Legacy Funds

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Stories We Tell (D: Sarah Polley)

Corus-Hot Docs Funds

Established in 2008, the $4-million Funds provided producation grants and no-interest development loans to projects at critical stages. Over eight years, it supported 147 documentary projects from filmmakers across Canada, bringing diverse perspectives to the screen. During the Funds’ lifetime, 60% of projects were female-led productions, defined as any film with a female director or producer.

CrossCurrents Doc Funds

Promoting inclusion in the documentary space, the CrossCurrents Doc Funds fostered storytelling from within groups whose perspectives have been historically underrepresented.

CrossCurrents International Doc Fund: For interactive, short and feature-length doc projects by filmmakers from, and telling stories of, underrepresented and marginalized communities around the world. The short/interactive strand was supported by the R&M Lang Foundation, which initiated the Fund in 2013 and set a precedent for inclusive documentary funding; feature-length strand was supported by Panicaro Foundation.
CrossCurrents Canada Doc Fund: For short and feature-length documentaries from emerging and sophomore Canadian filmmakers who are Indigenous, Francophone, Deaf and/or have a disability, racialized and/or persons of colour. Generously supported by Netflix.

CrossCurrents International Doc Fund recipient Against the Tide (D: Sarvnik Kaur) premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and has won the Special Jury Award for Verite Filmmaking in World Cinema Documentary Competition.

CrossCurrents International Doc Fund recipient Children of the Mist (D: Diem Ha Le) premiered and won the award for Best Directing at IDFA 2022, and was shortlisted for the Academy Awards.

someone taking a photo of three people with their phone

CrossCurrents International Doc Fund recipient Midnight Traveler (D: Hassan Fazili) won an Emmy for Outstanding Current Affairs Documentary and received an honourable mention at Sheffield Doc/Fest. It also premiered at Sundance Film Festival.

CrossCurrents Canada Doc Fund recipient Kímmapiiyipitssini: The Meaning of Empathy (D: Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers) won the Emerging Canadian Filmmaker Award and a Rogers Audience Award at Hot Docs 2021.

Honest ed's storefront with "theres no place like this place" sign

CrossCurrents Canada Doc Fund recipient There's No Place Like This Place, Anyplace (D: Lulu Wei) won a Rogers Audience Award at Hot Docs 2020 Festival.

CrossCurrents Canada Doc Fund recipient Damascus Dreams (D: Émilie Serri) premiered at Rotterdam Film Festival.

A speaker speaking into a mic surrounded by the Caribbean Carnival

CrossCurrents Canada Doc Fund recipient Becoming a Queen (D: Chris Strikes) premiered at Roxbury International Film Festival.

CrossCurrents International Doc Fund recipient Cutting Through Rocks (D: Sara Khaki, Mohammad Reza Eyni) was a Sundance Institute Documentary Fund grantee.

CrossCurrents International Doc Fund recipient The Art of Living in Danger (D: Mina Keshavarz) premiered at IDFA 2020 and won the Mecenat Award at Busan International Film Festival.

CrossCurrents International Doc Fund recipient Two Gods (D: Zeshawn Ali) premiered at Hot Docs 2020 and was selected for Good Pitch USA.

Hot Docs-Blue Ice Docs Fund

The Hot Docs-Blue Ice Docs Fund was established to share the stories of and contribute to the next generation of African documentary talent. Over 15 years, the Fund invested $1.5M in over 100 African documentary projects from 32 countries.

In addition to the grant, Hot Docs-Blue Ice fellows participated in a year-long mentorship program, which included private filmmaker labs at Hot Docs and the Durban FilmMart/Durban International Film Festival or other festivals and markets in Africa. The Fund also collaborated with The New York Times—Op-Docs to commission shorts from African filmmakers to showcased on The Times’s Emmy® Award–winning online forum.

An elderly woman wearing a black head scarf

The Mother of All Lies (D: Asmae El Moudir) received Best Director Award for Cannes’ Un Certain Regard prize and was co-recipient of the festival’s Best Documentary Prize 2023. The film is also in the official selection at TIFF 2023.

Milisuthando (D: Milisuthando Bongela) premiered at Sundance Film Festival 2023, and was selected for Hot Docs 2023 and Sheffield Doc Fest 2023.

A person sits at the bow of a canoe overlooking calm waters

Eat Bitter (D: Pascale Appora-Gnekindy, Ningyi Sun) premiered at CPH:DOX 2023, and was selected for Visions du Réel 2023 and Hot Docs 2023.

