinema

One of this month’s curations on The Criterion Channel focuses on nonfiction works from the 1970s and 1980s that “spotlight vital stories of workers’ movements, decolonial struggle, and liberation from economic exploitation and violent oppression.” Six of the seven programmed documentaries are new to the streamer in May, joining West Indies: The Fugitive Slaves of Liberty. The added titles in this block, titled “You Don’t Get Freedom, You Take Freedom: Caribbean Activist Cinema,” are Haiti: The Way to Freedom, Grenada: The Future Coming Towards Us, Women of Suriname, Sweet Sugar Rage, Bitter Cane, and The Terror of the Time. I’m pretty sure none of them are available, or have been, anywhere else.

Conbody Vs. Everybody (2024)

We finally get to see what Debra Granik has been doing since her 2014 documentary Stray Dog (yes, she released a fiction feature in 2018, but that was in the middle of working on this). I can say it’s worth the wait, and not just because it’s the length of around three or four features. Conbody vs. Everybody is not so much a docuseries as a five-part film. It doesn’t try to stretch a story over multiple episodes for plotting and binge-watching, as is the norm these days. It’s more akin to My Undesirable Friends: Part I - Last Air in Moscow in the way it immerses us in a character piece and plays like a chaptered cinematic novel. We follow a narrative, but more so, we experience a life.

Conbody vs. Everybody specifically depicts several years in the life of Coss Marte, a formerly incarcerated man trying to keep himself and others from a statistically expected return to prison. He starts a gym based on the exercise regimen that he followed in his tight prison cell, and he exclusively hires fellow former inmates. I recommend reading my interview with Granik about the making of the documentary and why it took so much time and needed to be. I think it works because a feature runtime might only allow for a story that ends as soon as Coss seems to be on track for success with the opening of his business. At 330 minutes, we get a clearer sense of the pace it takes to get there and beyond, with more ups and downs and milestones that follow, emphasizing the span of time in a way a feature can’t.

Conbody vs. Everybody will begin exclusively streaming on The Criterion Channel on Friday, May 1, 2026.

Frederick Wiseman’s U.S. Documentaries (Continued)

The Jacob Burns Film Center’s retrospective “Frederick Wiseman’s America” concludes this week with its final screenings of Frederick Wiseman’s U.S.-set works. Here are the documentaries to watch, whether it’s there on the big screen, at home via Kanopy, or on physical media from Zipporah Films: Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (May 1), Monrovia, Indiana (May 1 & May 3), and In Jackson Heights (May 2).

Kimi Takesue Documentaries

Another filmmaker we’re happy to spotlight this week is Kimi Takesue. Her features and shorts, most of them nonfiction works, are being showcased in The Criterion Channel’s May curation titled “Directed by Kimi Takesue: Crossings and Encounters.” The more interesting titles in the bunch concentrate on the idea of cross-cultural gazes in the form of tourism, while also being a kind of virtual tourism themselves. Through her lens, we visit New York City, Peru, Uganda, and Laos. The last of these is on display in Onlookers, her most recent film. Here’s an excerpt from my review:

“When you visit a foreign land, you should immerse yourself in the local culture, but too much of vacationing internationally turns into observation of culture instead. Then again, isn’t that also what a lot of documentaries entail? Kimi Takesue’s Onlookers combines these two considerations and takes voyeurism to a new level by showing us images of tourism in Laos. Watching the film, I never felt immersed in the scenes and instead actually felt more distanced from what I was looking at than usual. Putting tourists between the film audience and the temples, monks, landscapes, etc. reminds us that we’re just gazing at what’s in the frame, like the vacationers gazing at what’s in front of and around them.”

Kimi Takesue’s seven documentaries, including Onlookers, begin streaming on The Criterion Channel on Friday, May 1, 2026.

Life On Earth: Attenborough’s Greatest Adventure (2026)

As we approach Sir David Attenborough’s 100th birthday next week, another new documentary celebrating his life and work is being released online. Life on Earth: Attenborough’s Greatest Adventure is little more than a special about the making of his landmark 1979 nature series Life on Earth. The hour-long documentary features new interviews with Attenborough and other producers who worked on the show, as they discuss its ambitious undertaking and legacy of significance. We just recently got another documentary that revisited Life on Earth, Netflix’s A Gorilla Story: Told by David Attenborough. This one also has to acknowledge the gorilla episode. I recommend it as a lesson in documentary history, particularly for the nature genre.

Life on Earth: Attenborough’s Greatest Adventure airs on PBS on Wednesday, May 6, 2026, and afterward will be available to stream on the PBS website and app.

Lumière, Le Cinema! (2024)

We highlighted Thierry Frémaux’s Lumière, Le Cinema! a little over a month ago as our Pick of the Week when it was released in theaters. Here’s an excerpt from that review now that it’s making its streaming debut:

“At first, Lumière, Le Cinema! seems to be merely an assembly of Lumière films with commentary from Frémaux, but it’s more of an essay film. Frémaux breaks his documentary up into segments of different focus, including children, military scenes, international locations, and modes of transportation (surprisingly, he has little time for The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat Station, which he shares is just one of many similar films). He begins with the history lesson of the Lumières, their invention, their first showings, and a good deal of attention given to the famed Leaving the Factory (the most recognizable version of which might not have been the original, apparently). Then it becomes more of a study of the films, their content (including the first “cat videos”!), and the Lumières’ recurring themes.”

Lumière, Le Cinema! will begin exclusively streaming on The Criterion Channel on Friday, May 1, 2026.

