Cinema Eye, the renowned organization that recognizes outstanding craft in nonfiction filmmaking, has selected 15 of the year's most "unforgettable" documentary subjects. From an NFL player to an accomplished documentary cinematographer to a writer with a hidden identity to a Mongolian eagle huntress, the subjects come from many different walks of life. They are portals into worlds near and far, public and rarely-seen. 

"We are proud to celebrate the collaborative process of documentary filmmaking by acknowledging the role that subjects play in creating many of the year's best films", said Cinema Eye Managing Director Will Lennon. "Particularly this year, we note the extraordinary access granted by the subjects and earned by the filmmakers that led to unforgettable moments."


The recognized subjects are as follows:

  1. Michal Huszcza / All These Sleepless Nights
  2. Audrie Pott and Daisy Coleman / Audrie and Daisy
  3. Laura Albert / Author: The JT Leroy Story
  4. Kirsten Johnson / Cameraperson
  5. Aisholpan Nurgaiv / The Eagle Huntress
  6. Samuele Pucillo / Fire at Sea
  7. Steve Gleason and Michel Varisco / Gleason
  8. Ye Haiyan / Hooligan Sparrow
  9. Kate Shiel / Kate Plays Christine
  10. Owen Suskind / Life, Animated
  11. Sharon Jones / Miss Sharon Jones!
  12. Peter Dunning / Peter and the Farm
  13. Princess Shaw / Presenting Princess Shaw
  14. Sonita Alidazeh / Sonita
  15. Huma Abedin and Anthony Weiner / Weiner