“Prime Minister,” the HBO original documentary about popular New Zealand leader Jacinda Ardern, was named best documentary at Thursday’s Documentary Emmy Awards. The doc, directed by Michelle Walshe and Lindsay Utz, had its world premiere at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award for World Cinema Documentary.
Magnolia Pictures, HBO Documentary Films, CNN Films and Madison Wells are behind “Prime Minister,” which also comes from Dark Doris and Divergent Pictures. The win came on the third night of an epic week of Emmy events held in New York by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
“Have I Got News For You” star Michael Ian Black to host the documentary categories of the News & Documentary Emmys on Thursday, while his colleague Amber Ruffin hosted the news categories on Wednesday. Ruffin’s and Black’s “Have I Got News For You” colleague Roy Wood Jr. hosted the Sports Emmys on Tuesday. All three nights were held at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Frederick P. Rose Hall in New York.
On Thursday, Nat Geo and Netflix tied for most wins, at six each, followed by PBS with five. Other major winners included Outstanding Historical Documentary for “Simon Schama: The Holocaust, 80 Years On,” Outstanding Arts and Culture Documentary for “Tiler Peck: Suspending Time” and National Geographic’s “Secrets of the Penguins” won Outstanding Nature Documentary.
Presenters included Serena Davies (National Geographic, NASA), producer Stephanie Jenkins, Cynthia Lopez (CEO of New York Women in Film & Television), Tiler Peck (NYC Ballet, “Tiler Peck: Suspending Time”) and Simon Schama (“Simon Schama’s Story of Us”). Christina Ruffini (Bloomberg “This Weekend”) moderated discussions with nominees about documentary filmmaking throughout the ceremony.
“Throughout history, there have been those who have joined together to keep doors closed. To keep government and policymaking away from public view.” said NATAS president/CEO Adam Sharp. “But then there are those who band together to open doors. Who ask tough questions and bring the public inside. Tonight we celebrate their tenacity and commitment.”
Also during the evening, Emmy-winning documentarian Sam Pollard received the Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by filmmaker Geeta Gandbhir.
Here are Thursday’s winners:
Best Documentary
- Black Snow (American Documentary | POV [Nordland Pictures | Prettier in the Dark Productions])
- Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time (Lightbox [Proximity Media | National Geographic])
- Life After (Multitude Films [ITVS])
- Love + War (Little Monster Films [National Geographic])
- 2000 Meters to Andriivka (Frontline | PBS [Associated Press])
- WINNER: Prime Minister (Madison Wells [HBO Documentary Films | CNN Films | Dark Doris | Divergent Pictures])
- Turning Point: The Vietnam War (Netflix [Luminant Media | Netflix])
- Union (American Documentary | POV [Level Ground Productions])
Outstanding Short Documentary
- Chasing Time — POV Shorts (American Documentary | POV [Exposure Labs])
- Give Me Shelter (The Guardian)
- Heist (Heist the Documentary LLC [Pale Blue Dot Films])
- Last Days on Lake Trinity — The New Yorker Documentary (Ark Media [The New Yorker])
- WINNER: Projecting Protest (Scripps News [Clement Cinema])
- The Quilters (Netflix [Netflix])
Outstanding Current Affairs Documentary
- Antidote (Frontline | PBS [Passion Pictures | Bellingcat | Impact Partners | Channel 4 | M4 Studios])
- Life After — Independent Lens (Multitude Films [ITVS | Straw House Production])
- WINNER: Lost in the Jungle (Little Monster Films [National Geographic])
- 2000 Meters to Andriivka (Frontline | PBS [Associated Press])
- Thoughts & Prayers (HBO Documentary Films [Tony Tina])
Outstanding Politics and Government Documentary
- Bodyguard of Lies (See It Now Studios [Jigsaw Productions | Amblin Entertainment Documentaries])