Modern Whore (2025)

Anora writer/director Sean Baker is an executive producer on this film based on the memoirs of a Toronto sex worker. Andrea Werhun is that author and now the documentary’s subject, telling her tales of being an escort and stripper, expressing her moments of professional enjoyment and bouts with shame, sharing her rape and other sexual assault experiences, and discussing the job’s pros and cons on several levels, sometimes in conversation with other sex workers or with her boyfriend or mother. She also acts in the film during occasionally humorous reenactments. What I like most about Modern Whore is that it’s serious, but it still has fun, balancing a tone and aesthetic that’s somewhere between the Drunk History model and a sociology thesis.

Modern Whore will be released on PVOD platforms on Friday, May 1, 2026.

Our Land (2025)

I’ve seen reviews of Our Land that describe it as “straightforward” and “conventional,” which makes me wonder if those critics and I saw the same film. The first documentary feature by the brilliant Argentine filmmaker Lucrecia Martel, it’s not necessarily an inventive or informal work, but it does bounce around enough in its structure, plays around enough with its style, and, like in her scripted work, mines deeper themes than we find on the surface level of the story.

I’d at least say it’s a unique nonfiction film. Particularly with some of its editing choices near its conclusion. Martel uses a case of an Indigenous leader’s killing and his alleged murderers’ trial as a centerpiece for a documentary that goes further in its considerations of Indigenous identity and community. It’s up there with Dahomey as one of the most contemplative documentaries on colonialism this decade.

Our Land will be released in theaters on Friday, May 1, 2026.

Awards Highlights

Critics Choice Real TV Awards Nominees

Nominations for this year’s Critics Choice Real TV Awards were announced last week, with many documentary titles honored alongside reality programming contenders. They include all of these Best Limited Series nominees: Boy Band Confidential (now streaming on HBO Max), Death in Apartment 603: What Happened to Ellen Greenberg? (Hulu), Mr. Scorsese (Apple TV), Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model (Netflix), Sean Combs: The Reckoning (Netflix), and Trust Me: The False Prophet (Netflix). Two documentary stars, Chris Hemsworth of Limitless: Live Better Now (Disney+ and Hulu) and Stanley Tucci of Tucci in Italy (Disney+ and Hulu), were named among the nominations for Best Male Star of the Year.

Other documentary nominees include Best Sports Show contenders 30 for 30 (ESPN), Formula 1: Drive to Survive (Netflix), Hard Knocks (HBO Max), Quarterback (Netflix), Untold (Netflix), and Welcome to Wrexham (Hulu), and all honored in the Best Animal/Nature Show: Born to Be Wild (Apple TV), Kingdom (BBC America), Prehistorical Planet: Ice Age (Apple TV), Secrets of the Bees (Disney+ and Hulu), Underdogs (Disney+ and Hulu), and The Wild Ones (Apple TV). Solo Traveling with Tracee Ellis Ross (The Roku Channel) and Tucci in Italy are up for Best Travel/Adventure Show, and The Curious Case of… (HBO Max) and Trafficked with Mariana van Zeller (Hulu) are up for Best Crime/Justice show, along with Trust Me: The False Prophet.

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Documentary Release Calendar 5/1/26 - 5/7/26

Friday, May 1, 2026

95 and 6 to Go (2016) - A feature documentary directed by Kimi Takesue about her father, who decides to become a filmmaker at 90. (The Criterion Channel)

American Agitators (2024) - A documentary feature about Fred Ross, who is considered one of the inventors of modern community organizing. (In Theaters)

American Dream (1990) - A 4K restoration re-release of Barbara Kopple’s Oscar-winning documentary feature about a Hormel Foods labor strike in Minnesota. See our highlights section for more info. *NONFICS PICK* (In Theaters)

Antonio Lopez 1970: Sex, Fashion & Disco (2017) - A documentary feature about the titular fashion designer. (Mubi)

Bitter Cane (1983) - A documentary feature about the American exploitation of the Haitian people. (The Criterion Channel)

Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets (2020) - A docudrama by Bill Ross IV and Turner Ross about a Las Vegas dive bar. *NONFICS PICK* (The Criterion Channel)

Blum - Masters of Their Own Destiny (2024) - A documentary about Emerik Blum and the unique European energy company he founded, Energoinvest. (OVID)

Conbody vs. Everybody (2024) - A five-part documentary directed by Debra Granik (Stray Dog) about a formerly incarcerated man who starts a gym that employs other individuals released from prison. See our highlights section for more info and a brief review. *NONFICS PICK* (The Criterion Channel)

De Palma (2015) - A documentary feature by Noah Baumbach and Jake Paltrow about filmmaker Brian De Palma. (Pluto TV)

Dior and I (2014) - A documentary feature by Frédéric Tcheng about the Christian Dior fashion house. Read our review of Dior and I. *NONFICS PICK* (Mubi)

E=NYC2 (2005) - A short film by Kimi Takesue that captures the dynamic energy of New York City. (The Criterion Channel)

Great Performances: Now Hear This Season 7, Episode 4: “The Iceland Sound” - The latest installment of a docuseries starring conductor and violinist Scott Yoo about the secret histories of great musical works. This episode involves Icelandic composers and musicians. (PBS, the PBS App, and the PBS Website)

Grenada: The Future Coming Towards Us (1983) - A medium-length documentary about Grenada’s history and the reasons for the U.S. military invasion of the country in 1983. (The Criterion Channel)

Haiti: The Way to Freedom (1973) - A documentary feature about the Haitian people’s struggles for their freedom. (The Criterion Channel)

