Óscar á mellor curtametraxe documental

O Oscar á mellor curtametraxedocumental é un premio entregado pola Academia das Artes e das Ciencias Cinematográficas como parte dos premios Oscar.

Unha nota de prensa da Academia en 2005 indicaba que "os gañadores do premio á mellor curtametraxe documental Benjy (1951) e Neighbours (1952) están nun grupo de filmes que non só competiron, senón que gañaron Oscars en categorías inadecuadas. Benjy, dirixida por Fred Zinnemann e narrada por Henry Fonda é un conto ficticio sobre un rapaz discapacitado. O filme foi empregado para conseguir fondos para o Los Angeles Orthopedic Hospital. (...) Neighbours, de Norman McLaren, que hoxe competiría na categoría de curtametraxes de animación, empregaba "pixelación" – animación usando actores – para crear unha alegoría da guerra".

Candidatos e gañadores

1940

• 1941 – Churchill's Island – National Film Board of Canada
  • Adventure in the Bronx
  • Bomber
  • Christmas Under Fire
  • A Letter from Home
  • Life of a Thoroughbred
  • Norway in Revolt
  • A Place to Live
  • Russian Soil
  • Soldiers of the Sky
  • Warclouds in the Pacific
• 1942 (15ª) – Nesta edición nomeáronse vinte e cinco filmes e entregáronse catro premios especiais, en recoñecemento ao esforzo dos aliados na Segunda Guerra Mundial:
• The Battle of Midway – United States Navy ("Premio especial para Battle of Midway polo valor histórico do seu éxito ao ofrecer unha gravación dunha das batallas decisivas do mundo – unha gravación única pola valentía dos que a fixeron baixo o fogo e polo magnífico retrato do valor das nosas forzas armadas na batalla".
• Kokoda Front Line! – Australian News & Information Bureau ("Premio especial para Kokoda Front Line! pola súa efectividade ao retratar de xeito simple mais con forza o escenario da guerra en Nova Guinea e pola súa presentación da valentía e fortaleza dos nosos compañeiros nas armas".
• Moscow Strikes Back – Artkino ("Premio especial para Moscow Strikes Back pola súa vivaz presentación do heroísmo do exército e do pobo rusos na defensa de Moscova, e polo seu éxito en facelo baixo condicións de extrema dificultade e perigo".
• Prelude to War – United States Army Special Services ("Premio especial para Prelude to War polo seu concepto agudo e auténtico e pola estimulante dramatización dos sucesos que levaron a nosa nación á guerra e dos ideais polos que loitamos".
  • Africa, Prelude to Victory – The March of Time
  • Combat Report – United States Army Signal Corps
  • Conquer by the Clock – Frederic Ullman, Jr., produtor
  • The Grain That Built a Hemisphere – Walt Disney, produtor – Walt Disney Productions
  • Henry Browne, Farmer – United States Department of Agriculture
  • High over the Borders – National Film Board of Canada
  • High Stakes in the East – The Netherlands Information Bureau
  • Inside Fighting China – National Film Board of Canada
  • It's Everybody's War – United States Office of War Information
  • Listen to Britain – British Ministry of Information
  • Little Belgium – Belgian Ministry of Information
  • Little Isles of Freedom – Victor Stoloff e Edgar Loew, produtores
  • Mr. Blabbermouth!—United States Office of War Information
  • Mr. Gardenia Jones—United States Office of War Information
  • The New Spirit – Walt Disney, produtor – Walt Disney Productions
  • The Price of Victory – William H. Pine, produtor
  • A Ship Is Born – United States Merchant Marine
  • Twenty-One Miles—British Ministry of Information
  • We Refuse to Die – William C. Thomas, produtor
  • The White Eagle – Concanen Films
  • Winning Your Wings – United States Army Air Forces
• 1943 (16ª) – December 7th – United States Navy
  • Children of Mars
  • Plan for Destruction
  • Swedes in America
  • To the People of the United States
  • Tomorrow We Fly
  • Youth in Crisis
• 1944 (17ª) – With the Marines at Tarawa – United States Marine Corps
  • Hymn of the Nations
  • New Americans
• 1945 (18ª) – Hitler Lives – Gordon Hollingshead, produtor
  • Library of Congress
  • To the Shores of Iwo Jima
• 1946 (19ª) – Seeds of Destiny – United States Department of War
  • Atomic Power
  • Life at the Zoo
  • Paramount News Issue#37
  • Traffic with the Devil
• 1947 (20ª) – First Steps – United Nations Division of Films and Visual Information
  • Passport to Nowhere
  • School in the Mailbox
• 1948 (21ª) – Toward Independence – United States Army
  • Heart to Heart
  • Operation Vittles
• 1949 (22ª) – (empate):
  • A Chance To Live – Richard de Rochemont, produtor
  • So Much for So Little – Edward Selzer, produtor
  • 1848
  • The Rising Tide

