Every film submitted to the HotDocs festival is catalogued and reviewed for official screening. If it is not chosen to be screened during the festival, it is put in the Doc Shop catalogue.
Isabel Bader Theatre
During the festival, all of the docs submitted are put in a doc 'library' at Old Vic. Industry participants at the festival can book a viewing station and ask to see any of the docs in the DocShop. This way a film maker who was not screened during the festival has the opportunity to get their film in front of a programmer.
All morning I helped to find the docs that various industry delegates asked for. Many of the industry delegates are programmers for television or other media outlets around the world. It is incredible to see the number of docs submitted to the festival. It was encouraging to see how many media programmers came by to review docs. The official selections were frequently requested but many other docs were requested as well. Every time someone requested a film that I liked, I was happy for the film maker. It was encouraging to see people request to see Our Own Private Bin Laden or Arctic Son. Both have an important message for a wider audience.
In the evening I saw
Fatherland
A well made, emotional documentary. Born after the war, the film maker Manfred Baecker emigrated from Germany to Canada and started a family here. Like all Canadians, his son considers himself half German - Canadian. The film maker wanted his son to understand that part of Germany's heritage is its legacy during WW II. Manfred visits his father, a German WWII veteran, to discuss the role he played in the war. What his father knew and did not know about the Holocaust. This doc was well made and had an interesting topic. It gave this topic the depth of discussion that it deserved. My only criticism is that in a few points it felt a bit scripted, especially when Manfred's son and friends were on screen. But it did not detract too much from the doc. Highly recommended. Watch for it on the History channel.
Waiting in line at the Isabel Bader theatre
Uganda Rising: When Elephants Fight
The Hon. Lloyd Axworthy challenged a group of film makers to go to Uganda and document the humanitarian disaster that is occurring there. The film makers did so and when they interviewed Ugandans, they asked the film makers to tell their story, to not let the world forget about them. And they kept their promise. Uganda Rising is a powerful documentary, difficult to watch and accept the scale of disaster that is occurring. Most disturbing is the routine use of child soldiers in Uganda to fight a bloody civil war. The doc does a good job of providing some context for the conflict. However, the style of the doc with an unseen narrator was hard to follow at times. I would have preferred a more personal narration. See this doc. It is saddening to think that after all the reflection on the humanitarian disaster that occurred during WWII (see above), we all still allow these disasters to occur in the world.