This year’s carefully curated lineup highlights a diverse and ambitious array of non-fiction storytelling, featuring works directed or co-directed by prominent industry veterans and visionary independent filmmakers alike. The 2026 selections comprise Poh Si Teng’s American Doctor (Watermelon), Ron Howard’s Avedon (Netflix), Alysa Nahmias’s Cookie Queens (Roadside), Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi’s Everest: The Other Side (Nat Geo), Amir Bar-Lev’s The Last First: Winter K2 (Apple), Julia Loktev’s My Undesirable Friends: Part II — Exile (MUBI), William Greaves and David Greaves’s Once Upon a Time in Harlem (Neon), Itab Azzam and Jack MacInnes’s One in a Million (Frontline), Rory Kennedy’s The Trial of Alec Baldwin (Abramorama), and Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim’s You Can See Everything (A24).
The historical track record of the Docs to Watch panel underscores its predictive power and critical influence within the entertainment industry. Over the past dozen years, an impressive 27 films represented on the panel have gone on to secure Academy Award nominations in the best documentary feature category. Even more remarkably, eight of those selections ultimately claimed the coveted Oscar statue: 2015’s Amy, 2016’s O.J.: Made in America, 2017’s Icarus, 2018’s Free Solo, 2019’s American Factory, 2021’s Summer of Soul, 2022’s Navalny, and 2023’s 20 Days in Mariupol.
The upcoming 2026 panel will span 90 minutes at the historic Lucas Theatre on the afternoon of Wednesday, Oct. 28, offering an intimate and illuminating discussion with the creative minds behind this year’s most talked-about nonfiction films.
Christina Routhier, the senior executive director of SCAD Theaters and Festivals, emphasized the thematic breadth and unexpected journeys offered by this year’s slate in an official statement regarding the announcement.
“This year’s Docs to Watch selections reflect a range of films that take us somewhere we didn’t expect to go, whether that’s into a hidden chapter of history, the life of an extraordinary individual, or a story unfolding in front of us right now,” Routhier said. “We’re excited to partner with Scott Feinberg and The Hollywood Reporter to bring these filmmakers and their films to Savannah and give our students and audiences the chance to experience the work, meet the artists behind it, and be part of the conversation.”
The diverse slate of selected documentaries covers a wide spectrum of human experiences, geopolitical realities, historical examinations, and unconventional profiles. Among them is American Doctor, an independently financed film directed by a Malaysian-born American journalist. The documentary follows three distinct American physicians—one Jewish, one Palestinian, and one Zoroastrian—as they bravely volunteer their medical services at a hospital in Gaza amid the ongoing conflict.
Legendary filmmaker and Oscar winner Ron Howard turns his lens toward the art world with Avedon, which explores the life, work, and lasting cultural legacy of iconic American portrait photographer Richard Avedon. The project draws upon unprecedented access to Avedon’s personal archives, incorporating never-before-seen stills and behind-the-lens footage that shed new light on his creative process.
For lighter yet compelling viewing, Alysa Nahmias’s Cookie Queens stands out as the year’s highest-grossing non-celebrity documentary. The film offers a heartwarming chronicle of four young girls who navigate various forms of personal adversity while striving to meet their ambitious sales goals during the annual Girl Scouts cookie-selling season.
Extreme human endurance and high-altitude ambition are central to multiple entries in this year’s lineup. Everest: The Other Side reunites the Oscar-winning directors of Free Solo, Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, to focus on another pair of extreme outdoor athletes. In this feature, a man and a woman fall in love while sharing an audacious dream: climbing and subsequently skiing down the treacherous north face of Mount Everest. Similarly, Amir Bar-Lev’s The Last First: Winter K2 tracks an elite team of mountaineers as they attempt a feat that has eluded climbers throughout history—scaling K2, the world’s second-highest peak, during the punishing winter season.
Geopolitical tension and political displacement form the backbone of several vital international documentaries. Julia Loktev’s My Undesirable Friends: Part II — Exile serves as the monumental six-hour second installment—following a five-hour first part—in an epic portrait of independent Russian journalists. Their courageous reporting in the face of Vladimir Putin’s authoritarian crackdown ultimately forces them to flee their homeland. Meanwhile, One in a Million, which captured the audience award at the Sundance Film Festival, chronicles a tumultuous decade in the life of a young Syrian girl and her family as they escape their war-torn nation to seek refuge in Europe.
Historical rediscovery and contemporary legal drama also hold prominent places on the bill. Once Upon a Time in Harlem represents a miraculous archival achievement, featuring remarkable footage of a historic gathering of Harlem Renaissance luminaries captured by a single filmmaker in 1972. The project languished uncompleted until the original filmmaker’s son finished the film more than half a century later. On the contemporary front, Rory Kennedy’s The Trial of Alec Baldwin gains exclusive access to the actor following the tragic 2021 accidental shooting on the set of the feature film Rust. The documentary incorporates powerful footage from the film set, Baldwin’s police interrogation, and the complex legal proceedings that followed.
Rounding out the eclectic lineup is You Can See Everything, a uniquely provocative project from The Rehearsal creator Nathan Fielder and filmmaker Lance Oppenheim. The documentary follows Fielder as he is welcomed into the home of disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes during the 34 days leading up to the commencement of her federal prison sentence, attempting to unpack and understand who she really is behind the headlines.
The 29th annual SCAD Savannah Film Festival is scheduled to take place from Oct. 24 to Oct. 31. Presented by the Savannah College of Art and Design, the event holds the distinction of being the largest university-run film festival in the world. Each year, approximately 75,000 attendees flock to the eight-day celebration, which routinely attracts top-tier talent from Hollywood and international cinema while offering exclusive screenings, panel discussions, and professional workshops for students and general audiences alike. Tickets for the festival are currently on sale.