Harlan County, U.S.A. (1976) - An Oscar-winning documentary by Barbara Kopple about a miner’s strike. *NONFICS PICK* (NYC Theatrical Event)

Heaven’s Crossroad (2002) - A short documentary by Kimi Takesue about what it means to look cross-culturally. (The Criterion Channel)

Hollywood Without Make-Up (1963) - A short documentary sharing home movie clips of Hollywood stars. (TCM)

House of Cardin (2019) - A documentary feature about the fashion designer Pierre Cardin. (The Criterion Channel)

An Inconvenient Truth (2006) - A two-time Oscar-winning feature documentary directed by Davis Guggenheim and starring former Vice President Al Gore about climate change. *NONFICS PICK* (Pluto TV)

Jerry Lee Lewis: Trouble in Mind (2022) - A documentary feature about the titular rock and roll icon. (Pluto TV)

The Kill Team (2013) - A documentary feature about war crimes committed by the U.S. Army in Afghanistan. *NONFICS PICK* (Pluto TV)

Looking for Adventure (2013) - A short documentary by Kimi Takesue that observes group tourism in Peru. (The Criterion Channel)

Lucky Chow Season 8 - The return of a docuseries about Asian cuisine. (PBS)

Lumière, Le Cinema! (2024) - A documentary by Thierry Frémaux (Lumière!) compiling rare films by the Lumière brothers. Read our review of Lumière, Le Cinema! *NONFICS PICK* (The Criterion Channel)

Maya, Give Me a Title (2024) - An animated hybrid film directed by Michel Gondry and starring his daughter, about their nightly ritual of collaborating on short films starring her as the hero. (The Criterion Channel)

Mitski: The Land (2025) - A concert film starring the titular singer-songwriter. (Mubi)

Modern Whore (2025) - A documentary feature about a Toronto sex worker. See our highlights section for more info and a brief review. *NONFICS PICK* (VOD)

Oasis: Supersonic (2016) - A documentary feature about the early years of the titular Britpop group. (Pluto TV)

Onlookers (2023) - A documentary feature directed by Kimi Takesue on tourism in Laos. Read our review of Onlookers. (The Criterion Channel)

Our Land (2025) - A documentary feature directed by Lucretia Martel about the case of the 2009 killing of an Indigenous leader in Argentina. See our highlights section for more info and a brief review. *NONFICS PICK* (In Theaters)

Personale (2024) - A documentary feature about housekeeping workers at an Italian hotel. (OVID)

The Proof is Out There Season 6, Episode 8: “Mexican Goblin, New Mexico Classic UFO, and Half-Human Half-Goat Mystery” - The latest installment of a docuseries investigating UFOs, conspiracies, and mythical creatures. (History)

Riotsville, U.S.A. (2022) - An archival documentary feature directed by Sierra Pettengill about a fictional town created by the U.S. military for riot training. *NONFICS PICK* (The Criterion Channel)

The Shepherd and the Bear (2024) - A documentary feature about a shepherd whose flock is threatened by bears. (The Criterion Channel)

The Spirit of ‘45 (2013) - A documentary feature by Ken Loach about the unified British society after World War II. (The Criterion Channel)

Stop Making Sense (1984) - A documentary feature by Jonathan Demme and starring Talking Heads that we consider the best concert film of all time. *NONFICS PICK* (Pluto TV)

Suspended (2009) - A short documentary by Kimi Takesue that looks at suspended time. (The Criterion Channel)

Sweet Sugar Rage (1985) - A short documentary about Jamaican women sugar cane workers. (The Criterion Channel)

The Terror and the Time (1979) - A documentary about repressive violence in colonial Guyana. (The Criterion Channel)

Tokyo Trial (1983) - A 277-minute documentary about the 1946-48 Tokyo Trials after World War II. (The Criterion Channel)

Western (2015) - A documentary feature by Bill Ross IV and Turner Ross about a pair of border towns in Texas and Mexico separated by the Rio Grande. *NONFICS PICK*(The Criterion Channel)

Westwood: Punk, Icon, Activist (2018) - A documentary feature about fashion designer Vivienne Westwood. (Mubi)

Where Are You Taking Me? (2010) - A documentary feature by Kimi Takesue that captures modern Uganda. (The Criterion Channel)

Women of Suriname (1978) - A medium-length documentary about colonialism, neo-colonialism, and discrimination in Suriname. (The Criterion Channel)

Saturday, May 2, 2026

Harlan County, U.S.A. (1976) - An Oscar-winning documentary by Barbara Kopple about a miner’s strike. *NONFICS PICK* (NYC Theatrical Event)

Hollywood Demons Season 2, Episodes 3 & 4: “Scarred by the Bell” & “Doctor Feelgoods” - The latest installments of a docuseries about the dark realities of various celebrities and TV shows. These episodes involve the TV show Saved by the Bell and pharmaceutical abuse, respectively. (Investigation Discovery)

Kara Swisher Wants to Live Forever Episode 3: “How to Hack Loneliness” - The third installment of a six-part docuseries starring journalist Kara Swisher about the latest in longevity science. (CNN)

Philly Homicide Season 2, Episode 4: “Metal and Mayhem” - The latest installment of a docuseries following Philadelphia detectives. This episode involves the disappearance of an artist and musician. (Oxygen)

Sunday, May 3, 2026

Eva Longoria: Searching for France Episodes 5 & 6: “Burgundy” & “Alsace” - The latest installments of an eight-part docuseries in the Searching For… travelogue franchise following Eva Longoria on a culinary tour of France. (CNN)

