 | 2000 | Mark Jonathan Harris & Deborah Oppenheimer INTO THE ARMS OF STRANGER: STORIES OF THE KINDERTRANSPORT | Tracy Seretean BIG MAMA
| 1999 | Arthur Cohn & Kevin Macdonald ONE DAY IN SEPTEMBER | Susan Hannah Hadary & William A. Whiteford KING GIMP
| 1998 | James Moll & Ken Lipper THE LAST DAYS | Keiko Ibi THE PERSONALS: IMPROVISATIONS ON ROMANCE IN THE GOLDEN YEARS
| 1997 | Rabbi Marvin Hier & Richard Trank THE LONG WAY HOME | Donna Dewey & Carol Pasternak A STORY OF HEALING
| 1996 | Leon Gast & David Sonenberg WHEN WE WERE KINGS | Jessica Yu BREATHING LESSONS: THE LIFE AND WORK OF MARK O'BRIEN
| 1995 | Jon Blair ANNE FRANK REMEMBERED | Kary Antholis ONE SURVIVOR REMEMBERS
| 1994 | Freida Lee Mock & Terry Sanders MAYA LIN: A STRONG CLEAR VISION | Charles E. Guggenheim A TIME FOR JUSTICE
| 1993 | Susan Raymond & Alan Raymond I AM A PROMISE: THE CHILDREN OF STANTON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL | Margaret Lazarus & Renner Wunderlich DEFENDING OUR LIVES
| 1992 | Barbara Trent & David Kasper THE PANAMA DECEPTION | Thomas C. Goodwin & Gerardine Wurzburg EDUCATING PETER
| 1991 | Allie Light & Irving Saraf IN THE SHADOW OF THE STARS | Debra Chasnoff DEADLY DECEPTION: GENERAL ELECTRIC, NUCLEAR WEAPONS AND OUR ENVIRONMENT
| 1990 | Barbara Kopple & Arthur Cohn AMERICAN DREAM | Steven Okazaki DAYS OF WAITING
| 1989 | Robert Epstein & Bill Couturie COMMON THREADS: STORIES FROM THE QUILT | Charles E. Guggenheim THE JOHNSTOWN FLOOD
| 1988 | Marcel Ophuls HOTEL TERMINUS: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF KLAUS BARBIE | William Guttentag & Malcolm Clarke YOU DON'T HAVE TO DIE
| 1987 | Aviva Slesin THE TEN-YEAR LUNCH: THE WIT AND LEGEND OF THE ALGONQUIN ROUND TABLE | Sue Marx & Pamela Conn YOUNG AT HEART
| 1986 | Brigitte Berman ARTIE SHAW: TIME IS ALL YOU'VE GOT | Vivienne Verdon-Roe WOMEN FOR AMERICA, FOR THE WORLD
| | Joseph Feury & Milton Justice DOWN AND OUT IN AMERICA |
| 1985 | Maria Florio & Victoria Mudd BROKEN RAINBOW | David Goodman WITNESS TO WAR: DR. CHARLIE CLEMENTS
| 1984 | Robert Epstein & Richard Schmiechen THE TIMES OF HARVEY MILK | Marjorie Hunt & Paul Wagner THE STONE CARVERS
| 1983 | Emile Ardolino HE MAKES ME FEEL LIKE DANCIN' | Cynthia Scott & Adam Symansky FLAMENCO AT 5:15
| 1982 | John Zaritsky JUST ANOTHER MISSING KID | Edward LeLorrain & Terri Nash IF YOU LOVE THIS PLANET
| 1981 | Arnold Schwartzman & Rabbi Marvin Hier GENOCIDE | Nigel Nobel CLOSE HARMONY
| 1980 | Murray Lerner FROM MAO TO MOZART: ISAAC STERN IN CHINA | Roland Halle & Peter W. Ladue KARL HESS: TOWARD LIBERTY
| 1979 | Ira Wohl BEST BOY | Saul J. Turrell PAUL ROBESON: TRIBUTE TO AN ARTIST
| 1978 | Arnold Shapiro SCARED STRAIGHT! | Jacqueline Phillips Shedd & Ben Shedd THE FLIGHT OF THE GOSSAMER CONDOR
| 1977 | John Korty, Dan McCann & Warren L. Lockhart WHO ARE THE DEBOLTS? AND WHERE DID THEY GET NINETEEN KIDS? | John Joseph & Jan Stussy GRAVITY IS MY ENEMY
| 1976 | Barbara Kopple HARLAN COUNTY, U.S.A. | Lynne Littman NUMBER OUR DAYS
| 1975 | F. R. Crawley, James Hager & Dale Hartleben THE MAN WHO SKIED DOWN EVEREST | Claire Wilbur & Robin Lehman THE END OF THE GAME
| 1974 | Peter Davis & Bert Schneider HEARTS AND MINDS | Robin Lehman DON'T
| 1973 | Kieth Merrill THE GREAT AMERICAN COWBOY | Julian Krainin & DeWitt L. Sage, Jr. PRINCETON: A SEARCH FOR ANSWERS
| 1972 | Howard Smith & Sarah Kernochan MARJOE | Charles Huguenot Van Der Linden & Martina Huguenot Van Der Linden THIS TINY WORLD
| 1971 | Walon Green THE HELLSTROM CHRONICLE | Manuel Arango & Robert Amram SENTINELS OF SILENCE
| 1970 | Bob Maurice WOODSTOCK | Joseph Strick INTERVIEWS WITH MY LAI VETERANS
| 1969 | Bernard Chevry ARTHUR RUBINSTEIN THE LOVE OF LIFE | Denis Sanders & Robert M. Fresco CZECHOSLOVAKIA 1968
| 1968 | Bill McGaw JOURNEY INTO SELF | Saul Bass WHY MAN CREATES
| 1967 | Pierre Schoendoerffer THE ANDERSON PLATOON | Mark Jonathan Harris & Trevor Greenwood THE REDWOODS
| 1966 | Peter Watkins THE WAR GAME | Edmond A. Levy A YEAR TOWARD TOMORROW
| 1965 | Sidney Glazier THE ELEANOR ROOSEVELT STORY | TO BE ALIVE!
| 1964 | Jacques-Yves Cousteau WORLD WITHOUT SUN | NINE FROM LITTLE ROCK
| 1963 | Robert Hughes ROBERT FROST: A LOVER'S QUARREL WITH THE WORLD | Simon Schiffrin CHAGALL
| 1962 | Louis Clyde Stoumen THE BLACK FOX | No award given for 1962.
| 1961 | Arthur Cohn & Rene Lafuite THE SKY ABOVE, THE MUD BELOW | Frank P. Bibas PROJECT HOPE
| 1960 | Lawrence M. Lansburgh THE HORSE WITH THE FLYING TAIL | James Hill GIUSEPPINA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |