The Academy has released the shortlist of 15 documentaries that will move into the next round of competition for the 82nd Academy Awards, and several of the year’s highest-profile documentaries are not on the list.
Michael Moore’s "Capitalism: A Love Story" was not included on the shortlist, which was chosen by the Documentary Branch Screening Committee, volunteers who viewed and scored all the eligible films. Neither was director James Toback’s well-received "Tyson," which covered the life of boxer Mike Tyson in his own words.
And the screening committee obviously doesn’t like rock ‘n’ roll, because neither "Anvil! The Story of Anvil" nor Oscar winner Davis Guggenheim’s "It Might Get Loud" made the cut.
Among the films that did qualify are the presumed frontrunner, "The Cove" (left), along with "Food, Inc.," the "Chorus Line" doc "Every Little Step," "Valentino: The Last Emperor" (but not the other fashion-world entry, "The September Issue"), and Andy Abrahams Wilson’s "Under Our Skin," which recently screened as part of TheWrap’s Filmmaker Screening Series.
The full list, with each film’s director:
“The Beaches of Agnes,” Agnès Varda.
“Burma VJ,” Anders Østergaard.
“The Cove,” Louie Psihoyos.
“Every Little Step,” James D. Stern and Adam Del Deo.
“Facing Ali,” Pete McCormack.
“Food, Inc.,” Robert Kenner.
“Garbage Dreams,” Mai Iskander.
“Living in Emergency: Stories of Doctors Without Borders,” Mark N. Hopkins.
“The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers,” Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith.
“Mugabe and the White African,” Andrew Thompson and Lucy Bailey.
“Sergio,” Greg Barker.
“Soundtrack for a Revolution,” Bill Guttentag and Dan Sturman.
“Under Our Skin,” Andy Abrahams Wilson.
“Valentino The Last Emperor,” Matt Tyrnauer.
