The eight-part series from All Ages Productions, Department of Motion Pictures and ITVS will be bestowed the honor Tuesday in the Documentaries section of the annual honors, which go to the year’s most powerful content across the fields of entertainment, docs, news, podcast/radio, arts, children’s and youth, and public service programming.

“This riveting eight-part documentary series embedded viewers inside the long shot election and tumultuous first term of Larry Krasner, Philadelphia’s unapologetically progressive district attorney, and his experiment to upend the criminal justice system from the inside out.”

“#4. The documentary series Philly D.A. (PBS/Topic) is sort of like if Aaron Sorkin and The Wire had a nonfiction baby… But Philly D.A. is also like The Wire because it’s not about some idealized political system in which the good guy always finds a way: Even the most ambitious leaders have to deal with bureaucracy and, in Krasner’s case, reactionaries, and Philly D.A. captures the smashup of Krasner’s unstoppable force with the immovable object of our criminal justice system.”

“Philly D.A. is a riveting docuseries… It’s an ambitious, sprawling epic (set to an excellent score by electronic musician Dan Deacon) that has rightfully drawn comparisons to The Wire, not least because of its constellation of vivid, flawed, truly human characters.”

PHILLY D.A. took home the Gotham Award for “Best Breakthrough Nonfiction Series”! This is the first year that the Gothams have recognized docuseries and we were honored to be in the company of phenomenal filmmakers: Steve James, Raoul Peck, John Wilson, Christine Vachon, and Cheryl Dunye competing in the same category.

The documentary filmmakers Ted Passon and Yoni Brook captured no trial scenes because of restrictions on shooting, but the sweeping story of efforts to reform the Philadelphia district attorney’s office involved themes of policing, security and equality far beyond the courthouse walls. District Attorney Larry Krasner made for a prickly, passionate protagonist, but this was really the story of a city and a country.

“Philly D.A.,” doesn’t back down from complication: Krasner’s opponents make their cases on camera, and his idealism comes into focus, at times, as intransigence. The case “Philly D.A.” makes through careful observation, though, is that it’s that personality type that gets anything done in a city so governed by dueling perspectives.

“If you ignore documentaries generally but enjoy a good prestige drama, there’s plenty for you here… Philly D.A. is essential viewing…”

“Over the course of eight episodes, co-directors Ted Passon and Yoni Brook take us through the difficult, often messy process of dismantling the old order and assembling the first pieces of a new one, while fighting very public battles with a police force actively hostile to change and a populace to whom Krasner sometimes struggles to make his priorities clear. It’s a necessary and sometimes painful exploration of what happens when progressive dreams become reality, and how hard it is to change the system without being swallowed by it.

“Philly D.A.,” a captivating eight-part series… The awkwardness of knowing that the cast of “Philly D.A.” is made up of real, ordinary people, rather than fictional characters, can sometimes make it hard to watch, as they squabble, disappoint one another, and embarrass themselves, as we are all prone to do in our workplaces. But it’s even harder to look away, because watching Krasner and his team do what they’re trying to do is too compelling, no matter how messy, frustrating, and painful things get.”

“The first episode follows Larry Krasner’s insurgent campaign to become a prosecutor deeply skeptical of prosecution and the criminal justice system writ large. The ensuing seven episodes show what comes next: the resistance to institutional change, the difficulty of living up to one’s promises, and the conflicting takes on what it means to do right by the people of Philadelphia.”

“Philly D.A.” has been compared endlessly to “The Wire,” and rightly so. The docuseries is a nuanced and sobering account of what it takes to create change — and the limitations of what one man can achieve. Too many TV docs feel bloated, but “Philly D.A.” judiciously uses its wide canvas to tell as full and multifaceted a story as it can about an effort to find justice within our ailing court system that’s too radical for some and not radical enough for many.”

“PBS’ look at Larry Krasner’s attempts to fight Philadelphia’s entrenched bureaucracy from inside the district attorney’s office was complicated, nuanced and far from simple.”

“Philly DA does not stray into hagiography. Transcending the directorial workmanship and production values, however, is the simple sight of unfashionable – which is to say good, ideologically informed but practically executed – work being done on behalf of the disfranchised, the powerless, the underserved. It is deeply thrilling to watch. An unfamiliar feeling stirs, and rises higher with each episode. The feeling is hope.”

“it’s the best documentary series of 2021. It’s certainly the most illuminating, enthralling, and impressive docuseries I’ve seen…”

“filmmakers Ted Passon, Yoni Brook and Nicole Salazar achieve that rarest of feats: to produce “political” television that succeeds in dramatizing, at human scale, the most pressing issues of the moment… “Philly D.A.” emerges as a complex, compelling portrait of a system in the throes of change, trading neutrality for honesty, balance for truth. Plus, it features a cast of characters so sublimely memorable you could never mistake it for fiction.”

“For anyone struggling to wrap their mind around one of the oldest and deepest problems in American politics, Philly D.A. would make a fascinating introduction.”

“Philly D.A. never sets foot in a courtroom… but it’s as captivating, timely and relevant a legal drama as you’re likely to watch this spring. The gripping PBS documentary series is a richly detailed look at what happens when an idealist gets actual power. All these conflicts are messy, uncomfortable and human…”

“Philly D.A. is easily the best docuseries of 2021… a thrilling, revealing look at an attempt to ‘destroy the system’ from within… cameras are present for some riveting moments — as if this were a masterfully scripted HBO drama… a rare and exceptional documentary series.”

“It’s compelling… it’s gripping… engrossing, and heartbreaking… The show should be viewed as a model for an entire genre of documentary storytelling. Philly D.A. is a beautiful, sprawling story that does justice to both the giant organizations and the many individuals caught inside them.“