1950

• 1950 (23ª) – Why Korea? – Edmund Reek, produtor
  • The Fight: Science Against Cancer
  • The Stairs
• 1951 (24ª) – Benjy – Dirixido por Fred Zinnemann coa cooperación de Paramount Pictures Corporation para Los Angeles Orthopaedic Hospital
  • One Who Came Back
  • The Seeing Eye
• 1952 (25ª) – Neighbours – Norman McLaren, produtor – National Film Board of Canada
  • Devil Take Us
  • Epeira Diadema
  • Man Alive!
• 1953 (26ª) – The Alaskan Eskimo – Walt Disney, produtor – Walt Disney Productions
  • The Living City
  • Operation Blue Jay
  • They Planted a Stone
  • The Word
• 1954 (27ª) – Thursday's Children – World Wide Pictures and Morse Films
  • Jet Carrier
  • Rembrandt: A Self-Portrait
• 1955 (28ª) – Men against the Arctic – Walt Disney, produtor – Walt Disney Productions
  • The Battle of Gettysburg
  • The Face of Lincoln
• 1956 (29ª) – The True Story of the Civil War – Louis Clyde Stoumen, produtor
  • Man in Space
  • A City Decides
  • The Dark Wave
  • The House Without a Name
• 1957 (30ª) – Non se entregou premio nesta categoría
• 1958 (31ª) – Ama Girls – Ben Sharpsteen, produtor
  • Employees Only
  • Journey Into Spring
  • The Living Stone
  • Oeuverture
• 1959 (32ª) – Glass – Bert Haanstra, produtor
  • Donald in Mathmagic Land
  • From Generation to Generation

1960

• 1960 (33ª) – Giuseppina – James Hill, produtor
  • Beyond Silence
  • En by ved navn København
  • George Grosz' Interregnum
  • Universe
• 1961 (34ª) – Project Hope – Frank P. Bibas, produtor
  • Breaking the Language Barrier
  • Cradle of Genius
  • Kahl
  • L'uomo in grigio
• 1962 (35ª) – Dylan Thomas – Jack Howells, produtor
  • The John Glenn Story
  • The Road to the Wall
• 1963 (36ª) – Chagall – Simon Schiffrin, produtor
  • The Five Cities of June
  • The Spirit of America
  • Thirty Million Letters
  • To Live Again
• 1964 (37ª) – Nine from Little Rock – Charles Guggenheim, produtor
  • 140 Days Under the World
  • Breaking the Habit
  • Children Without
  • Eskimo Artist: Kenojuak
• 1965 (38ª) – To Be Alive! – Francis Thompson, produtor
  • Mural on Our Street
  • Nyitany
  • Point of View
  • Yeats Country
• 1966 (39ª) – A Year Toward Tomorrow – Edmond A. Levy, produtor
  • Adolescence
  • Cowboy
  • The Odds Against
  • Részletek J.S. Bach Máté passiójából
• 1967 (40ª) – The Redwoods – Mark Harris e Trevor Greenwood, produtores
  • Monument to the Dream
  • A Place to Stand
  • See You at the Pillar
  • While I Run This Race
• 1968 (41ª) – Why Man Creates – Saul Bass, produtor
  • The House That Ananda Built
  • The Revolving Door
  • A Space to Grow
  • A Way Out of the Wilderness
• 1969 (42ª) – Czechoslovakia 1968 – Denis Sanders e Robert M. Fresco, produtores
  • An Impression of John Steinbeck: Writer
  • Jenny Is a Good Thing
  • Leo Beuerman
  • The Magic Machines

