Short Film News (SFN)- The nominees for the International Documentary Association’s 2009 IDA Documentary Awards competition were announced.

The five nominated films for Distinguished Documentary Achievement in IDA’s feature category are:

AFGHAN STAR, the timely and moving film following the dramatic stories of four young finalists—two men and two women—as they hazard everything to compete in Afghanistan’s version of American Idol.

ANVIL! THE STORY OF ANVIL, the hilarious and unexpectedly moving account of an obscure Canadian metal band’s last-ditch quest for elusive fame and fortune.

DIARY OF A TIMES SQUARE THIEF, which documents the search for the writer of a mysterious diary that the filmmaker finds on Ebay.

FOOD, INC., that lifts the veil on our nation's food industry, exposing the highly mechanized underbelly that's been hidden from the American consumer with the consent of our government's regulatory agencies.

MUGABE AND THE WHITE AFRICAN, the story of Michael Campbell, a tough, humorous 74-year-old fifth-generation white African farmer who withstands land invasions and violence in his stand against Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe’s land seizure program.

Also the International Documentary Association will present its 2009 Life Achievement Award to filmmaker Errol Morris.

The International Documentary Association, or IDA, is a Los Angeles-based group that promotes non-fiction filmmaking, and because of its influential membership, its choices are often a key indicator of the year's best work in the genre.

Winners will be announced at a ceremony in Los Angeles on December 4.