GAT PR is proud to be representing, Blue Ice Docs, Filmoption International, H2L Productions, KinoSmith, Latrine Dreams Productions, Northern Banner Releasing, pUNK Films, Trinetra Productions, and WG Film, at this year’s HOT DOCS CANADIAN INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FESTIVAL.
ADVOCATE – Directed by Rachel Leah Jones, Philippe Bellaïche
Canadian Premiere – Special Presentation – Canada, Israel, Switzerland | Distributor: Filmoption International
Lea Tsemel defends Palestinians: from feminists to fundamentalists, from nonviolent demonstrators to armed militants. As a Jewish-Israeli lawyer who has represented political prisoners for five decades, Tsemel, in her tireless quest for justice, pushes the praxis of a human rights defender to its limits. As far as most Israelis are concerned, she defends the indefensible. As far as Palestinians are concerned, she’s more than an attorney, she’s an ally. ADVOCATE follows Tsemel’s caseload in real time, including the high-profile trial of a 13-year-old boy — her youngest client to date — while also revisiting her landmark cases and reflecting on the political significance of her work and the personal price one pays for taking on the role of “devil’s advocate.” Directing duo Rachel Leah Jones and Philippe Bellaiche assume the privileged position of a fly on the wall of Tsemel’s practice, where a year of documenting is like gathering a lifetime of evidence.
Attending Hot Docs: Rachel Leah Jones
SCREENING AT HOT DOCS:
| Date | Time | Venue |
| Sun, Apr 28 | 6:00 PM | Scotiabank Theatre, Cinema 4 |
| Mon, Apr 29 | 3:30 PM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 2 |
| Sun, May 5 | 6:15 PM | Isabel Bader Theatre |
BUDDY – Directed by Heddy Honigmann
Canadian Premiere – Special Presentation – Netherlands | Distributor – Blue Ice Docs
In this poignant and carefully composed portrait of six guide dogs and their owners, Heddy Honigmann explores the close bond between animal and human. One of the owners is a now 86-year-old blind woman who reflects back upon all the dogs that have been at her side since she was 21. There are pictures of most of her dogs on the wall, though she’ll never see them herself. An autistic boy explains how his loyal friend Utah can tell when he’s upset. The wife of a war veteran suffering from PTSD explains that the guide dog Mister is probably the reason they’re still together. Honigmann questions the owners in her characteristic way—respectfully and with genuine concern rooted in a deep trust—about what the animals mean to them. Buddy is an ode to the fighting spirit of the main characters and a loving portrait of the deep bond between man and dog.
SCREENING AT HOT DOCS:
| Date | Time | Venue |
| Fri, Apr 26 | 3:15 PM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 1 |
| Sat, Apr 27 | 3:00 PM | Isabel Bader Theatre |
| Tue, Apr 30 | 10:30 AM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 3 |
THE DAUGHTER TREE – Written, produced, and directed by Rama Rau
World Premiere – Canadian Spectrum – Canada
The Daughter Tree is a cinematic character driven feature documentary with unprecedented access that explores the aftermath of a cultural preference for baby boys sweeping through interior India, through the eyes of a fearless Warrior midwife who counsels and advocates for baby girls, while a lone man in the Village of Men so called because no girl has been born here the past three decades goes on a quest to find a wife. The solution may just lie in a tiny village where a plan for saving baby girls is almost magical in its simplicity.
Attending Hot Docs: Rama Rau
Trailer: here
Clips: here
SCREENING AT HOT DOCS:
| Date | Time | Venue |
| Sat, Apr 27 | 6:30 PM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 2 |
| Tue, Apr 30 | 10:15 AM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 2 |
| Thu, May 2 | 9:00 PM | HART HOUSE Theatre |
GAZA – Directed by Garry Keane, Andrew McConnell
Canadian Premiere – Special Presentations – Canada | Distributor: Filmoption International
This elegantly shot and masterfully crafted portrait of Palestinian life offers a rare chance to be immersed in the heart of Gaza, as we glimpse behind the walls of this misunderstood land to get to know real people who inhabit it. Life moves in cycles in Gaza, and, in spite of everything, joy and humanity can be found in every corner of this mosaic of life.
Attending Hot Docs: Garry Keane, Andrew McConnell
Trailer: here
Clips: here
SCREENING AT HOT DOCS:
| Date | Time | Venue |
| Tue, Apr 30 | 6:00 PM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 2 |
| Wed, May 1 | 3:45 PM | Isabel Bader Theatre |
| Fri, May 3 | 3:45 PM | Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema |
GORDON LIGHTFOOT: IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND – Written and directed by Martha Kehoe and Joan Tosoni
World Premiere – Special Presentations – Canada | Distributor: KinoSmith
Insight Productions’ feature documentary Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind is an exploration of the career, music and influence of legendary Canadian musical icon Gordon Lightfoot. With unprecedented access to the artist, the film takes us from high school auditoriums in straight-laced, small town Ontario in the fifties, into the coffee houses of Yorkville and Greenwich Village in the sixties through the turbulent, substance-fueled arena shows of the seventies, to the present day. An intimate and emotional examination of the artist’s profound relationship to his music and Canadian roots, If You Could Read My Mind chronicles Lightfoot’s evolution from Christian choirboy to troubled troubadour to international star and beloved Canadian icon. The film will be released theatrically this summer and will be broadcast on CBC and CBC Doc Channel in late 2019.
