In celebration of revered poet Nikki Giovanni, who passed late last year at the age of 81, For Viola proudly presents a community screening of a rich and lyrical documentary portrait, crafted by veteran filmmakers Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson. Winner of the 2023 Sundance Grand Jury Prize for U.S. documentary, Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project is a vibrant late-life tribute to the legendary author and activist. Brewster and Stephenson take inspiration from Giovanni’s Afrofuturist-feminist philosophy, remixing a wealth of archival material to craft a dynamic collage that defies talking-head conventions, juxtaposing the elder Giovanni’s reflections on family and legacy with the fiery audacity and precocious wit of her youthful verses. A leader of the Black Arts Movement alongside contemporaries Audre Lorde and Maya Angelou, she also emerged from the Civil Rights era as a key public intellectual, following in the footsteps of her hero James Baldwin—seen here in a thrilling televised conversation he shared with Giovanni in 1971. Meshing such magnetic moments with intimate verité captured in her final years, Going to Mars is every bit the celestial send-off that Giovanni deserves.
- Film note by Julian Carrington, For Viola Curator
This screening will be followed by an in-person Q&A with filmmakers Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson, moderated by Toronto-based critic and curator Sarah-Tai Black.
TICKETS
General: FREE
Members: FREE
While this screening is presented free of charge, please consider a donation of $10 in recognition of the value of the work presented, and in honour of Viola Desmond, featured on the $10 banknote, at checkout. Half the proceeds will be shared directly with the filmmakers, who also receive screening fees.
For Viola: Hot Docs' screening series centering Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC)-led stories and filmmakers, named in honour of Canadian civil rights icon Viola Desmond. This series seeks to affirm Hot Docs as a space of inclusion for BIPOC creators and audience members alike. In order to minimize barriers to audience participation, all screenings in this series are free of charge.
For Viola is supported by
.png)
Read Hot Docs' Anti-Racism statement here.