It’s been another banner year for documentaries, thanks in large part to streaming services and small-screen distributors. For those who haven’t been paying close attention, and want to do some catch up, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences just shared their list of the top fifteen feature-length documentaries from 2017. We suggesting starting there. Plus, if you plow through these, you’ll have a leg up once the Oscar nominations are announced.

This year’s Oscar shortlist runs the gamut. There are films dealing with the refugee crisis, climate change, the LA riots, and chronic fatigue syndrome. There’s even a documentary about the Grateful Dead. As far as the filmmakers, there are some familiar names in the mix, such as Agnes Varda, Frederick Wiseman and Steve James. Many of the films were in theaters earlier this year, but thanks to those darn streaming services, you can watch several of them right now. Below, you’ll find a handy dandy list of the films that made the Academy’s cut and various ways in which you can view in them in New York City and beyond.

Abacus: Small Enough to Jail

Filmmaker Steve James tells the saga of Abacus, the only U.S. bank to face criminal charges in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. The story is so compelling, it caught the attention of filmmaker Justin Lin, who plans on adapting it into a movie. James’ documentary is available to stream for free if you have an Amazon Prime membership. You can also watch it for a fee on iTunes, Google Play and YouTube. Update 12/28: Abacus: Small Enough to Jail is returning to theaters. It opens at IFC Center in New York on Friday, December 29. It will also be playing at Laemmle Royal in Los Angeles and is getting an encore screening on PBS on January 2, 2018.

************

Chasing Coral

Chasing Coral is Jeff Orlowski’s follow up the award-winning Chasing Ice. This time around he captures what is becoming of our coral reefs. The film is currently streaming on Netflix and will also be screening at a few upcoming festivals.

************

City of Ghosts

One of our favorite documentaries of the year, Matthew Heineman’s City of Ghosts follows a group of courageous citizen journalists operating in Raqqa after ISIS took over in 2014. The film is absolutely heartbreaking. City of Ghosts is free to stream if you have Amazon Prime. It’s also available to Netflix subscribers who have a DVD subscription. Update 12/28: City of Ghosts is playing at IFC Center through January 4, 2018.

************

Ex Libris – The New York Public Library

Another one of our favorites, Frederick Wiseman’s latest documentary pulls focus on the New York Public Library. From senior management meetings to events at branch locations, Wiseman lays bare the New York institution and makes a case for its continued importance. Ex Libris had a run at Film Forum in the fall. You can catch up with it in New York when it screens as part of The Contenders 2017 series at MoMA on Thursday, December 28.

************

Faces Places

A quirky buddy comedy, Faces Places finds Agnes Varda embarking on a road trip with artist and self-proclaimed photograffeur JR. Along their travels they stop in small villages, meet the townspeople and gift them personal street art projects. Faces and Places is currently playing at Quad Cinema.

************

Human Flow

Human Flow is Ai Weiwei’s sweeping, cinematic exploration into the global refugee crisis. Beautifully lensed, the film finds the artist traveling to various refugee “hot spots” and documenting the many faces of this horrible humanitarian disaster. Human Flow is playing in select theaters. As it is an Amazon Studios release, it should be available on Amazon soon. Update 1/6: Human Flow is playing at IFC Center.

************

Icarus

If you took note that Russia has been banned from the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, than Icarus should be of interest. The film’s director, Bryan Fogel, by happy accident documents the roof being blown off Russia’s longtime state-sponsored doping scheme. You can stream the film now on Netflix. Update 12/15: Icarus is returning to theaters in LA and NYC in December. You can catch it starting today at the Laemmle Music Hall in Los Angeles. And, it opens December 22 at the IFC Center.

************

An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power

Al Gore may have thrown in the towel with regard to his presidential aspirations, but he is far from giving up on his battle to educate people about climate change. Bonni Cohen and Jon Shenk direct An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power, the sequel to Davis Guggenheim’s Academy Award-winning film. The new documentary looks at the progress that has been made in tackling the problem and Gore’s efforts to persuade governmental leaders to invest in renewable energy. The film is available for rent or purchase on Amazon, and is included in your Netflix DVD subscription. Update 12/21: An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power is screening at the New York Society of Ethical Culture on Sunday, January 28. The screening is free and open to the public. Visit NYSEC’s website for more details.

************

Jane

Using recently rediscovered footage shot by Hugo van Lawick in the 1960s, Brett Morgen crafts a documentary about pioneering primatologist Jane Goodall, a woman whose chimpanzee research challenged the male-dominated scientific consensus of her time. In New York, Jane is currently playing at the Landmark 57 and Landmark Sunshine. Update 12/28: Jane opens at IFC Center on Friday, December 29.

************

LA 92

2017 was the year of films about the 1992 LA riots. To mark the 25th anniversary of the horrific events, five documentaries emerged. National Geographic’s LA 92 is the only one to land on Oscar’s shortlist. Directed by Academy Award-winning filmmakers Daniel Lindsay and T.J. Martin (Undefeated), the film edits together archival news images and unseen footage to create a very visceral portrait of the riots. LA 92 is available on Hulu, and can also be rented on YouTube, Amazon Video, Vudu, Google Play and iTunes.

************

Last Men in Aleppo

Winner of the Grand Jury Documentary prize at Sundance, Feras Fayyad’s Last Men in Aleppo follows a group of volunteer rescue workers called the White Helmets as they operate day-to-day in the war torn Syrian city. Last Men in Aleppo premiered on PBS in July and is currently available to stream on Netflix. Update 12/28: Last Men in Aleppo is playing in New York at Metrograph through Sunday, December 31.

************

Long Strange Trip

Amir Bar-Lev’s Long Strange Trip is the thoughtful and in-depth documentary we didn’t know we needed about the Grateful Dead. Nearly four hours long, using home movies and archival footage the film recounts the band’s beginnings and explores the various aspects of the Dead phenomenon. The film is free to stream for those who have an Amazon Prime subscription. Update 12/28: Long Strange Trip is getting a return theatrical engagement at IFC Center, it opens Friday, December 29.

************

One of Us

Jesus Camp directing duo, Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady, chronicle the lives of three Hasidic Jews who have left the community in their new documentary One of Us. The film, which had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, is available to stream on Netflix.

************

Strong Island

For Strong Island, Yance Ford explores his family’s devastation following the murder of his brother, William Ford Jr. The film is available to stream now on Netflix. It is also screening at the Maysles Cinema in New York City on Sunday, December 17 at 4pm. Producer Joslyn Barnes and visual artist Kalen Na’il Roach will be present for a Q&A after the screening. Update 12/21: Strong Island screens at the Museum of the Moving Image with the director present on Saturday, December 23 as part of two programs, Curators’ Choice 2017 and Changing the Picture (2017). For additional information and tickets visit MoMI’s website. The film is also screening as part of MoMA’s The Contenders 2017 on Tuesday, January 9. More details here.

************

Unrest

A personal documentary, Unrest finds director Jennifer Brea turning the camera on herself after she begins to feel unwell and is told my doctors it is all in her head. Unrest, which premiered at Sundance, where it picked up an award for editing, is available for viewing for a fee on various digital platforms. Update 1/7:PBS Unrest premieres on on January 8 at 10pm.