1970

• 1970 (43ª) – Interviews with My Lai Veterans – Joseph Strick, produtor
  • The Gifts
  • A Long Way from Nowhere
  • Oisin
  • Time Is Running Out
• 1971 (44ª) – Sentinels of Silence – Manuel Arango e Robert Amram, produtores
  • Adventures in Perception
  • Art Is...
  • The Numbers Start with the River
  • Somebody Waiting
• 1972 (45ª) – This Tiny World – Charles Huguenot van der Linden e Martina Huguenot van der Linden, produtores
  • Hundertwassers Regentag
  • K-Z
  • Selling Out
  • The Tide of Traffic
• 1973 (46ª) – Princeton: A Search for Answers – Julian Krainin e DeWitt L. Sage, Jr., produtores
  • Background
  • Christo's Valley Curtain
  • Four Stones for Kanemitsu
  • Paisti ag obair
• 1974 (47ª) – Don't – Robin Lehman, produtor
  • City Out of Wilderness
  • Exploratorium
  • John Muir's High Sierra
  • Naked Yoga
• 1975 (48ª) – The End of the Game – Claire Wilbur e Robin Lehman, produtores
  • Arthur and Lillie
  • Millions of Years Ahead of Man
  • Probes in Space
  • Whistling Smith
• 1976 (49ª) – Number Our Days – Lynne Littman e Barbara Myerhoff, produtores
  • American Shoeshine
  • Blackwood
  • The End of the Road
  • Universe
• 1977 (50ª) – Gravity Is My Enemy – John C. Joseph e Jan Stussy, produtores
  • Agueda Martinez: Our People, Our Country
  • First Edition
  • Of Time, Tombs and Treasures
  • The Shetland Experience
• 1978 (51ª) – The Flight of the Gossamer Condor – Jacqueline Phillips Shedd e Ben Shedd, produtores
  • The Divided Trail: A Native American Odyssey
  • An Encounter with Faces
  • Goodnight Miss Ann
  • Squires of San Quentin
• 1979 (52ª) – Paul Robeson: Tribute to an Artist – Saul J. Turell, produtor
  • Dae
  • Koryo Celadon
  • Nails
  • Remember Me

1980

• 1980 (53ª) – Karl Hess: Toward Liberty – Roland Hallé e Peter W. Ladue, produtor
  • Don't Mess with Bill
  • The Eruption of Mount St. Helens!
  • It's the Same World
  • Luther Metke at 94
• 1981 (54ª) – Close Harmony – Nigel Noble, produtor
  • Americas in Transition
  • Journey for Survival
  • See What I Say
  • Urge to Build
• 1982 (55ª) – If You Love This Planet – Edward Le Lorrain e Terre Nash, produtores – National Film Board of Canada
  • Gods of Metal
  • The Klan: A Legacy of Hate in America
  • To Live or Let Die
  • Traveling Hopefully
• 1983 (56ª) – Flamenco at 5:15 – Cynthia Scott e Adam Symansky, produtores – National Film Board of Canada
  • Ihr zent frei
  • In the Nuclear Shadow: What Can the Children Tell Us?
  • Sewing Woman
  • Spaces: The Architecture of Paul Rudolph
• 1984 (57ª) – The Stone Carvers – Marjorie Hunt e Paul Wagner, produtores
  • The Children of Soong Ching Ling
  • Code Gray: Ethical Dilemmas in Nursing
  • The Garden of Eden
  • Vospominaniye o Pavlovske
• 1985 (58ª) – Witness to War: Dr. Charlie Clements – David Goodman, produtor
  • The Courage to Care
  • Keats and His Nightingale: A Blind Date
  • Making Overtures: The Story of a Community Orchestra
  • The Wizard of the Strings
• 1986 (59ª) – Women – for America, for the World – Vivienne Verdon-Roe, produtor
  • Sam
  • Red Grooms: Sunflower in a Hothouse
  • The Master of Disaster
  • Debonair Dancers
• 1987 (60ª) – Young at Heart – Sue Marx e Pamela Conn, produtores
  • Frances Steloff: Memoirs of a Bookseller
  • In the Wee Wee Hours...
  • Language Says It All
  • Silver Into Gold
• 1988 (61ª) – You Don't Have to Die – William Guttentag e Malcolm Clarke, produtores
  • Gang Cops
  • Family Gathering
  • The Children's Storefront
  • Portrait of Imogen
• 1989 (62ª) – The Johnstown Flood – Charles Guggenheim, produtor
  • Fine Food, Fine Pastries, Open 6 to 9
  • Yad Vashem: Preserving the Past to Ensure the Future

