"Nothing Compares," the documentary that charts Sinéad O'Connor's life from childhood to her many controversial moments, has won a Rose d'Or Award for Arts.
Accepting the award in London on November 27, director Kathryn Ferguson said "it was a huge privilege to make 'Nothing Compares' and to do so with Sinéad’s blessing.
"As I’m sure you’re all very aware, we lost her this summer which was devastating.
"Ironically, it seems she had to pass for the full impact of her bravery, her extraordinary talent and her importance as a truth-teller to be fully realized and appreciated," the PA reports.
Congratulations to Nothing Compares, winner of the Rose d’Or Award for Arts @ScreenIreland @BFI #RosedOrAwards #Rosedor #awards #tarafilms #skydocumentaries pic.twitter.com/OMq6tq2XKU
— Rose d'Or (@RosedOr) November 27, 2023
"Nothing Compares" follows the Irish musician's life through her turbulent childhood and upbringing and on into her professional success and many controversies behind her world-renowned music.
The documentary was released less than a year before O'Connor, 56, was found dead in her London apartment on July 26. Her death resulted in international mourning and fans and critics around the world highlighted her musical talents and activism throughout her life.
"Nothing Compares" has snagged ten award wins and 29 nominations.
Upon the documentary's release in 2022, Belfast native Ferguson told IrishCentral that she discovered Sinéad's music through her dad and became a "bonafide fan."
“She was like an alien that had arrived from outer space,” Ferguson said.
“She was exactly I think what we all needed as young Irish women, she was so anti-establishment and bold and her voice and her music was so brilliant.
“But then I was very demoralized to see how she was treated, and to witness the backlash and the kind of takedown of this person that we all idolized. And that just really made a memorable dent in me. I would say so the seed for wanting to make this film and make it in the way that we did began way back then.”
Ferguson first met O'Connor in 2012 when they discussed her life and work. “I think when you watch the film now and see the sheer scale of the backlash she experienced particularly here in the United States in the early '90s - when we've shown clips of it in film festivals in the last seven months, people are left gasping in shock when they see the ferocity of it.”
Ferguson said she wanted the documentary to "be a film that leaves you furious.
"I want it to galvanize you to actually go out and do something creative yourself. And so far, that seems to be the general reaction to it. I keep getting lots of 15-year-olds coming up with their eyes flashing at the end of the screening saying 'God, we didn't know this, all we knew is that she was someone bad.' They didn't even know what why she was bad, or what she'd done. But she'd done something bad.”
"Nothing Compares" is available to watch on Sky and Showtime.
You can listen to some of Sinéad O'Connor's most well-known tracks here:
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