#HOTDOCS: SPECIAL GUESTS ANNOUNCED FOR 2023 HOT DOCS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

HOT DOCS today have announced special guests to appear at the Festival this year!

From Hot Docs:
We’re delighted to welcome noteworthy guests and fascinating subjects to our 2023 Festival, taking place in Toronto April 27 to May 7. Special guests include Canada’s first female Jewish Supreme Court Judge Rosalie Abella; Indigo Girls’ Emily Saliers; Canadian YouTube pioneer, comedian, author, and television host Lilly Singh; bestselling author Gretchen Rubin; pioneering Black model and activist Bethann Hardison; trailblazing chef, food writer and editor Ruth Reichl; legendary journalist and podcaster Kara Swisher; prominent Greenlandic Inuk lawyer Aaju Peter; members of Canadian alt-rock band July Talk; and more. The Festival will also host over 186 of the world’s top documentary filmmakers to introduce their films and participate in post-screening audience Q&As

Featured guests are listed below. In most cases, the guests will be present at one or more screenings.

Aaju Peter from TWICE COLONIZED (D: Lin Alluna | P: Emile Hertling Péronard, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, Stacey Aglok MacDonald, Bob Moore | Denmark, Canada, Greenland | 2023 | 92 min) – Prominent Greenlandic Inuk lawyer and ardent defender of the rights of northern Indigenous people. In 2012, she received the Order of Canada.

Anna Maria Tremonti, Gavin Crawford, Falen Johnston, Matthew Amha and Kaitlin Prest from “THE STORY I NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD TELL”: A NIGHT OF SURPRISING STORIES WITH THE HOSTS OF CBC PODCASTS – Stars of the CBC’s hottest podcasts and Canada’s most gifted audio storytellers, who will gather on the Hot Docs Cinema stage for an intimate evening of live storytelling.

Bethann Hardison from INVISIBLE BEAUTY (D: Bethann Hardison, Frédéric Tcheng | P: Lisa Cortés, Paul Dallas | USA | 2023 | 115 min) – Pioneering Black model, agent, activist, and champion of racial diversity.

Emily Saliers from IT’S ONLY LIFE AFTER ALL (D: Alexandria Bombach | P: Kathlyn Horan, Jessica Devaney, Anya Rous, Alexandria Bombach | USA | 2023 | 123 min) – American singer-songwriter and member of iconic folk rock duo Indigo Girls.

Gretchen Rubin, special guest on THE HAPPINESS LAB – Bestselling author of “The Happiness Project,” podcaster, and speaker on topics related to happiness, habits, and human nature.

Kara Swisher from ON WITH KARA SWISHER – Renowned American journalist and host of the twice-weekly podcast from New York Magazine, where she picks the brains of the world’s leading thinkers from politics, tech, media and culture.

Dr. Laurie Santos from THE HAPPINESS LAB – Cognitive scientist and Professor of Psychology at Yale University, and host of the acclaimed mind-expanding and inspirational podcast about the science of happiness.

Latif Nasser (co-host) and Simon Adler (producer) from RADIOLAB – The award-winning show from WNYC Studios brings its insatiable curiosity to Hot Docs, presenting a thrilling live event based on its Mixtape series, a rich cultural history of the cassette tape.

Lilly Singh, special guest on ON WITH KARA SWISHER – Canadian YouTube pioneer, comedian, author, and television host.

Moby, executive producer of ROWDY GIRL (D: Jason Goldman | P: Jason Goldman | USA | 2022 | 72 min) – American musician, songwriter, singer, producer, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. (joining via Zoom)

Peter De Jager from TIME BOMB Y2K (D: Marley McDonald, Brian Becker | P: Brian Becker | USA | 2023 | 80 min) – South African-born Canadian computer engineer, best known for his Y2K early 1990s outcry warning.

Singers Peter Dreimanis and Leah Fay, guitarist Ian Docherty, bassist Josh Warburton, and drummers Danny Miles and Dani Nash from JULY TALK: LOVE LIVES HERE (D: Brittany Farhat | P: Peter Dreimanis, Leah Fay Goldstein | Canada | 2023 | 83 min) – Members of Toronto alt-rock band July Talk, who made headlines for staging live drive-in shows amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Justice Rosalie Abella from WITHOUT PRECEDENT: THE SUPREME LIFE OF ROSALIE ABELLA (D: Barry Avrich | P: Mark Selby, Barry Avrich, Rosemary Sadlier, Jonas Prince | Canada | 2023 | 84 min) – Canada’s first female Jewish Supreme Court Judge – a passionate advocate for the disabled community and visible minorities.

Ruth Reichl from FOOD AND COUNTRY (D: Laura Gabbert | P: Laura Gabbert, Ruth Reichl, Paula P. Manzanedo, Caroline Libresco | USA | 2023 | 99 min) – Trailblazing chef, food writer and editor; renowned for her food criticism at the Los Angeles Times and The New York Times.

Scaachi Koul and Sarah Hagi from SCAMFLUENCERS – Canadian culture writers and co-hosts of the Wondery smash hit podcast, unpacking epic stories of deception from the worlds of social media, fashion, finance, health, and wellness.