Searching for Sugar Man tells the story of Detroit-based folk musician Sixto Rodriguez, who made two albums in the early 1970s but then quit music, knowing nothing about his fame on another continent. Though his records had failed to take off at home, a bootleg copy made it to South Africa, where it struck a chord with progressive young whites exasperated with the apartheid system.
The documentary was made by first-time director Malik Bendjelloul, who first heard of Rodriguez while travelling in Africa in 2006 and was fascinated by his story.

The award was accepted by Bendjelloul and producer Simon Chinn, who explained why Rodriguez did not attend the Oscars show at the Dolby Theatre. "He didn’t want to take any of the credit himself. That just about says everything about that man and his story that you want to know," Chinn said.

Neil Devereaux Nel