1990

• 1990 (63ª) – Days of Waiting: The Life & Art of Estelle Ishigo – Steven Okazaki, produtor
  • Rose Kennedy: A Life to Remember
  • Chimps: So Like Us
  • Burning Down Tomorrow
  • Journey Into Life: The World of the Unborn
• 1991 (64ª) – Deadly Deception: General Electric, Nuclear Weapons and Our Environment – Debra Chasnoff, produtor
  • A Little Vicious
  • The Mark of the Maker
  • Birdnesters of Thailand
  • Memorial: Letters from American Soldiers
• 1992 (65ª) – Educating Peter – Thomas C. Goodwin e Gerardine Wurzburg
  • When Abortion Was Illegal: Untold Stories – Dorothy Fadiman
  • At the Edge of Conquest: The Journey of Chief Wai-Wai – Geoffrey O'Connor
  • Beyond Imagining: Margaret Anderson and the 'Little Review' – Wendy L. Weinberg
  • The Colours of My Father: A Portrait of Sam Borenstein – Richard Elson e Sally Bochner
• 1993 (66ª) – Defending Our Lives – Margaret Lazarus, Renner Wunderlich
  • Chicks in White Satin
  • Blood Ties: The Life and Work of Sally Mann
• 1994 (67ª) – A Time for Justice – Charles Guggenheim
  • 89 mm od Europy
  • Blues Highway
  • School of the Americas Assassins
  • Straight from the Heart
• 1995 (68ª) – One Survivor Remembers – Kary Antholis
  • Jim Dine: A Self-Portrait on the Walls
  • The Shadow of Hate
  • The Living Sea
  • Never Give Up: The 20th Century Odyssey of Herbert Zipper
• 1996 (69ª) – Breathing Lessons: The Life and Work of Mark O'Brien – Jessica Yu directora, produtora, guionista e montadora
  • Cosmic Voyage
  • Special Effects: Anything Can Happen
  • The Wild Bunch: An Album in Montage
  • An Essay on Matisse
• 1997 (70ª) – A Story of Healing – Donna Dewey, Carol Pasternak
  • Alaska: Spirit of the Wild
  • Amazon
  • Family Video Diaries: Daughter of the Bride
  • Still Kicking: The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies
• 1998 (71ª) – The Personals: Improvisations on Romance in the Golden Years – Keiko Ibi
  • A Place in the Land
  • Sunrise Over Tiananmen Square – National Film Board of Canada
• 1999 (72ª) – King Gimp – Susan Hannah Hadary, William A. Whiteford
  • Eyewitness
  • The Wildest Show in the South: The Angola Prison Rodeo

2000

• 2000 (73ª) – Big Mama – Tracy Seretean
  • Curtain Call
  • Dolphins
  • On Tiptoe: Gentle Steps to Freedom
  • The Man on Lincoln's Nose
• 2001 (74ª) – Thoth – Sarah Kernochan e Lynn Appelle
  • Artists and Orphans: A True Drama
  • Sing!
• 2002 (75ª) – Twin Towers – Bill Guttentag, Robert David Port, directores
  • The Collector of Bedford Street – Welcome Change Productions – Alice Elliott, produtor e director
  • Mighty Times: The Legacy of Rosa Parks – Tell the Truth Pictures – Robert Hudson, produtor – Robert Houston, director
  • Why Can't We Be a Family Again? – Roger Weisberg, Murray Nossel directores
• 2003 (76ª) – Chernobyl Heart – Maryann DeLeo
  • Asylum – Sandy McLeod e Gini Reticker
  • Ferry Tales – Katja Esson
• 2004 (77ª) – Mighty Times: The Children's March – Robert Houston e Robert Hudson
  • Autism Is a World – Gerardine Wurzburg
  • The Children of Leningradsky – Hanna Polak e Andrzej Celinski
  • Hardwood – Hubert Davis e Erin Faith Young
  • Sister Rose's Passion – Oren Jacoby e Steve Kalafer
• 2005 (78ª) – A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin
  • The Death of Kevin Carter: Casualty of the Bang Bang Club
  • God Sleeps in Rwanda
  • The Mushroom Club
• 2006 (79ª) – The Blood of Yingzhou District
  • Two Hands: The Leon Fleisher Story
  • Recycled Life
  • Rehearsing a Dream
• 2007 (80ª) – Freeheld
  • La Corona
  • Salim Baba
  • Sari's Mother
• 2008 (81ª) – Smile Pinki
  • The Conscience of Nhem En
  • The Final Inch
  • The Witness: From the Balcony of Room 306
• 2009 (82ª) – Music by Prudence
  • China's Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province
  • The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner
  • The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant
  • Rabbit à la Berlin

2010

• 2010 (83ª) – Strangers No More – Karen Goodman e Kirk Simon
  • Killing in the Name – Jed Rothstein
  • Poster Girl – Sara Nesson
  • Sun Come Up – Jennifer Redfearn e Tim Metzger
  • The Warriors of Qiugang – Ruby Yang e Thomas Lennon
• 2011 (84ª) – Saving Face – Daniel Junge e Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy
  • The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement – Robin Fryday e Gail Dolgin
  • God Is the Bigger Elvis – Rebecca Cammisa e Julie Anderson
  • Incident in New Baghdad – James Spione
  • The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom – Lucy Walker e Kira Carstensen
• 2012 (85ª) – Inocente – Sean Fine e Andrea Nix Fine
  • Kings Point – Sari Gilman e Jedd Wider
  • Mondays at Racine – Cynthia Wade e Robin Honan
  • Open Heart – Kief Davidson e Cori Shepherd Stern
  • Redemption – Jon Alpert e Matthew O'Neill
• 2013 (86ª) – The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life – Malcolm Clarke e Nicholas Reed
  • CaveDigger – Jeffrey Karoff
  • Facing Fear – Jason Cohen
  • Karama Has No Walls – Sara Ishaq
  • Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall – Edgar Barens
• 2014 (87ª) – Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1 – Ellen Goosenberg Kent e Dana Perry
  • Joanna – Aneta Kopacz
  • Our Curse – Tomasz Śliwiński e Maciej Ślesicki
  • La Parka – Gabriel Serra Arguello
  • White Earth – J. Christian Jensen
• 2015 (88ª) – A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness – Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy
  • Body Team 12 – David Darg e Bryn Mooser
  • Chau, Beyond the Lines – Courtney Marsh e Jerry Franck
  • Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah – Adam Benzine
  • Last Day of Freedom – Dee Hibbert-Jones e Nomi Talisman
• 2016 (89ª) – The White Helmets – Orlando von Einsiedel e Joanna Natasegara
  • 4.1 Miles – Daphne Matziaraki
  • Extremis – Dan Krauss
  • Joe's Violin – Kahane Cooperman e Raphaela Neihausen
  • Watani: My Homeland – Marcel Mettelsiefen e Stephen Ellis
• 2017 (90ª) – Heaven Is a Traffic Jam on the 405 – Frank Stiefel
  • Edith+Eddie – Laura Checkoway e Thomas Lee Wright
  • Heroin(e) – Elaine McMillion Sheldon e Kerrin Sheldon
  • Knife Skills – Thomas Lennon
  • Traffic Stop – Kate Davis e David Heilbroner
• 2018 (91ª) – Period. End of Sentence. – Rayka Zehtabchi e Melissa Berton
  • Black Sheep – Ed Perkins e Jonathan Chinn
  • End Game – Rob Epstein e Jeffrey Friedman
  • Lifeboat – Skye Fitzgerald e Bryn Mooser
  • A Night at the Garden – Marshall Curry
• 2019 (92ª) – Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You're a Girl) – Carol Dysinger e Elena Andreicheva
  • In the Absence – Yi Seung-Jun e Gary Byung-Seok Kam
  • Life Overtakes Me – John Haptas e Kristine Samuelson
  • St. Louis Superman – Smriti Mundhra e Sami Khan
  • Walk Run Cha-Cha – Laura Nix e Colette Sandstedt

2020

• 2020 (93ª) – Colette – Anthony Giacchino e Alice Doyard
  • A Concerto Is a Conversation – Ben Proudfoot e Kris Bowers
  • Do Not Split – Anders Hammer e Charlotte Cook
  • Hunger Ward – Skye Fitzgerald e Michael Scheuerman
  • A Love Song for Latasha – Sophia Nahali Allison e Janice Duncan

• 2021 (94ª) – The Queen of Basketball – Ben Proudfoot
  • Audible – Matthew Ogens e Geoff McLean
  • Lead Me Home – Pedro Kos e Jon Shenk
  • Three Songs for Benazir – Elizabeth Mirzaei e Gulistan Mirzaei
  • When We Were Bullies – Jay Rosenblatt