All five nominated pictures for Best Documentary Feature at the 98th Academy Awards premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. So it’s obvious that we look to the 2026’s fest for possibilities at the 99th ceremony. I already wrote about Once Upon a Time in Harlem (which could be a frontrunner) and The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist.

Attention is now turned to The History of Concrete from John Wilson. The host of the HBO docuseries How To with John Wilson, the filmmaker’s feature-length directorial debut has a fascinating concept. Wilson applies lessons learned from a workshop about making a Hallmark movie to attempting a documentary about what the title suggests.

Sundance critics appreciated it to the scores of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and 81 on Metacritic with particular praise going to its comedic aspects. Magnolia Pictures snatched up distribution rights. Academy voters could focus their attention on more serious docs, but Concrete at least has the foundation to be a contender. My Oscar Prediction posts will continue…