10 Academy Awards (For Pro Westling)

7. Best Documentary - Showbuckle, The Fall & Rise Of Tetsuya Naito

Omega Oscar
NJPW1972.com

The true mark of a great documentarian is the ability to provide insights into material for those familiar and unfamiliar with it. The genius behind the Showbuckle YouTube channel balances this perfectly, as best demonstrated by the stupendous Fall & Rise Of Tetsuya Naito video essay.

New Japan Pro Wrestling is not impenetrable, but the lack of episodic television and a natural inability on the part of the top stars to broadcast their promos in English renders it tricky to fully grasp the nuances of the league's superb long-form storytelling. Showbuckle translated the synergy of Naito's organic rise to superstardom by bookending the essay with Naito's forced and warranted proclamations that he was the 'Shuyaku' of New Japan Pro Wrestling.

When he first uttered those words, even he, drained of confidence, did not believe them. Four years later, an interim period explored perfectly with the use of the silence that greeted the forced narrative and the deafening adulation that greeted the natural evolution of it, Naito lived up to the albatross - and Showbuckle made sense of it all with a sensory masterpiece of a short film.

Honourable Nominee Mention: Kevin Owens 365 - a documentary exploring the trials, tribulations and terrorism subjected to even the top WWE talents, this one hour special was a fascinating insight into a crooked game.

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!