The Pickup Game (UK/Canada, 96 min.) Dir.: Barnaby O’Connor, Matthew O’Connor Programme: Making Believe (World Premiere) The pickup industry generates over a billion dollars a year teaching men how to “seduce” women with manipulation tactics. But despite The Pickup Game being intended as an exposé on the industry and its culture, little is revealed, or analyzed. Well
Hope Frozen (Thailand, 75 min.) Dir. Pailin Wedel Programme: International Spectrum (World Premiere) The death of a child must be an incredibly difficult event for a parent. Letting go of a life one brought into the world seems incredibly cruel and unfair for a parent to have to do. For parents Sahatorn and Nareerat Naovaratpong,
Buddy (Netherlands, 86 min.) Dir. Heddy Honigmann Programme: Special Presentations You can hardly go wrong with any decent documentary about dogs. Add the wisdom and technique of veteran Peru-born, Dutch filmmaker Heddy Honigmann and you have an unbeatable recipe for a combination of an artful and crowd-pleasing film. Honigmann, the winner of the Outstanding Achievement
Prophecy (UK, 82 min.) Dir. Charlie Paul Programme: Artscapes (International Premiere Take a gander at Peter Howson’s exquisite painting “Prophecy,” for this might be the only time you will see it. The grand canvas of the big screen provides a wonderfully unique view of the making of a masterpiece as director Charlie Paul observes the
"When you look at the story of the Lehman Brothers, it’s quite pessimistic. The antidote, like everything, has to come from the government. It’s not going to come from the bankers," says director Jennifer Deschamps.
On the Inside of a Military Dictatorship (Denmark/France, 93 min.) Dir. Karen Stokkendal Poulsen Programme: International Spectrum (International Premiere) Aung San Suu Kyi, once an icon for freedom and democracy, has fallen from grace. The political prisoner turned Myanmar’s civil leader has been stripped of her honorary Canadian citizenship and her Freedom of Paris Award
Cavebirds (Canada, 81 minute.) Dir Emily Gan Programme: Canadian Spectrum (World Premiere) Montreal-based Emily Gan’s debut feature is a first-person essay film around an unusual subject: bird spit. To be more specific, the saliva of small swallow-like birds, which in hardened form is the prized ingredient in the Chinese traditional delicacy of bird’s nest soup.
Prey (Canada, 85 min) Dir. Matt Gallagher Programme: Canadian Spectrum (World Premiere) The subject of Prey is a civil lawsuit against the Basilian Fathers of Toronto, which took place last year, over their part in concealing and abetting William Hodgson “Hod” Marshall, a Catholic priest, high school teacher and serial sexual abuser, who died in 2014 at
Hot Docs 2019 [4369] [tara-hakim] Hakim, Tara _Beloved_ is a feast for the eyes and heart. {image_1} Beloved (Iran, 54 min.) Dir. Yaser Talebi Programme: World Showcase (Canadian Premiere) Beautifully filmed with an unlikely subject, Beloved is a feast for the eyes and heart. Directed and filmed by Yaser Talebi, the film follows Firouzrh Khordishi, an eighty-two-year-old
Our Dance of Revolution (Canada, 102 min.) Dir. Phillip Pike Programme: Canadian Spectrum (World Premier) At last, there is a documentary that does justice to the influential LGBTQ+ activists of colour who helped shape Toronto’s political landscape. Phillip Pike has gathered archival footage and some of the community’s best minds and most passionate advocates to tell