Standing ovations greeted the judges' verdict Sunday that the documentary "The Cove" had won the prestigious U.S. Audience Award at the 25th annual Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.
The feature-length film documenting the annual killing with spears and knives of more than 2,500 dolphins driven into a cove at Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture, was selected as one of 16 finalists from 879 submissions in the category.
Directed by former National Geographic photographer Louis Psihoyos, "The Cove" was made secretly throughout 2007 using underwater microphones and high-definition cameras disguised as rocks, and with a camouflaged camera crew hidden on headlands.