- The Dark Money Game (HBO Documentary Films [Jigsaw Productions])
- Hollywoodgate (Rolling Narratives [Cottage M | RaeFilm Studios | Jouzour Film Production])
- The Making of a Japanese — Doc World (Cineric Creative [NHK | ZED | Pystymetsa Oy])
- WINNER: Prime Minister (Madison Wells [HBO Documentary Films | CNN Films | Dark Doris | Divergent Pictures])
Outstanding Social Issue Documentary
- Born Poor (Frontline | PBS)
- Enigma (HBO Documentary Films [Pacific Films | Five All in the Fifth Entertainment | Story Syndicate])
- Katrina: Come Hell and High Water (Netflix [Netflix | Message Pictures])
- WINNER: The Ride Ahead (American Documentary | PBS [LikeRightNow Films])
- Searching for Amani — Doc World (We Are the Land LLC [Gromlet Productions | Backroad Pictures | Random Good Films | Tiger Tales Media | Museum & Crane])
Outstanding Investigative Documentary
- Cover-Up (Netflix [Plan B | Netflix | Praxis Films])
- WINNER: Critical Incident: A Death at the Border (HBO Documentary Films [Midnight Films | crazyrose | Film 45])
- Predators (Sweet Relief [MTV Documentary Films | Rosewater Pictures])
- The Stringer (Netflix [LinLay Productions | XRM Media | VII Foundation | Netflix])
- Syria’s Detainee Files (Frontline | PBS [BBC])
Outstanding Historical Documentary
- Becoming Katharine Graham (Lifestories.org)
- Becoming Thurgood: America’s Social Architect (Maryland Public Television [The Aggrey Company])
- The Disappearance of Miss Scott — American Masters (4th Act Factual LLC [Storyline Entertainment])
- Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time (Lightbox [Proximity Media | National Geographic])
- WINNER: Simon Schama: The Holocaust, 80 Years On (Oxford Film and Television/ PBS [BBC | The WNET Group])
- Turning Point: The Vietnam War (Netflix [Luminant Media | Netflix])
- Vietnam: The War That Changed America (Apple TV [Apple | 72 Films])
Outstanding Arts and Culture Documentary
- Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story (Amblin Documentaries [Nedland Films | National Geographic])
- The Merchants of Joy (Dial Tone Films [Amazon MGM Studios | Dial Tone Films | Artists Equity | Boat Rocker Studios | Matador Content | Epic Magazine])
- The New Yorker At 100 (Netflix [Netflix | Marshall Curry | Apatow])
- Songs From the Hole (Netflix [Cocomotion Pictures | Question Culture | Impact Partners | Artemis Rising Foundation | Netflix])
- Sunday Best: The Untold Story of Ed Sullivan (Delirio Films [MPS LEGACY PRODUCTIONS | SOFA Entertainment | Mass Appeal | Diamond Docs | MRC])
- WINNER: Tiler Peck: Suspending Time — Great Performances (Late Autumn Productions LLC/ PBS [Thirteen Productions LLC])
- We Want the Funk! — Independent Lens (Firelight Films [ITVS])
Outstanding Science and Technology Documentary
- Critical Condition: Health in Black America (Nova | GBH [A Nova Production | Firelight Films])
- WINNER: The Memory of Darkness, Light, and Ice (Metamorph Films LLC)
- Operation Space Station (Nova | GBH [A Nova Production | Blink Films | France Télévisions])
- Sally (Muck Media [Story Syndicate | National Geographic Documentary Films])
- Titan: The Oceangate Submersible Disaster (Netflix [Netflix | Diamond Docs | Story Syndicate])
Outstanding Nature Documentary
- Katavi: Africa’s Fallen Paradise — Nature (PBS [The WNET Group | Terra Mater Studios | Shibumi Films | ARTE | WDR])
- The Last Rhinos: A New Hope (Sixty-Six Media Inc. [ABC News Studios | Lincoln Square Productions | National Geographic])
- WINNER: Secrets of the Penguins (Talesmith [National Geographic])
- Shark Whisperer (Netflix [Netflix | Boardwalk Pictures | Underdog Films])
- Willow: Diary of a Mountain Lion — Nature (PBS [Rhythm Productions LLC | The WNET Group])
Outstanding Business and Economic Documentary
- Bribe, Inc. (1441 Productions [Global Reporting Centre | Stan])
- WINNER: Can’t Look Away: The Case Against Social Media (Bloomberg Originals [DCTV])