The Food That Built America Season 7, Episode 3: “The Birth of Bubblegum” - The latest installment of a docuseries about popular American foods. This episode looks back at the accidental origin of bubble gum and the decades-long battle of its biggest brands. (History)

Hazardous History with Henry Winkler Season 2, Episode 3: “Twisted Toys” - The latest installment of a docuseries about dangerous toys and household items that used to be common. This episode involves hazardous dolls and other toys. (History)

How to Make Challah (2024) - A short film documenting three generations of women baking challah. (ChaiFlicks)

Kara Swisher Wants to Live Forever Episode 3: “How to Hack Loneliness” - The third installment of a six-part docuseries starring journalist Kara Swisher about the latest in longevity science. (CNN All Access)

A Plan to Kill Season 2, Episode 9: “Pizza Bomber” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries on the meticulous planning conducted by serial killers. (Oxygen)

Power To The People: John & Yoko Live in NYC (2026) - A multiscreen concert film presenting John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s two Madison Square Garden shows on August 30, 1972. (Theatrical Event)

Soccer Meets America (2026) - A docuseries about how soccer finally became a part of American culture. (The Roku Channel)

This Is the Bowery (1941) - A short documentary about the titular New York City neighborhood. (TCM)

Monday, May 4, 2026

The Wedding in Monaco (1956) - A short documentary of Grace Kelly’s marriage to Prince Rainier of Monaco. (TCM)

Tuesday, May 5, 2026

André Is An Idiot (2025) - A documentary feature following a man after his cancer diagnosis. Read our review of André Is An Idiot. *NONFICS PICK* (VOD)

Betrayal: Secrets & Lies Episode 6: “Latter Day Lies” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries involving stories of infidelity. (ABC, Disney+, and Hulu)

The Dark Wizard Episode 4: “Transcending Human Limitations” - The final installment of a four-part docuseries about climber, base jumper, and highline walker Dean Potter. (HBO and HBO Max)

Field of Fears - The Haunting of Randolph County Asylum (2025) - A documentary feature about a haunted infirmary in Indiana. (DVD and Blu-ray)

Häxan (1922) - A hybrid film about the history of witchcraft. *NONFICS PICK* (TCM)

I Am She, She Is Her. (2025) - A documentary about the lived experiences of Black women in positions of power. (DVD)

The Kids Are Not Alright (2024) - A documentary about survivors of the troubled teen industry. (DVD)

Mistress Dispeller (2024) - A documentary feature about a woman who hired someone to stop her husband from cheating. (DVD and Blu-ray)

My Own Normal (2024) - A medium-length documentary by disabled filmmaker Alexander Freeman about him becoming a father. (DVD)

The Ozu Diaries (2025) - A documentary about the Japanese filmmaker Yasujirō Ozu. (TCM)

Secrets Declassified with David Duchovny Season 2, Episode 8: “Extraordinary Experiments” - The latest installment of a docuseries about declassified government activities. (History)

Soccer’s American Dream (2026) - A docuseries about America’s relationship with soccer. (Vice TV)

Tri Me: The Siri Lindley Story (2025) - A documentary feature about the titular Triathlon World Champion and her terminal cancer diagnosis. (DVD)

Wednesday, May 6, 2026

The Bad Foot Clinic Season 1, Episode 8: “Knock Your Socks Off” - The latest installment of a docuseries following a podiatrist couple in their work. (TLC)

Conspiracies & Coverups Episode 6: “Invisible Weapon of War” - The latest installment of a docuseries starring ex-CIA officer Andrew Bustamente about the biggest conspiracies in pop culture today. (Discovery Channel)

Life on Earth: Attenborough’s Greatest Adventure (2026) - A medium-length documentary about David Attenborough’s groundbreaking series Life on Earth. See our highlights section for more info and a brief review. *NONFICS PICK* (PBS)

On the Case with Paula Zahn Season 29, Episode 4: “Unseen Danger” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries starring journalist Paula Zahn. This episode involves the disappearance of a gas station worker. (Investigation Discovery)

The Ozu Diaries (2025) - A documentary about the Japanese filmmaker Yasujirō Ozu. (TCM)

That’s Dancing! (1985) - A documentary about dancing in the movies. (TCM)

Worst Ex Ever Season 2 - The return of a docuseries about terrible past relationships. (Netflix)

Thursday, May 7, 2026

American Delivery (2024) - A documentary about the U.S. maternal mortality crisis. (Kino Film Collection)

Food Roots (2023) - A medium-length documentary starring actor and restaurateur Billy Dec as he learns about traditional Filipino recipes. (PBS)

The Great Heart (1938) - An Oscar-nominated short about Father Damien and his work with lepers on Molokai Island. (TCM)

Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition (2026) - A documentary feature about the titular heavy metal band. (In Theaters)

Monk in Pieces (2025) - A documentary feature about composer and performer Meredith Monk. (Kino Film Collection)

Mysteries Unearthed with Danny Trejo Season 2, Episode 20: “Most Valuable Finds” - The latest installment of a docuseries exploring hidden worlds. (History)

Predator Hunters Episode 10: “Caught in a Web of Lies” - The latest installment of a docuseries produced by Louis Theroux following the work of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. (A&E)

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Sneak Peek At What’s Coming Soon

5/8 - Linda Perry: Let it Die Here - A documentary feature about the titular singer-songwriter. (In Theaters)

5/12 - Janis: Little Girl Blue - A 2015 documentary feature by Amy Berg about Janis Joplin. (VOD)

5/13 - The A List: 15 Stories from Asian and Pacific Diasporas - A feature-length anthology directed by Eugene Yi that presents vignettes representing Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities in the U.S. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (HBO and HBO Max)

