Last Friday, at a reception hosted by Garvia Bailey, host of Good Morning Toronto! on Jazz.FM91, at the Shangri-La Hotel, 12 awards and $61,000 in cash and prizes were presented to Canadian and international filmmakers, including awards for Hot Docs festival films in competition and those recognizing emerging and established filmmakers. READ MORE
This year Hot Docs Board of Directors chose Patricio Guzmán as the recipient of its 2015 Outstanding Achievement Award. As part of the honour, Hot Docs held a retrospective during the festival celebrating Patricio Guzmán’s distinguished career as a director and writer. The Hot Docs Outstanding Achievement Award is presented annually by the Hot Docs Board of Directors in recognition of a filmmaker’s enduring contribution to the documentary form. READ MORE
Continuing with my Hot Docs coverage, I had the pleasure of speaking with Daughter Of The Lake director Ernesto Cabellos Damián, along with Nélida Ayay Chilón, the central subject of this film. READ MORE
First Nations activist and lawyer Caleb Behn arrived to Toronto this week to attend the International Premiere of the documentary Fractured Land, at Hot Docs. Caleb is the focal point of this film. Filmmakers Fiona Rayher and Damien Gillis have been following Behn for the past four years to learn more about him, his traditional ways, and about his legal work to advocate for Indigenous people against major extracting companies in Northern B.C. READ MORE
With Hot Docs beginning this week, it seems fitting to share part two of my Top Picks at this year’s festival. This second part highlights documentaries from Latin America, which I believe expose its culture, its struggles, its hopes, but also its talents. READ MORE
Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival‘s upcoming 22nd edition, starting April 23 until May 3, is just around the corner. From 2,724 film submissions, this year’s slate will present 210 titles from 45 countries in 12 screening programs. Like previous years, the festival has a stellar lline-up of films to please all documentary fans. READ MORE
