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, brining 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.
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.
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.
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 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.
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 suppored Canadian documentary projects with production grants of up to $20,000. To date, 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.
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.
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.
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.