Attending Hot Docs: Gordon Lightfoot, Martha Kehoe, Joan Tosoni
Clips: here
SCREENING AT HOT DOCS:
| Date | Time | Venue |
| Sat, Apr 27 | 6:45 PM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 1 |
| Tue, Apr 30 | 6:30 PM | Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema |
MR. TOILET: THE WORLD’S #2 MAN – Directed by Lily Zepeda
World Premiere – World Showcase – USA
To a stranger, he’s a guy obsessed with toilets, but to those who know him, he’s Jack Sim “Mr. Toilet,” a crusader in global sanitation. Born in the Singapore slums, Jack knows firsthand the agonies of not having a proper loo. Now, he’s dedicating his life to a crisis no one dares talk about: Shit. Using humor as his main weapon, he plunges into his biggest challenge yet when he is asked to secure 6 million toilets for the “Clean India” initiative. But with few resources and no help from the government, is epic project and reputation are in jeopardy.
Attending Hot Docs: Lily Zepeda, Jack Sim (Mr. Toilet)
Trailer: here
Clips: here
SCREENING AT HOT DOCS:
| Date | Time | Venue |
| Sat, Apr 27 | 5:45 PM | Scotiabank Theatre, Cinema 3 |
| Sun, Apr 28 | 1:00 PM | Isabel Bader Theatre |
| Mon, Apr 29 | 1:00 PM | Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema (Docs for Schools screening) |
| Sat, May 4 | 8:30 PM | Fox Theatre |
PIPE DREAMS – Directed by Stacey Tenenbaum
World Premiere – Artscapes – Canada – Canadian Distributor: Northern Banner Releasing
Pipe Dreams follows five young organists as they compete in Canada’s prestigious International Organ Competition (CIOC). Who will master the ‘king of instruments’ and come out victorious in Montreal? Pipe Dreams gives you an inside look into the wonderful world of competitive organ playing. From the quietest tinkling of a bell to the rumble of a locomotive… this is organ playing like you have never heard it before!
Attending Hot Docs: Stacey Tenenbaum, Yuan Shen (organist), Thomas Gaynor (organist), Alcee Chriss III (organist), Nick Cappozoli (organist)
Trailer: here
Clips: here
SCREENING AT HOT DOCS:
| Date | Time | Venue |
| Sun, Apr 28 | 3:15 PM | Scotiabank Theatre, Cinema 4 |
| Tue, Apr 30 | 9:00 PM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 3 |
| Fri, May 3 | 10:00 AM | Isabel Bader Theatre |
PUSH – Directed by Fredrik Gertten
North American Premiere – Special Presentations – Sweden
Housing prices are skyrocketing in cities around the world. Incomes are not. PUSH sheds light on a new kind of faceless landlord, our increasingly unliveable cities and an escalating crisis that has an effect on us all. This is not gentrification, it’s a different kind of monster. The film follows Leilani Farha, the UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, as she’s travelling the globe, trying to understand who’s being pushed out of the city and why. “I believe there’s a huge difference between housing as a commodity and gold as a commodity. Gold is not a human right, housing is,” says Leilani.
Attending Hot Docs: Fredrik Gertten, Leilani Farha (UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing)
Trailer: here
Clips: here
Social Media: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
SCREENING AT HOT DOCS:
| Date | Time | Venue |
| Fri, Apr 26 | 9:15 PM | Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema |
| Sat, Apr 27 | 4:00 PM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 1 |
| Wed, May 1 | 1:00 PM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 1 |
| Sat, May 4 | 9:15 PM | HART HOUSE Theatre |
WILLIE – Directed by Laurence Mathieu-Léger
World Premiere – Special Presentations – USA/Canada
Willie O’Ree changed hockey forever on Jan. 18, 1958. In the midst of America’s tumultuous fight to end Jim Crow and the birth of the civil rights movement, Willie – the descendant of escaped slaves – became the first black player to skate in a National Hockey League game. He was blind in one eye – an extraordinary secret that only his sister knew. He played 45 games in the NHL and then 22 years of minor league hockey. Later, Willie sold cars, managed fast food restaurants, and worked security at a hotel. When he was asked to become the NHL’s diversity ambassador in 1994, he was 60 years old. He took the job, and he has never stopped. Now, 60 years after Willie broke the NHL’s color barrier, a grassroots movement is working to get him into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Will he also break this barrier? WILLIE provides historical context and depth to O’Ree’s incredible journey. The film is a testament to the resilience and determination of a man empowered by his family’s legacy, and the people he has inspired along the way. His work is not done.
Attending Hot Docs: Laurence Mathieu-Léger, Bryant McBride, Willie O’Ree
Trailer: here
Clip: here
SCREENING AT HOT DOCS
| Date | Time | Venue |
| Mon, Apr 29 | 6:30 PM | Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema |
| Tue, Apr 30 | 10:00 AM | Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema (Docs for Schools) |
| Tue, Apr 30 | 4:30 PM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 1 |
| Fri, May 3 | 10:15 AM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 1 |
THE WORLD OR NOTHING – A film by Ingrid Veninger
World Premiere – Canadian Spectrum – Canada
The World or Nothing (El Mundo o Nada) is the first non-fiction feature film by award-winning Slovak-Canadian filmmaker, Ingrid Veninger. A portrait of 29-year-old Cuban twin brothers, Rubert and Rubildo Donation Dinza, which begins two-months after their arrival in Barcelona, Spain. The film explores the obsession and opportunity of today’s social media, the emotional cost of having big ambitions, the intimate bonds of sibling love, and the challenges of building a new life. For the brothers, “The World” means achieving one-million friends on social media, making their parents proud, starting a family, and gaining international recognition as a dancing, singing, performing duo. “Nothing” is not really an option.
Attending Hot Docs: Ingrid Veninger
Trailer: here
Clips: here
SCREENING AT HOT DOCS:
| Date | Time | Venue |
| Sat, Apr 27 | 8:45 PM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 3 |
| Sun, Apr 28 | 1:15 PM | TIFF Bell Lightbox 2 |
| Thu, May 2 | 3:00 PM | HART HOUSE Theatre |