- Driver (American Documentary | POV [Goldfish Films Inc. | Driver Film LLC])
- Made in Ethiopia (American Documentary | POV [Hard Truth Films | Dogwoof | Gobez Media])
- Slumlord Millionaire — Voces (After Spring LLC [Latino Public Broadcasting | Firelight Media | The Center for Asian American Media])
Outstanding Crime and Justice Documentary
- Aileen: Queen of Serial Killers (Netflix [Netflix | BBC Studios | NBC News Studios])
- A Deadly American Marriage (Netflix [Netflix | Sandpaper Films])
- The Fox Hollow Murders: Playground of a Serial Killer (ABC News Studios)
- No Justice, Just Kills (BBC Select)
- Oklahoma City Bombing: American Terror (Netflix [Netflix | Original Productions])
- WINNER: The Strike — Independent Lens (Latino Public Broadcasting/PBS)
Outstanding Writing: Documentary
- Bring Them Home / Aiskótáhkapiyaaya (Thunderheart Films [WETA-TV])
- 2000 Meters to Andriivka (Frontline | PBS [Associated Press])
- Songs From the Hole (Netflix [Cocomotion Pictures | Question Culture | Impact Partners | Artemis Rising Foundation | Netflix])
- The Stringer (Netflix [An XRM Media | VII Foundation Production | LinLay Productions | Netflix])
- WINNER: Underdogs (Wildstar Films [Maximum Effort | National Geographic])
Outstanding Research: Documentary
- The American Revolution (Florentine Films [WETA-TV])
- Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time (Lightbox [Proximity Media | National Geographic])
- Oklahoma City Bombing: One Day in America (72 Films [National Geographic])
- The Strike (UPHSF LLC)
- The Stringer (Netflix [LinLay Productions | VII Foundation | XRM Media | Netflix])
- Syria’s Detainee Files (Frontline | PBS [BBC])
- WINNER: Turning Point: The Vietnam War (Netflix [Luminant Media | Netflix])
- The White House Effect (Actual Films [The Department of Motion Pictures])
Outstanding Direction: Documentary
- Apocalypse in the Tropics (Netflix [Peri Productions | Busca Vida Filmes | Impact Partners | Play/Action Pictures | Luminate | Plan B | KM Films | Netflix])
- Katrina: Come Hell and High Water (Netflix [Message Pictures | Netflix])
- Life After (Multitude Films [ITVS])
- WINNER: 2000 Meters to Andriivka (Frontline Features | PBS [Associated Press])
- Music Box: It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley (Topic Studios [HBO Documentary Films | Fremantle | Plan B Entertainment | Disarming Films])
- Sally (Muck Media [Story Syndicate | National Geographic Documentary Films])
- The Stringer (Netflix [LinLay Productions | VII Foundation | XRM Media | Netflix])
- Vietnam: The War That Changed America (Apple TV [Apple | 72 Films])
Outstanding Cinematography: Documentary
- Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds (Netflix [Blue Ox | Supper Club | Higher Ground Productions | Netflix])
- WINNER: Heart of the Emperors — Secrets of the Penguins (Talesmith [National Geographic])
- 2000 Meters to Andriivka (Frontline | PBS [Associated Press])
- Pangolin: Kulu’s Journey (Netflix [Dog Star Films | Water Creature | Anonymous Content | Netflix])
- Surviving Black Hawk Down (Netflix [RSA | Netflix])
- Underdogs (Wildstar Films [Maximum Effort | National Geographic])
Outstanding Editing: Documentary
- WINNER: Cover-Up (Netflix [Plan B | Netflix | Praxis Films])
- Folktales (Loki Films [Fifth Season | Impact Partners | Topic Studios])
- Katrina: Come Hell and High Water (Netflix [Message Pictures | Netflix])
- Life After (Multitude Films [ITVS])
- Love + War (Little Monster Films [National Geographic])
- 2000 Meters to Andriivka (FRONTLINE | PBS [Associated Press])
- Thoughts & Prayers (HBO Documentary Films [Tony Tina])
- The White House Effect (Actual Films [The Department of Motion Pictures])
Outstanding Graphic Design: Documentary
- Antidote/Kill List (Passion Pictures [Bellingcat])
- The Gilgo Beach Killer: House of Secrets (Texas Crew Productions [Peacock Original | New York Post Entertainment | G Unit Film & Television, Inc.])