African Moot (D: Shameela Seedat) premiered at Hot Docs 2022 Festival.

Softie (D: Sam Soko) won the World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award for Editing at Sundance 2020, was shortlisted for the IDA Best Documentary Feature, and premiered at Hot Docs 2020.

Downstream to Kinshasa (D: Dieudo Hamadi) was an official selection at the 2020 Cannes Film Festival, won the Amplify Voices Award at TIFF 2020 and a golden dove at DOK Leipzig 2020.

The Letter (D: Maia Lekow, Chris King) was Kenya's official submission for the Oscars 2021.

Lift Like a Girl (D: Mayye Zayed) premiered at TIFF 2020 and won a golden dove at DOK Leipzig 2020.

Amal (D: Mohamed Siam) premiered at IDFA and Hot Docs.

Days of Cannibalism (D: Teboho Edkins) premiered at Berlinale 2020.

The Colonel's Stray Dogs (D: Khalid Shamis) was an official selection at Hot Docs 2021, Encounters Film Festival and Durban International Film Festival.

The Last Shelter (D: Ousmane Zoromé Samassékou) was an official selection at Hot Docs 2020, Encounters Film Festival and Durban International Film Festival.

Buddha in Africa (D: Nicole Schafer) was an official selection at Hot Docs 2019 and Durban International Film Festival.

Hot Docs Partners

This $2.6-million financing initiative connected select groups of committed investors with feature-length documentary productions seeking financing. A lead investor in Hot Docs Partners, Toronto-based Blue Ice Docs committed to matching investments, on a case-by-case basis, made by other partners.

a silhouette of someone holding a kid up in the air

Softie (D: Sam Soko, Kenya): One of Kenya's most outspoken journalists, Boniface “Softie” Mwangi's ideals are tested when he must choose between country and those closest to him while running for office.

Influence (D: Diana Neille, Richard Poplak; South Africa, Canada)

Fireball: Visitors from Darker Worlds (D: Werner Herzog, Clive Oppenheimer; USA, UK): About meteors and comets and their influence on ancient religions and other cultural and physical impacts they’ve had on Earth.

Once Upon a Time in Venezuela (D: Anabel Rodríguez Ríos; P: Sepp R. Brudermann; Venezuela, UK, Brazil, Austria)

The Lost Leonardo (D: Andreas Koefoed; Denmark, France): The inside story behind the Salvator Mundi, the most expensive painting ever sold at $450 million, presumed to be a long-lost masterpiece by Leonardo da Vinci.

Hot Docs Ted Rogers Fund

Founded in 2016, this $1-million fund supported Canadian documentary projects with production grants of up to $20,000. In total, the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Fund distributed $645,000 to 43 documentary projects.

One of Ours (D: Yasmine Mathurin) won the Special Jury Prize – Canadian Feature Documentary and was in the top 10 audience favourites at the 2021 Hot Docs Festival.

Subjects of Desire (D: Jennifer Holness) was selected as Big Ideas pick and ranked in the top 10 audience favourites at the 2021 Hot Docs Festival.

someone sitting on the floor between shelves

Blue Box (D: Michal Weits) was an official selection at the 2021 Hot Docs Festival.

Stateless (D: Michèle Stephenson) premiered at Tribeca Film Festival 2020, and won Special Jury Prize for Canadian Feature Documentary at Hot Docs 2020.

a group of people standing with food on a mountain

First We Eat (D: Suzanne Crocker) was a winner of the Rogers Audience Award at the 2020 Hot Docs Festival.

nîpawistamâsowin: We Will Stand Up (D: Tasha Hubbard) won Best Canadian Feature Documentary Award at the 2019 Hot Docs Festival, won three awards at RIDM, and won the audience choice award at Gimli Film Festival.

a fit woman standing in front of gym equipment

Transformer (D: Michael Del Monte) won the Rogers Audience Award for Best Canadian Documentary at the 2018 Hot Docs Festival.

The Heat: A Kitchen (R)evolution (D: Maya Gallus) was the opening night selection at the 2018 Hot Docs Festival.

It's Funny Because It's True

In 2021/22, this short documentary initiative gave five filmmakers the chance to bring to film their funniest real-life stories. Netflix supported each creator with $20,000 USD and providing mentorship and career development support by their documentary team. The five selected It's Funny Because It's True projects will premiered globally on Netflix's social channels.