Hot Docs is excited to announce the full lineup of new documentary features that will screen in this yearâs Festivalâs Special Presentations program, a stellar lineup of films that promise to inspire, inform, and entertain Festival audiences. Titles in this program feature visionary filmmakers, intriguing subjects, and riveting storytelling. The 2024 Hot Docs Festival will take place April 25 to May 5, 2024 in cinemas across Toronto.
The 2024 Special Presentations program will delve into narratives of power, corruption and tragedy,
offering a critical lens on societal issues. Additionally, it will turn the camera onto celebrated artists and
filmmakers themselves, providing audiences with intimate insights into their lives and creative
processes. The program will also transport audiences on immersive journeys into the worlds of BASE
jumping, magic, psychics, and cats, enticing them to explore a captivating array of diverse and
fascinating subjects.
World premieres include Red Fever, which sees Cree filmmaker Neil Diamond travel to the four corners
of Turtle Island and across Europe to explore the worldâs fascination with Native Americans; American
Cats: The Good, the Bad, and the Cuddly, in which hilarious Full Frontal with Samantha Bee
correspondent Amy Hoggart explores the controversial practice of declawing cats; The Ride Ahead, an
expansion of co-director Samuel Habibâs short film My Disability Roadmap (Honourable Mention, Best
International Short Documentary, Hot Docs Festival 2022), exploring a typical 21-year-old itching to
move out, start a career and find loveâall while navigating life with a disability; Lost in the Shuffle,
which follows world champion magician Shawn Farquhar as he simultaneously devises a new trick and
delves into a medieval murder cold case; and Le Mans 55: The Unauthorized Investigation, which
explores the tragic Le Mans race in 1955 where more than 80 spectators were killed.
Hot Docs 2024 will also see the International Premiere of the thrilling new National Geographic doc Fly,
in which incredible cinematography and all-access storytelling follow three couples whose passion for
BASE jumping means theyâll risk everything for the rush of feeling alive; and the North American
Premiere of Michel Gondry, Do It Yourself, an intimate look at the music video director and filmmakerâs
life, work and creative process.
2024 Special Presentations will also include the Canadian premieres of Power, examining the history,
scale and social effects policing has had on the United States and its culture; Black Box Diaries, which
sees journalist and filmmaker Shiori Ito take on one of the most powerful institutions in Japan to
prosecute her high-profile sexual assailant in a landmark legal case; Union, in which a group of Amazon
workers on New York Cityâs Staten Island take on one of the worldâs largest and most influential
companies in the fight to unionize; Never Look Away, the directorial debut of Lucy Lawless that follows
CNN combat camerawoman Margaret Moth, whose appetite for danger is challenged following a lifechanging injury; Look Into My Eyes, acclaimed filmmaker Lana Wilsonâs new film featuring an eclectic
group of New York City psychics; Born Hungryâthe latest from acclaimed Canadian filmmaker Barry
Avrichâchronicles the rags-to-riches tale of Sash Simpson, a runaway child from the streets of India,
who was adopted into a Toronto family with 31 siblings before becoming a world-renowned chef; and
Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger, in which Martin Scorsese shares his lifelong love
affair with the âsubversive commercial moviesâ of filmmakers Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger,
whose collaboration thrived in the adversity of WWII.
Descriptions for films in the Special Presentations program appear below. In many cases, filmmakers will
be in attendance for post-screening discussions. For more information on the program visit
http://hotdocs.ca/festivals/hot-docs-festival/announcements.
AMERICAN CATS: THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE CUDDLY
D: Todd Bieber | P: Grace Leeson | USA | 2024 | 88 min | World Premiere
Ontario is the only province in Canada without a ban on cat declawing. Amy Hoggart, the hilarious
correspondent from Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, cracks jokes, cuddles kittens and attacks this
controversial practice using satire to expose a heart-wrenching catspiracy.
BLACK BOX DIARIES
D: Shiori Ito | P: Eric Nyari, Hanna Aqvilin | Japan, UK, USA | 2024 |âŻ104 min | Canadian Premiere
Journalist Shiori Ito takes on one of the most powerful institutions in Japan to prosecute her high-profile
sexual assailant in a landmark legal case. Using personal footage and hidden cameras, Ito puts it all on
the line for justice.
BORN HUNGRY
D: Barry Avrich | P: Jay Hennick, Mark Selby, Barry Avrich | Canada | 2024 | 77 min | Canadian Premiere
The true rags to riches tale of Sash Simpson, a runaway child from the streets of India, who was adopted
into a Toronto family with 31 siblings before becoming a world-renowned chef.
