On Thursday evening Doc Edge held their annual awards as part of the 2025 Doc Edge Festival at The Grand Millennium Hotel in Auckland. Twenty-four awards were announced to honour and celebrate the superb documentaries and filmmakers, from both New Zealand and internationally, participating in this year’s programme.
Doc Edge is an Academy Awards qualifying festival for feature and short documentary films. The winners of Best NZ Short, NZ Feature, International Feature and International Short are eligible for consideration for the 2026 Academy Awards.
Mighty Indeed from New Zealand director Vanessa Wells and The Pool by Australian filmmaker Ian Darling emerged as the night’s most awarded films, with Wells’ taking out two awards and Darling’s film taking home three.
Mighty Indeed was awarded Best New Zealand Feature and Best Director. The film follows three women working in Antarctica across four decades, exploring science, climate, and survival in one of the world’s harshest environments. The jury praised the work for its “quiet strength, emotional depth, and clear directorial vision, gracefully executed.”
Wildboy by Brando Yelavich and Toby Schmutzler received Best Editing and Best Cinematography, with the jury applauding “its relentless commitment to capturing both nature in all its grandeur and personal challenges in all their intimacy”.
Three Days in February directed by Serena Stevenson was awarded Best Sound, with the jury noting its “evocative, immersive, and emotional aural design that transports the viewer to a magical place outside of time and day-to-day drudgery.”
Little Potato, directed by Chen Chen, won Best New Zealand Short for what the jury described as “artistic photography, an unflinching camera, and bravery and vulnerability in sharing intimate moments about a sensitive topic often kept behind closed doors.”
The Best New Zealand Emerging Filmmaker award went to Caleb Young for Nothing is Impossible: The Primanavia Story and Best Tertiary Film was awarded to Ally, directed by Evienne Jones from the University of Canterbury.
Best International Feature went to The Pool (Australia), directed by Ian Darling. The jury described it as “a compelling and beautifully crafted work that transforms a seemingly simple subject into a powerful exploration of the human condition,”. The film also took our Best International Editing and Best International Cinematography.
The Dating Game (United States), directed by Violet Du Feng, was awarded Best International Director and received a Special Mention for Best International Short. The jury praised the film for “delivering on all fronts – from strong casting and beautiful cinematography to mindful editing, a remarkable achievement from a director to watch.”
On Healing Land, Birds Perch (USA/Vietnam), directed by Naja Phạm Lockwood, won Best International Short and In Waves and War took out Best International Sound.
Ruby Chen, the previously announced recipient of the Doc Edge Superhero Award, was celebrated and formally presented with her award on the night. Ruby Chen is a tireless advocate for independent storytellers, she has played a pivotal role in elevating the global presence of Chinese and Asian documentaries and in nurturing a new generation of documentary talent.
The 2025 festival programme boasts 90 titles including feature films, shorts and immersive projects. Screenings continue in Auckland until 13 July, before heading to Wellington and Christchurch from 16 to 27 July, and online via the Doc Edge Virtual Cinema from 28 July to 24 August.
Full list of Doc Edge Awards 2025 Winners:
New Zealand Award Winners
Best New Zealand Short: Little Potato (Dir. Chen Chen)
** Special Mention: Hou Rongo: Reviving Moriori Culture (Dir. Brady Clarke)
Best New Zealand Feature: Mighty Indeed (Dir. Vanessa Wells)
** Special Mention: Devils on Horses (Dir. Edward Sampson)
Best New Zealand Director: Vanessa Wells (Mighty Indeed)
Best New Zealand Editing: Wildboy
Best New Zealand Cinematography: Wildboy
Best New Zealand Sound: Three Days in February
Best New Zealand Emerging Filmmaker: Caleb Young (Nothing is Impossible: The Primanavia Story)
New Zealand Student Award Winners
Best Tertiary Film: Ally (Dir. Evienne Jones), University of Canterbury, Christchurch
** Special Mention: Don’t Forget Us (Dir. Maria Hewison), South Seas Film School, Auckland
International Award Winners
Best International Short: On Healing Land, Birds Perch (USA, Vietnam, Dir. Naja Phạm Lockwood)
** Special Mention: Shepherd Boy (Portugal, Qatar, Dir. Joao Queiroga)
Best International Feature: The Pool (Australia, Dir. Ian Darling)
** Special Mention: The Dating Game (United States, Dir. Violet Du Feng)
** Special Mention: Before the Moon Falls (United States, Dir. Kimberlee Bassford)
Best International Director: Violet Du Feng (The Dating Game)
Best International Editing: The Pool
Best International Cinematography: The Pool
Best International Sound: In Waves and War
Festival Category Winners
Being Oneself: A Quiet Love
The Art of Storytelling: Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror
Tides of Change: Food Delivery: Fresh from the West Philippine Sea
Facing the Edge: In Waves and War
In Truth We Trust: Blame
The Edge of Impact: Yurlu | Country
Immersive Impact Winners
New Zealand Project: The Visitors Book (Created by Rewa Rendall)
International Project: Kapwa (USA, Created by Michaela Ternasky-Holland, Aaron Santiago)
New Award
The Raye Freedman Legacy Award (sponsored by The Raye Freedman Trust): Julia Parnell
Doc Edge Superhero
Ruby Chen