5/19 - W.E.B. Du Bois: Rebel With a Cause - A documentary installment of American Masters narrated by Viola Davis about the titular writer and civil rights activist. (PBS)

5/22 - Ask E. Jean - A documentary feature about the advice columnist E. Jean Carroll. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (In Theaters)

5/22 - The Yogurt Shop Murders Episode 5: “The End of Wondering” - A new feature-length bonus episode of a true-crime docuseries by Margaret Brown about the killing of four girls at a frozen yogurt shop in 1991. (HBO Max)

5/29 - Rafa - A four-part docuseries about tennis star Rafael Nadal. (Netflix)

5/30 - Craig Ferguson: American on Purpose - A docuseries on what it means to be American. Watch the new trailer for the series below. (CNN)

6/16 - Eno - A feature documentary directed by Gary Hustwit (Helvetica) about the music artist Brian Eno. (The Criterion Channel)

6/26 - Jackass: Best and Last - The fifth and final feature-length installment of the Jackass franchise, which looks back at classic stunts and presents new ones. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (In Theaters)

Debra Granik is best known for directing Jennifer Lawrence to her first Oscar nomination in Winter’s Bone, a drama that also earned the filmmaker recognition as a screenwriter. In addition to writing and directing two other acclaimed fiction features, Down to the Bone and Leave No Trace, she helmed one of the best documentaries of 2015, Stray Dog. Now she’s back to nonfiction with Conbody vs. Everybody, a five-part film she worked on for about a decade. The documentary follows a formerly incarcerated man who starts a fitness gym based on the exercise regimen he developed behind bars. This business also only employs other former inmates.

Almost 12 years since Granik gave then-fledgling Nonfics a shoutout in the New York Times, I finally made her acquaintance. We got on a Zoom call to talk about Conbody vs. Everybody ahead of its streaming debut on The Criterion Channel on May 1, 2026. We discussed the fiction script that led to the documentary, her initial expectations for the project, and why she finally had to stop filming her subjects. She also broadened my perspective on what the true crime genre should focus on, while confirming what we all know are the mainstream media’s definitions and interests. Below is our conversation, edited for clarity.

When Nonfics last interviewed you in 2015, you mentioned that you were working on a documentary about reentry after incarceration. But I understand the initial idea was different from what the project became. How and when did you meet Coss Marte and then decide to make the film about him and his entrepreneurial efforts?

We were thinking about a project that was a fiction narrative, about the revolving door of the carceral system of the U.S. In 2014, the concept of mass incarceration was finally getting a lot of attention. For me, the suspense and intensity of stories about returning from prison was to be found in the firsthand experiences rather than fiction. The story was going to be a person actually coming home, performing this intense process that we call reentry, which is reintegration into civilian society from your pariah status as a person behind bars.

So we needed to find someone who was interested in trying to explore that—to show how he’s going to live it. And Coss went beyond that. He wanted to involve other justice-involved folks and also non-justice-involved people, realizing that we won’t make much headway if people who haven’t been in the criminal justice system don’t care at all. Coss was looking for ways for non-justice-impacted people to want to understand this other part of American life. I’m fresh out of prison, and I have to get to my new job, but I don’t have money in my pocket. Am I going to jump this turnstile? Am I going to risk getting re-ensnared in the criminal justice system in order to get to work on time?

This is how he pitched it back to me. There was a really positive meeting of the minds between Coss and our filmmaking team.

And then Coss built the Conbody crew pretty quickly. He wasn’t doing this alone. This is where nonfiction gets so scintillating. He’s creating this scrappy urban novel in front of my eyes. He’s saying, “I’m not going to go through reentry by myself. I’m going to build a family around me. This is how we survived on the streets, and inside, and this is how we’re going to do this part of our life.” He proceeds to do that. The odds are against him.

For this project, we got presented with New York in its cinematic bounty — life on the streets, its architecture, its infrastructure, its vicissitudes. It was like the scene cards were being dealt to me really quickly. Here’s a set of compelling individuals, New Yorkers who are going to do their damnedest to survive. Here’s a neighborhood that’s textured as heck to photograph. And here is an American set of themes that you can’t walk away from. What are you going to do? Film for a lot of years, I guess.

From what I read of the fiction project, the film’s ending would have been tragic, with the main character back in prison. I’m glad that with the documentary, we instead get a positive story of people succeeding after reentry, defying not just the odds but the stereotypes. Was this something you were consciously rooting for?

Absolutely. I’m drawn like a magnet to people who defy stereotypes and expectations. We, as a society, Americans, prefer a categorical “or.” This is just a hallmark of our culture. We prefer clarity or black-and-whiteness. Or binariness instead of “and.” The exact definition of defying the stereotype is “and.” Someone is very intrepid, and they care a whole heck of a lot about this aspect of their neighborhood, this aspect of their family, this aspect of sharing profound emotions with other men, whether they’re inside the prison system or outside.

These individuals are problematic because they are complex and therefore difficult to portray. It’s easier to portray black and white, “or.” “Stray Dog” did the same thing to me. I had a very parallel and intense response to encountering someone like Ron Hall. There was north/south. There was red/blue. There were several encampments that he and I stood in that were not opposing but quite separate. For two people to walk from their camps and commonality is messy, but it’s worth it.

The same goes for social class. The number of times you step out of your social class is limited. Your class background, your class socialization, what people normally do within the confines of your class, the education you’ve received, the types of work you try to do in your life, when you meet people who have come up differently or been dealt a very different hand, there are a lot of reasons to have a very intense conversation over many years.

