DOC NYC announces 2026 documentary Short Lists ahead of Oscar season

Centre · 1DOC NYC announced its Short Lists for feature and short documentaries on Wednesday 14 October 2026, a selection Deadline calls "often a reliable gauge of which documentaries are connecting with awards voters as Oscar season heats up." 1 Mixed · 2The festival runs in person from November 11-19 at IFC Center, SVA Theatre and Village East by Angelika in New York City, and continues online through November 29 with films available to viewers across the U.S. 1 2 Left · 1IndieWire says the main lineup has 118 features, 26 world premieres, 27 U.S. premieres and 89 short films, and describes DOC NYC as America's largest documentary festival. 2

Mixed · 2Features on the Short List include Ava DuVernay's "14th", Alex Gibney's "Musk", Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim's "You Can See Everything", Sundance winner "To Hold a Mountain", and David Greaves' "Once Upon a Time in Harlem". 1 2 Mixed · 2Two films centred on Gaza also made the list: "American Doctor", directed by Poh Si Teng, and "NAZA", directed by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor, in which anonymous Israel Defense Force members reflect on attitudes toward civilian casualties. 1 2 Mixed · 2Other feature selections include "The Bend in the River", "Everybody to Kenmure Street", "A Fox Under a Pink Moon", "The Great Experiment", "One in a Million", "Soul Patrol" and "Time and Water". 1 2

Centre · 1Short documentaries on the Short List include "The Baddest Speechwriter of All" by Ben Proudfoot and Stephen Curry, "The Boys and the Bees", "La Tierra del Valor (Home of the Brave)", "They're Here" by Laura Poitras and Rachel Lauren Mueller, and "The Revolution Against Death" by Joshua Oppenheimer, according to Deadline; the shorts showcase of 15 titles is in its ninth year. 1 Mixed · 2Winner's Circle screenings include the NYC premiere of Pegah Ahangarani's "Rehearsals for a Revolution", winner of the L'Œeil d'Or for best documentary at Cannes and the UK submission for best international feature at the Oscars; Deadline adds Michał Marczak's "Closure". 1 2 Mixed · 2The Short List: Features committee is overseen by Artistic Director Jaie Laplante and Director of Special Projects Thom Powers. 1 2

Left · 1IndieWire reports that the festival has screened 64 of the last 75 Oscar-nominated documentary features, and that last year four of the five Documentary Feature Oscar nominees and 11 of the Academy's shortlisted titles came from the list; Laplante said the festival has not yet hit 15 out of 15. 2 Left · 1IndieWire adds that five Short List films are also among the ten Critics Choice Documentary Awards feature nominees announced Tuesday: "14th", "Once Upon a Time in Harlem", "Musk", "Naza" and "You Can See Everything". 2 Left · 1Laplante praised several titles to IndieWire, calling "Musk" "an undeniable film" and saying reenactments in "You Can See Everything", described by IndieWire as controversial, are "perfectly legit." 2