You’re Soaking In It (Canada, 75 min.) Dir. Scott Harper Programme: Democrazy (World Premiere) Don’t be confused by the opening reel of You’re Soaking In It. A trailer advertising the documentary begins this work by Scott Harper (The Secret Life of Pigeons) and while it probably makes a few curious heads turn towards the
Shiners (Canada, 78 minutes) Dir. Stacey Tenenbaum Programme: Canadian Spectrum (World Premiere) One of the traditional roles of shoe shiners, like barbers or hairdressers, is story telling: relaying neighbourhood news and information, comings and goings and passing the time. Montreal director Stacy Tenenbaum’s film finds a handful of personalities from around the world who
Living the Game (Japan, 88 minutes) Dir. Takao Gotsu Programme: Magnificent Obsessions (International Premiere) A documentary about champions who sit and twiddle their thumbs and fingers, Living the Game explores the tournament rivalries and star personalities of the video game Streetfighter. While Japanese director Takao Gutsu does little to explain the intense commitment of
A Room of Her Own: Rai Naito and Light (Japan, 87 minutes) Dir. Yuko Nakamura Programme: Made in Japan (North American Premiere) An art film, an anxiety therapy diary and a benign stalk-umentary about a reclusive artist and her adoring fan, Yuko Nakamura’s film about artist Rai Naito is an oddity. Delicately shot and
Raise Your Arms and Twist, Documentary of NMB48 (Japan, 95 min.) Dir. Atsushi Funahashi Programme: Made in Japan (Toronto Premiere) Atsushi Funahashi’s film Raise Your Arms and Twist explores the pop culture phenomenon of Japanese teen idols: singing and dancing young girls with huge, enthusiastic followings. The girls strive for status within their own
The Lives of Thérèse (Les Vies de Thérèse) (France, 55 min.) Dir. Sébastien Lifshitz Programme: Singular Sensation(s) (Toronto Premiere) How does one depict real death on screen? Filming the final days of Thérèse Clerc, a French feminist and LGBT activist, director Sébastien Lifshitz helps his subject tackle two taboos: aging and dying. Les vies
The notion that an Indigenous spelling bee competition could serve as the cohesive force to unite disparate First Nations children across Canada under one nation, as the title of Hot Docs’s 2017 opening film suggests, is perhaps the most obvious of all the liberal consensus threads.
The next time you walk down Gerrard Street, take note of the bright sparkly motorcycle parked on the south side of the street just opposite Allan Gardens. The bike marks the spot for Paddy Alridge’s speciality boutique Take a Walk on the Wild Side, which creates a safe and easygoing space for the cross-dressing men of
Sunday Beauty Queen (Hong Kong, Philippines, Japan. 95 minutes) Dir: Baby Ruth Villarama Programme: World Showcase (Canadian Premiere) On Sundays in Hong Kong, many Filipino domestic workers enjoy preparing and staging beauty pageants. What initially seems like a quirky subculture turns out to be a more substantial subject in Sunday Beauty Queen, a big-hearted
The Challenge (France/Italy 70 minutes) Dir Yuri Ancarini Programme: Magnificent Obsessions (Canadian Premiere) Decadence has rarely looked as gorgeous as it does in The Challenge, Italian video artist and filmmaker Yuri Ancarini’s film, which is nominally about a falconry contest among the super-wealthy sheikhs in the world’s wealthiest per capita country, Quatar. Though the