I think documentary filmmakers are often built with a tic in their brain, and the tic is often a set of questions about experiences outside their own. How have you navigated? What do you need the most in this life? How are you going to get it?

We’re born into a very limited path, and there are times you wake up and recognize: You are empirically my neighbor. I live 11 blocks from you. The only way I’m ever going to get to know you is if we have this conversation. Otherwise, we will remain in separate spheres. Even though it is less than one mile as the crow flies from where you dwell and where I dwell.

That reminds me of the scene late in the film when Coss’s brother talks about bringing the neighborhoods together as one community.

Christopher is magnificent at trying to bring that idea up to a whole variety of people across a lot of lines. Not just linguistic and ethnic, but a lot of lines. I appreciate that you saw that in the film.

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We’re entering the final week of April, which means we’re already about a third of the way through the year. It’s clearly time for a look at the best documentaries of 2026 (so far), and I plan to send that to our paid subscribers in a few days. Of course, you can get a tease of the ranking and continue to follow the list through the year via the Nonfics…

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I expected to like Lorne. The director is Morgan Neville. The subject’s usual elusivity would seem to make him intriguing. And all of last year’s plethora of Saturday Night Live documentaries and specials were better than they needed to be. But Lorne is probably my least favorite Neville documentary besides the second half of Steve! (Martin): A Document…

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If this newsletter is late this week, we can thank Focus Features for releasing another documentary in theaters and not allowing critics to see it via screener link. On the one hand, I’m happy that some companies still see box office viability of nonfiction films, even after their previous wide-release documentary wasn’t a big hit. On the other hand, I …

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My first takeaway after watching this 41-year-old documentary is that Robert Wilson is a terribly bland screen personality. That may be a surprise to anyone familiar with his wildly out-there work as an avant-garde theatre artist. For anyone not familiar with his work, Howard Brookner’s Robert Wilson and the Civil Wars spends half its runtime tracking W…

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If you wrote an original romantic screenplay called The Loving Story and the main characters were named Mildred and Richard Loving, that’d seem pretty cheesy. But there’s nothing bogus about the “epunymous” title of an incredibly essential documentary focused on the story of the Lovings, an interracial couple whose union in 1958 led to their arrest, con…

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Just when you thought awards season was over, it’s started back up again. For nonfiction, the season is year-round because of the blurring of film and television that allows certain titles to compete for Oscars and Emmys and everything in between. For the most part, though, the two awards highlighted this week honor the same documentaries we’ve been tal…

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It was only a matter of time before I’d cross paths with Julia Loktev. I’ve been a fan of her lengthy film My Undesirable Friends: Part I - Last Air in Moscow for a while, even naming it one of the best documentaries of 2025. And we were in the same room at least once last fall when the film was nominated for Best Political Documentary at the 10th annua…

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The more successful Nonfics gets (in its Substack era), the more we get requests for reviews, especially of documentaries not yet available to the public. Many of these are film festival premieres. Would our readers be interested in that kind of coverage? I’m not convinced. In my 26 years as a critic, I’ve rarely found much personal benefit in reviewing…

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When someone in The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist says that any examples put in the film are going to seem clumsy by the time it’s released, they’re not kidding. Artificial intelligence is moving so fast that the documentary could’ve easily been dated by the time it premiered at Sundance, let alone three months later. Fortunately, this isn’t…

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At least three documentaries hitting theaters this month and next are denying requests for screeners. Instead, they’re insisting critics see these films on the big screen. I appreciate that, and I’m happy to see more documentaries getting not just theatrical distribution but theatrical press screenings in my area. Sadly, my busy work and family schedule…

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Short films were first officially recognized at the Oscars in 1932 when the 5th Academy Awards introduced two categories honoring live-action “short subject” motion pictures and one honoring cartoons. The Academy would take almost a decade to add a category specifically devoted to documentary shorts, but nonfiction films were represented in this area of the Oscars from the start. In fact, all three of the nominees for Best Live Action Short Subject (Novelty) were documentaries, and one of them was named the winner at the ceremony that November.

In all, seven documentary shorts won Oscars during that time before they received their own category. Following the first documentary to win an Oscar, these shorts proved the need for exclusive awards for nonfiction cinema. While the Academy didn’t honor a documentary at every one of their first 13 ceremonies, they at least nominated nonfiction films for Oscars every year of their awards during that period. Most were shorts recognized in the Novelty category, which was intended, in part, for newsreels, travelogues, and other types of nonfiction works.

What constitutes a documentary is up for discussion, but I’m only considering films that don’t consist solely of scripted reenactments of events performed by professional actors. Give Me Liberty, which won the Oscar for Best Short Subject (Color) in 1937, is technically listed as a documentary on IMDb, but it’s a wholly dramatized, narration-free account of Patrick Henry’s famous “Give me liberty, or give me death” speech in 1775. Similar winners in later years, such as Declaration of Independence, Sons of Liberty, and Teddy the Rough Rider, lack this label, and none of them qualify for this focus.

Excluding those history films, here’s a breakdown of the first seven short documentaries to win Oscars:

Wrestling Swordfish (1931)

Mack Sennett’s eight-minute documentary Wrestling Swordfish officially won the inaugural Oscar certificate for Best Live Action Short Subject (Novelty), though some historians might add an asterisk to its victory. According to the November 8, 1932, edition of Variety, this now-lost record of one of Sennett’s own deep-sea fishing trips originally came in second place during the nominating committee’s vote. The Pete Smith production Swing High, which showcases the trapeze artist family The Flying Codonas, received 133 points, while Wrestling Swordfish earned 128 points. Yet, the 15-person committee reportedly picked the latter as the winner, causing some confusion.

