Hot Docs

This investigation takes us around the world to examine human reproduction from a variety of different perspectives, from patients and researchers, to egg donors and surrogate mothers, to laboratories and clinics. The hopes and wishes of future parents mesh with research on how to optimize the human genome in the face of an ever accelerating rate of progress. FUTURE BABY presents us with a visually stunning snapshot of a future which has already arrived, a snapshot that is as disturbing as it is informative.

Redefining the traditional scope of documentary film in an electronic age, 65_RedRoses leaves viewers with a new appreciation of life and the digital world. This personal and touching journey takes an unflinching look into the lives of Eva Markvoort and her two online friends who are all battling cystic fibrosis. Unable to meet in person because of the spread of infections and super bugs, the girls have become each other’s lifelines through the Internet, providing unconditional love, support and understanding long after visiting hours are over.

AUTUMN GOLD tells the life-affirming story of five athletes in their preparation for the Track and Field World Championships. Their toughest challenge is their age: these potential world champions are between 80 and 100. It is a competition against age and other hurdles of life. They want to stand on the podium for one last time. Who will make it to Finland? Who will fight to the bitter end? A story of winning and losing, of setbacks and triumphs. A homage to life how it can be: not smooth and wrinkle-free but full of humor and determination.

In the early hours of March 24th 1989 the Exxon Valdez oil supertanker runs aground in Alaska. It discharges millions of gallons of crude oil. The incident becomes the biggest environmental catastrophe in North American history. For twenty years, Riki Ott and the fishermen of the little town of Cordova, Alaska have waged the longest legal battle in U.S. history against the world’s most powerful oil company – ExxonMobil. They tell us all about the environmental, social and economic consequences of the black wave that changed their lives forever. This is the legacy of the Exxon Valdez.

Traveling along the Pacific North West coastline from LA to Vancouver, the film showcases the pioneers of West Coast Modernist Architecture, and the homes that have become their legacies.
Stepping inside the most inspired dwellings on the west coast, we feel how the light and space of a classic Modernist home can work in collaboration with the natural environment, taking us back to the basics of true living – a sense of place, light, and a deep connection to the earth.

CRIMES OF HONOUR documents the terrible reality of femicide- the belief that a girl’s body is the property of the family, and any suggestion of sexual impropriety must be cleansed with her blood. This absorbing, heart-wrenching film introduces us to some of the women in hiding from their families, as well as a brother who describes his reasons for killing the sister he loved. Also profiled are a handful of women who have committed themselves to the protection of young women in danger of losing their lives. This film explains that honor killings have no basis in Islamic teachings, yet are disturbingly on the rise.

In Abkhazia, a post-Soviet “frozen conflict” zone, patriotism runs deep. While Sports Minister Rafael is busy organizing an international domino event to put his motherland on the world’s map, his beloved Russian wife is just an unwelcome foreigner. A black sea black comedy with socio-political commentary.

Dreamland tells the story of a nation with abundance of choices gradually becoming caught up in a plan to turn its wilderness and beautiful nature into a massive system of hydro-electric and geothermal power plants with dams and reservoirs, built to power the increasing heavy industry that will soon make Iceland the largest aluminum smelter in the world.
How much unspoiled nature should we preserve and what do we sacrifice for clean, renewable energy? Dreamland gradually turns into a disturbing picture of corporate power taking over nature and small communities. It’s the dark side of green energy.

As dawn breaks and most of the city still sleeps, the long-time merchants of Vancouver’s Chinatown are hard at work. They haul out their produce stands and set up their makeshift vendor carts in preparation for what they hope will be a busy day. But, like many ethnic enclaves in urban centres across North America, their clientele is dwindling. This once vibrant and thriving neighbourhood is in flux as new condo developments and non-Chinese businesses move in and gradually overtake the declining hub of the Chinese community.

The Punk Syndrome is a documentary film about Finnish punk-rock band Pertti Kurikka’s Name Day, formed in 2009 by four developmentally disabled men. The film follows the band’s journey from their rehearsal room to cult success. It shows the love and hate between the bandmates, the crying and the laughter, the struggles and the triumphs.