Nat Geo dominates Buzzies at World Congress with six awards

Atlantic Studios’ Titanic: Digital Resurrection

WORLD CONGRESS: Organisers of The Buzzies, which celebrate excellence in science and factual storytelling across shortform, longform and multiplatform productions, have announced their 2025 winners following an awards ceremony at the World Congress of Science & Factual Producers (WCSFP) in Rio de Janeiro this week.

National Geographic dominated the honours, taking home six awards including best science programme for Titanic: Digital Resurrection, produced by Atlantic Studios. The Disney-owned broadcaster also claimed best history programme for Hurricane Katrina: Race Against Time, made by Lightbox and Proximity, whilst its shortform content Loyal American, produced by the National Geographic Society Impact Story Lab, won best factual in the short format category.

Ocean with David Attenborough proved particularly successful, securing three separate awards for the National Geographic show produced by Silverback Films and Open Planet Studios. The programme won most innovative factual programme or project of the year, best host or presenter for Attenborough and best editing for Philippa Edwards.

In natural history programming, Lions of the Skeleton Coast, an ORF Universum show produced by Into Nature Productions, took the long format award. The documentary cinematography prize went to 2000 Meters to Andriivka, broadcast by France Télévisions and produced by Associated Press and Frontline, with filming by Mstyslav Chernov.

Little Monster Films collected the best writing award for Love & War on National Geographic, while Lost in the Jungle, a National Geographic commission produced by Little Monster Films, Lightbox, Pacha Films, Señal Colombia and Demolition Films, won best direction for Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin and Juan Camilo Cruz.

Beyond the competitive programme categories, the Buzzies recognised individual achievement across the factual sector. George Csicsery of Zala Films received the diversity leadership award, while Sue Dando, a CBC consultant, was named mentor of the year. Gregor Cavlovic, writer and director at Veritasium, took the rising star honour.

The green impact award, sponsored by Terra Mater Studios, went to How One Company Secretly Poisoned the Planet on the Veritasium YouTube channel, produced by Veritasium and Electrify Video.

Kevan Mackay, the YouTuber behind BobbyBroccoli, received the Sloan Buzzies Award, supported by the Alfred P Sloan Foundation.

The lifetime achievement award in factual content was presented to Peter Arens, head of history and science at German public broadcaster ZDF.