To settle the “mix-up,” the Academy reportedly was to hold a run-off for the new category, with voting opened up to all members following a screening of the two documentary shorts on November 9. According to the following week’s edition of Variety, however, the decision was still being determined by the nominating committee at a meeting held on November 14, with a revote needed because some of its members weren’t present at the final voting. Wrestling Swordfish was again deemed the winner, as acknowledged at the ceremony on November 18 and in the November 22 edition of Variety, but the trade gave no further details on the process.

Some accounts claim that Sennett bullied for the result. IMDb’s trivia notes for both films paint him as a villain in the matter. This also probably could have just ended with a compromise of a tie (after all, Fredric March and Wallace Beery tied for the Oscar for Best Actor that same year due to a rule involving any tally where the outcome has two top choices separated by three or fewer votes). In his 1993 book Behind the Oscar: The Secret History of the Academy Awards, Anthony Holden implies that the Academy Executive Secretary was at fault in the scenario for avoiding his responsibility to cast a tie-breaking vote. We may never know the whole truth.

We also may never know which film deserved the Oscar more. Wrestling Swordfish appears to be lost, with only its positive reviews remaining to indicate its worth. Swing High is a decent spotlight of an impressive act that might not otherwise be seen by its audience without this cinematic record. Its narration is overdone. Its slow-motion sequences are appreciated, adding an element that even those seeing The Flying Codonas live wouldn’t get. I actually might have preferred the mostly lost third nominee, Screen Souvenirs, an archival compilation that treats cinema as a kind of time machine where we can revisit people and events of the past through old film footage.

The big irony of the Wrestling Swordfish win is that Sennett was and remains best known as an icon of slapstick comedy films, yet he received his only competitive Oscar for a work of relatively serious nonfiction. The Keystone Studios founder and former Charlie Chaplin boss was only nominated for one other film. The same year that Wrestling Swordfish won, the Sennett-produced short The Loud Mouth was up for the inaugural Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film (Comedy). That lost to the Hal Roach-produced Laurel and Hardy short The Music Box. Presumably, the results in that race weren’t even close, as there was no dispute or run-off there.

Krakatoa (1933)

Another documentary that’s hard to find today, the 26-minute film Krakatoa won the second Oscar for Best Live Action Short Subject (Novelty). It’s an educational production depicting the 1883 eruption of the titular volcanic island, and its sound design was apparently as significant as its visual spectacle. I wouldn’t know, unfortunately, but reports of its impact on theatrical exhibition make it seem to have been for sound systems what James Cameron’s Avatar was for digital 3D projection. The film was originally narrated by play-by-play sports broadcasting pioneer Graham McNamee, though a 1965 re-release replaced him with actor Joseph Cotten.

City Of Wax (1934)

The nine-minute nature documentary City of Wax won the Oscar for Best Live Action Short Subject (Novelty) the next year, at the 7th Academy Awards. It’s such an emblematic educational film, with its close-up look at honey bees and its droning narration (by actor Gayne Whitman), that you can easily picture it running through a rickety high school projector. But it gets dark at the end, almost seeming to have a political message about the uniformity and disposability of workers in such a system. That probably wasn’t intended.

City of Wax was produced and directed by brothers Horace Woodard and Stacy Woodard, the latter of whom also worked on The Sea, a short documentary nominated in the same category the previous year. They made other nature documentaries together, but later they separately went into business with the U.S. government. Horace Woodard went on to shoot part of the important World War II propaganda film The Negro Soldier, and Stacy Woodard shot part of Pare Lorentz’s classic New Deal propaganda film The River.

Wings Over Everest (1934)

At the 8th Academy Awards, three more documentaries were nominated in the Live Action Short Subject (Novelty) category, while one of the first films we’d classify as a mockumentary, How to Sleep, was nominated and won the Oscar for Best Live Action Short Subject (Comedy). The Novelty winner was the 22-minute film Wings Over Everest, which reminded me of the first documentary Oscar winner, With Byrd at the South Pole, because it similarly presents views of a cold, rough, as-yet inaccessible place that were unavailable to audiences before film cameras could be taken up in airplanes. In this case, that location was the peaks of Mount Everest.

While the film highlights exclusive footage of a historical expedition, and it is part of that era when cinema was commonly a part of scientific exploration, not just a representation, Wings Over Everest is nowhere near an achievement on the level of With Byrd at the South Pole. Most of the film consists of the real people, including pilots Lord Clydesdale and David McIntyre and financial benefactor Lady Houston, in staged reenactments of the lead-up to the flight. And they are as lifeless as you might dread with a documentary. The footage taken from the planes is important, but also not the most exciting, plus the clearer shots are apparently from a later flight.

The Private Life Of The Gannets (1934)

The Novelty category went away after the 8th Academy Awards (as did Comedy shorts), but that didn’t stop nonfiction from being nominated. The Oscars changed its live-action shorts categories to award the best one-reel, two-reel, and color films. An installment of Paramount’s educational Popular Science series (“J-5-1”) was nominated for Best Short Subject (Color), while the music film Moscow Moods was up for Best Short Subject (One-Reel). No documentary won at the 9th Academy Awards. However, as already mentioned, the completely dramatized Short Subject (Color) winner, Give Me Liberty, is labeled as a documentary on IMDb. Also, the significant nonfiction film series The March of Time received a Special Award for revolutionizing the newsreel.

