The Hot Docs Festival is back for its 32nd edition in Toronto.
Over two weeks, 113 documentaries from 47 countries will be screened. That’s fewer than last year’s 165. Around a quarter are made in Canada.
(See below for a few films we’re looking forward to.)
The iconic Hot Docs Cinema on Bloor Street was closed for the winter, except for private events, in a cost-cutting measure.
The future of the theatre, sitting on a prime piece of real estate, is a big long-term question for Hot Docs. They’ve been trying to get other organizations to pay to use it, including schools, with limited success.
Immediately after last year’s festival, executive director Marie Nelson left the organization. Nelson was living in Washington, D.C., while running Hot Docs.
A new executive director was named just before this year’s festival lineup was announced. Diana Sanchez took the lead role on March 31.
Sanchez most recently led the first season of the University of Toronto’s Pop-Up Cinematheque, and has worked at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), the Miami Film Festival, Rotterdam Film Festival and the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival.
The board of directors also saw major turnover.
We’ll see if Sanchez, the staff and the new board can re-establish Hot Docs as a vibrant year-round hub for Canadian documentary film and film workers.
Scotiabank’s last year as sponsor
Scotiabank has been a target of the pro-Palestine movement because the bank held the largest international investment in Israeli weapons-maker Elbit Systems. Elbit makes drones used to kill children in Gaza, among many other weapons.
Several directors of films screening at Hot Docs 2024 criticized the bank, which was the festival’s lead sponsor.
Under pressure from No Arms in the Arts and associated campaigns, Scotiabank partially divested from Elbit, but maintains a larger stake in the company than most banks.
Hot Docs publicist Bill Alexander confirms to The Grind that 2025 will be the last year Scotiabank sponsors the festival. It was still listed as a sponsor on Hot Docs’ website as of March, but Alexander says “Scotiabank has opted to waive its recognition benefits at this year’s festival.”
(Hot) Docs that caught our eye
(In alphabetical order)
#skoden A history of the Indigenous #skoden meme. (dir. Damien Eagle Bear)
2000 Meters to Andriivka Follow-up to Oscar winner 20 Days in Mariupol. (dir. Mstyslav Chernov)
Aisha’s Story Passing down Palestinian recipes through generations in a refugee camp in Jordan. (dir. Elizabeth Vibert)
An American Pastoral Culture wars playing out in a small-town Pennsylvania school board. (dir. Auberi Edler)
Apocalypse in the Tropics Story of Brazil’s religious rightwing and Bolsonaro’s coup. (dir. Petra Costa)
Climate in Therapy Climate scientists go together to a therapy retreat and slowly open up emotionally. (dir. Nathan Grossman)
Coexistence, My Ass! Follows anti-Zionist Israeli comedian Noam Shuster Eliassi. Is it PACBI compliant? Will it work? We’ll see. (dir. Amber Fares)
Cutting Through Rocks The first woman elected in an Iranian village. Sundance Grand Jury Winner. Motorcycles. (dirs. Sara Khaki, Mohammadreza Eyni)
The Dating Game Attend a seven-day intensive dating camp in China. (dir. Violet Du Feng)
Deaf President Now! A historic disability justice fight at a U.S. university. (dirs. Nyle DiMarco, Davis Guggenheim)
Delta Dawn Short film about an Indigenous wrestler from Prince George in the ’80s-’90s. (dir. Asia Youngman)
Endless Cookie Psychedelic storytelling about family, (mis)remembering childhood, Toronto and northern Manitoba. (dirs. Seth Scriver, Peter Scriver)
Facing War Follows the head of NATO around. Propaganda but interesting inside view. (dir. Tommy Gulliksen)
Heightened Scrutiny ACLU’s trans rights fight. (dir. Sam Feder)
How Deep Is Your Love Exploring the depths of the Pacific Ocean, threatened by deep sea mining. (dir. Eleanor Mortimer)
The Flowers Stand Silently Witnessing Palestinian archive short film with the earliest colour footage of the region. (dir. Theo Panagopoulos)
I Died Three Tsotsil women in Chiapas, Mexico, with connections to the Zapatistas. (dir. Ana Ts’uyeb)
Khartoum Five lives in Sudan’s war-torn capital. (dirs. Phil Cox, Ibrahim Ahmed, Anas Saeed, Timeea Ahmed, Rawia Alhag)
The Last Ambassador Afghanistan’s only woman ambassador since 2021. (dir. Natalie Halla)
Life After A critical take on MAiD and assisted suicide. (dir. Reid Davenport)
The Longer You Bleed About compassion fatigue from watching war on social media. Ukraine-focused. (dir. Ewan Waddell)
Mr. Nobody Against Putin
Teacher looks at propaganda in Russian schools supporting Putin’s war. (dir. David Borenstein)
Mundurukuyü – The Forest of the Fish Women Munduruku women in Brazil telling their story, defending their land. (dirs. Aldira Akay, Beka Munduruku, Rilcélia Akay)
My Boyfriend the Fascist C’mon, what!?! (dir. Matthias Lintner)
Night Watches Us Short film about the police murder of a young father in Montreal. With music, dance, spoken word. (dir. Stefan Verna)
Parade: Queer Acts of Love & Resistance Canadian archive film, fascinating footage. (dir. Noam Gonick)
Queer As Punk Gay Muslim punk band in Malaysia. (dir. Yihwen Chen)
Saints and Warriors The legendary All Native Basketball Tournament. (dir. Patrick Shannon)
Shifting Baselines Privatization of space exploration, space tourism, ecological impacts. (dir. Julien Elie)
Spare My Bones, Coyote! Risking death along the Mexico-U.S. border. (dir. Jonah Malak)
The Tree of Authenticity Congo history through the lens of landscape. (dir. Sammy Baloji)
Ultras Football (soccer) subcultures. (dir. Ragnhild Ekner)
Yalla Parkour A kid doing parkour in Gaza. (dir. Areeb Zuaiter)
This article appeared in the 2025 April/May issue.