- The Ride Ahead (LikeRightNow Films)
- Titanic: The Digital Resurrection (Atlantic Productions [National Geographic])
- Underdogs (Wildstar Films [Maximum Effort | National Geographic])
- WINNER: In Waves and War (Studio AKA [Netflix/Actual Films])
Outstanding Music Composition: Documentary
- Bring Them Home / Aiskótáhkapiyaaya (Thunderheart Films [WETA-TV])
- Chasing Time — POV Shorts (Exposure Labs [American Documentary | POV])
- The Final Copy of Ilon Specht (Breakwater Studios | Traverse32)
- The Last Rhinos: A New Hope (Sixty-Six Media Inc. [ABC News Studios | Lincoln Square Productions | National Geographic])
- WINNER: Pangolin: Kulu’s Journey (Netflix [Dog Star Films | Water Creature Film | Anonymous Content | Netflix])
- Songs From the Hole (Netflix [Cocomotion Pictures | Question Culture | Impact Partners | Artemis Rising Foundation | Netflix])
- Vietnam: The War That Changed America (Apple TV [72 Films])
Outstanding Sound: Documentary
- Lost in the Jungle (Little Monster Films [National Geographic])
- Love + War (Little Monster Films [National Geographic])
- The Strike (UPHSF LLC)
- Survival of the Smartest — Secrets of the Penguins (Talesmith [National Geographic])
- Turning Point: The Vietnam War (Netflix [Luminant Media | Netflix])
- WINNER: Underdogs (Wildstar Films [Maximum Effort | National Geographic])
- We Want the Funk! — Independent Lens (PBS [Firelight Films])
Outstanding Lighting Direction: Documentary
- American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden (Netflix [The Cut | Tillerman Films | Ventureland | Netflix])
- WINNER: Cold Case: The Tylenol Murders (Netflix [Third Eye Motion Picture Company | Radical Media | MA Productions | Silvio Films | Netflix])
- Hollywood Hustler: Glitz, Glam, Scam (Library Films [Amazon MGM Studios | Library Films | Vice Studios | Article 19 Films])
- Lockerbie: The Bombing of Pan Am 103 (Mindhouse Production [Sky Studios | CNN Original Series])
- Turning Point: The Vietnam War (Netflix [Luminant Media | Netflix])
Outstanding Art Direction / Set Decoration / Scenic Design: Documentary
- The Gilgo Beach Killer: House of Secrets (Texas Crew Productions [Peacock Original | New York Post Entertainment | G Unit Film & Television, Inc.])
- One Night in Idaho: The College Murders (Story Syndicate [Amazon MGM Studios | Story Syndicate])
- One to One: John & Yoko (Plan B | KM Films [HBO Documentary Films | Mercury Studios])
- Sally (Muck Media [Story Syndicate | National Geographic Documentary Films])
- WINNER: Songs From the Hole (Netflix [Cocomotion Pictures | Question Culture | Impact Partners | Artemis Rising Foundation | Netflix])
Outstanding Promotional Announcement: Documentary
- WINNER: Chris Hemsworth: A Road Trip to Remember (National Geographic [Mattock])
- LOVE+WAR Trailer — Love + War (National Geographic [Mark Woollen & Associates])
- NATURE Season 44 Trailer — Nature (PBS [The WNET Group])
- Race Against Time Trailer — Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time (National Geographic [Buddha Jones])
- Trailer — In Waves and War (Actual Films [Participant | Chicago Media Project])
Outstanding Regional Documentary
- 23 Seconds: A Louisville Mass Shooting (WAVE News)
- WINNER: Blue – The Life and Art of George Rodrigue (WLAE-TV)
- How to Sue the Klan (Reel South)
- Major Taylor: Champion of the Race (WTIU Public Television)
- Stories Rewritten – The Knoxville Homeless Crisis (Sonic Palette Productions)