One year later, at the 10th Academy Awards, The Private Life of the Gannets won the Oscar for Best Short Subject (One-Reel). The 10-minute film is another old-fashioned educational nature documentary focused on a single animal, and even compared to the fantastically shot City of Wax, it’s pretty simple. It takes us to the island of Grassholm, off the coast of Wales, to observe the titular seabirds. The one notable thing about the film is that famed documentarian, critic, and theorist John Grierson was one of its cinematographers. And he specifically shot the short’s best footage, a slow-motion sequence of gannets diving into the ocean to catch fish.

Non-winning documentaries nominated that year include another installment of Popular Science (“J-7-1”) and the Pete Smith short Romance of Radium, a fully narrated, acted-out history of the titular element that was helmed by future horror and film noir auteur Jacques Tourneur. The former was up for Best Short Subject (Color) but lost to another Pete Smith production, Penny Wisdom, which is a comedy but also served to promote the newspaper advice columnist Prudence Penny. The latter lost to The Private Life of the Gannets, which was a more unique achievement at the time.

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Welcome to my annual birthday edition of This Week In Documentary. It’s not any different from the other newsletters I put out throughout the year, except that I feel okay making a heavier push (that is, begging) for paid subscriptions in the intro. Actually, for my birthday this year (it’s on Friday, March 20), I’d like you to donate to a documentary f…

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With this year’s Oscars behind us, we are already looking ahead to the 100th Academy Awards in 2028. That milestone event is two years away, which will hopefully give us plenty of time to achieve our own feat: watching and reviewing every Oscar-winning documentary. Or, at least all the ones that are available. According to IMDb, 208 documentaries have won Academy Awards in some category or another, not just in the two that have recognized nonfiction films competitively since the early 1940s. With only around 100 weeks until our deadline, we may need to double up on some. We begin with this Documentary Classics column on With Byrd at the South Pole.

The very first documentary nominee was recognized at the very first Academy Awards. Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack’s 1927 ethno-tainment film Chang: A Drama of the Wilderness became one of the inaugural contenders in the Unique and Artistic Picture category, which was immediately discontinued (the category was essentially the same as the other top award, Outstanding Picture, which went through a series of name changes before taking its current designation of Best Picture in 1962 — meaning Chang was basically the first and only documentary to come close to being nominated for the Academy’s highest honor).

Two ceremonies later, and more than a decade before the mode would receive its first exclusive category, With Byrd at the South Pole became the second documentary nominated for an Oscar. Less remembered today, the 1930 feature was then recognized in the Best Cinematography category, competing against four dramas that remain well-known nearly a century later: Lewis Milestone’s All Quiet on the Western Front, Howard Hughes’s Hell’s Angels, Ernst Lubitsch’s The Love Parade, and the famous “Garbo Talks!” cinematic event, Anna Christie. At the 3rd Academy Awards held on November 5, 1930, the documentary won the Oscar, with cinematographers Joseph T. Rucker and Willard Van der Veer receiving statuettes.

Both men shot footage for the film while accompanying Richard E. Byrd on his first Antarctic expedition from 1928 to 1930, a trip that included the first flight over the South Pole. While I can’t confirm details of the production history, the release date credited to With Byrd at the South Pole is June 19, 1930, just one day after the expedition’s return to the U.S. (perhaps the film deserved a special Oscar for editor Emanuel Cohen for such a swift job?). While Rucker and Van der Veer’s visuals are noteworthy for how they were captured, through harsh conditions across land, sea, and air, many of their shots are also quite artistic. When possible, light, shadow, and framing are given serious consideration. This isn’t just plain documentation.

The most memorable moments of aesthetic intent bookend the film. Shadows of men seem to climb the sails of Byrd’s flagship, City of New York, in the opening sequence. In the end, Byrd and his dog, Igloo, sit on the ship in silhouette, finally at rest. Right before that conclusion, the documentary shows the City of New York ascending from a fog, initially looking like a ghostly mirage. I also really like the shots from Byrd’s plane as it’s flying over Antarctica, particularly those featuring propellers in motion on the edge of the screen. The framing might not have been a creative decision so much as a practical vantage, but the result either way underscores its significance.

With Byrd at the South Pole was hardly the first documentary film of an Antarctic expedition, nor even the first to be filmed on location on the continent. One of the first known feature-length documentaries, 1919’s In the Grip of the Polar Pack Ice (since retitled South: Sir Ernest Shackleton’s Glorious Epic of the Antarctic), was made by Frank Hurley as he traveled with Shackleton’s Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition. Before that, short documentaries exhibited footage from expeditions led by Nobu Shirase and Douglas Mawson. Still, this feature’s mixing of cinema, airplane travel, and Antarctic exploration, all of which are peaking at this time after really coming into being around the turn of the century, is just so perfect.

As a record of events, With Byrd at the South Pole appears comprehensive. While it includes many intertitles telling the audience about the expedition, the film also shows everything. Rucker and Van der Veer captured the arrival, the building of Little America, travels by dogsled and plane, multiple blizzards, including the one that destroyed Byrd’s initial aircraft, incredible visits with penguins, whales, and seals, and plenty of scenes depicting the team’s daily work. We see a lot of manual labor tasks and little recreation. Even the scene of two men sitting down, enjoying a pipe and casual conversation, is not necessarily relaxing, as the topic of discussion is how much they miss their families, including a newborn baby not yet seen.

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I don’t have much to discuss this week. A lot of documentaries are on the calendar, including a massive surplus of overpriced DVD titles for fans of art and history, but very few are recommended. At least we finally get to find out what the best documentaries of 2025 were, according to the members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. Other …

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