FLY
D: Shaul Schwarz, Christina Clusiau | P: Christina Clusiau, Shaul Schwarz | USA | 2023 |âŻ106 min |
International Premiere
To stand on the edge and jump into the wind, one must be willing to lose everything. That could mean the love of your life, or the life you love. Three couples in the world of BASE jumping risk everything to
feel alive.
LE MANS 55: THE UNAUTHORIZED INVESTIGATION
D: Emmanuel ReyĂŠ | P: Isabelle Dagnac | France | 2023 |âŻ90 min |âŻWorld Premiere
The Le Mans race in 1955 made history through tragedy when more than 80 spectators were killed.
Uncover the story of the crash that took the lives of so many and, to this day, looms over the world of
motorsports.
LOOK INTO MY EYES
D: Lana Wilson | P: Kyle Martin, Lana Wilson | USA | 2023 |âŻ105 min | Canadian Premiere
In this unique journey into the human desire for connection, acclaimed filmmaker Lana Wilson follows
an eclectic group of New York City psychics whose intimate readings reveal a kaleidoscopic view of
loneliness, connection and healing with humour and intrigue.
LOST IN THE SHUFFLE
D: Jon Ornoy | P: Jon Ornoy, Ana Carrizales | Canada | 2024 |âŻ100 min |âŻWorld Premiere
Pick a card, any card! World champion magician Shawn Farquhar delves into a medieval murder cold
case among Jacks, Queens and Kings as he devises a new trick inspired by the worldâs best sleight-ofhand artists.
MADE IN ENGLAND: THE FILMS OF POWELL AND PRESSBURGER
D: David Hinton | P: Matthew Wells, Nick Varley | UK | 2024 |âŻ131 min | Canadian Premiere
Martin Scorsese tells of his lifelong love affair with the movies of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger
and their âsubversive commercial movies.â Drawing on a rich array of archival material, Scorsese
explores their collaboration that thrived in the adversity of WWII.
MICHEL GONDRY, DO IT YOURSELF
D: François Nemeta | P: Olivier de Bannes, Robin Accard, Philippe Savine | France | 2023 |âŻ80 min |
North American Premiere
French filmmaker Michel Gondry re-invented the music video and challenged Hollywood with his
distinctive handmade visual style. Intimately documented, Gondryâs career and playful creative process
receive an overdue review, from his earliest music videos to his latest feature film at Cannes.
NEVER LOOK AWAY
D: Lucy Lawless | P: | New Zealand | 2024 |âŻ85 min | Canadian Premiere
CNN camerawoman Margaret Moth was facing down warâs inhumanity when one bullet changed
everything but her resolve. Debut filmmaker Lucy Lawless turns the cameraâs gaze on this
groundbreaking woman and her legacy.
POWER
D: Yance Ford | P: Sweta Vohra, Jess Devaney, Yance Ford, Netsanet Negussie | USA | 2024 |âŻ87 min |
Canadian Premiere
Part essay, interview and archival collage, Power traces the explosion of police power from the founding
of the U.S. to our present. Power makes the historical continuity of unchecked police power legibleâ
examining whoâs policed, whoâs protected and why.
RED FEVER
D: Neil Diamond, Catherine Bainbridge | P: Lisa M. Roth, Rebecca Lessard | Canada | 2024 |âŻ104 min
|âŻWorld Premiere
Cree filmmaker Neil Diamond travels to the four corners of Turtle Island and across Europe to explore
the worldâs fascination with Native Americans, recognizing the profound impact Indigenous people have
had in shaping modern Western culture.
THE RIDE AHEAD
D: Samuel Habib, Dan Habib | P: Dan Habib, Erica Lupinacci | USA | 2024 |âŻ97 min |âŻWorld Premiere
An expansion of his short film My Disability Roadmap, Samuel Habib is a typical 21-year-old, itching to
move out, start a career and find love. But âno one tells you how to be an adult, let alone an adult with a
disability.â
UNION
D: Brett Story, Stephen Maing | P: Samantha Curley, Mars Verrone, Martin DiCiccio | USA | 2024 |âŻ104
min | Canadian Premiere
The Amazon Labor Union (ALU)âa group of current and former Amazon workers on New York Cityâs
Staten Islandâtakes on one of the worldâs largest and most powerful companies in the fight to unionize.
More at hotdocs.ca.
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