499 by Rodrigo Reyes
The Hot Docs documentary film festival has announced the winners of its 2020 edition, which includes several Latin American winners from Mexico, Dominican Republic, Argentina, and El Salvador.
Stateless / Apátrida was announced winner of the Special Jury Prize in the Canadian feature competition, with a cash prize of $2,500. A look at a young attorney’s grassroots campaign to protect citizenship rights when anti-Black legislation in the Dominican Republic strips them from people of Haitian descent. In a statement the jury said: “Director Michèle Stephenson has created a powerful and nuanced exploration of the lives and struggles of Dominicans of Haitian descent. The stories of those fighting for justice are woven together with evocative poetic sequences and intimate personal moments, resulting in a poignant portrait of people determined to resist centuries-old forces of racism and oppression.”
The Mexican-American co-production 499 by director Rodrigo Reyes was the winner of the Special Jury Prize in the international feature competition. Sponsored by A&E, the award includes a $2,500 cash prize. The film explores the brutal legacy of colonialism in contemporary Mexico nearly five-hundred years after Cortez conquered the Aztec Empire. In their statement, the jury said that the filmmaker “has crafted a poetic and beautiful film, that carries a consistent vision throughout. 499 successfully implements hybrid form and delivers a parable that parallels situations in today’s world.”
The award for Best Mid-Length Documentary was presented to the Argentine film Mother-Child / Niña-mamá by Andrea Testa, which takes a caring look at the stories of several pregnant teenage girls in Argentina, often victims of poverty and systemic gender violence, who are forced to give birth. The award comes with a $1,000 cash prize. “A close-up look at young mothers in Argentina (who could be young women anywhere in the world), this film features powerful and restrained storytelling, from its poetic black and white cinematography to the clarity of the voices of the niña-mamas as they articulate their fears, desires, and dreams for themselves and their children” said the jury in a statement.
Unforgivable by Marlén Viñayo
The Best International Short Documentary Award was presented to Unforgivable / Imperdonable by director Marlén Viñayo, about a ruthless hitman and gang member serving his sentence in isolation who is guilty of an unforgivable sin under God and gang: being gay. The award includes a $1,000 cash prize. In a statement, the jury justified its decision “for its poetic, beautifully textured portrayal of a character caught between worlds; a commitment to humanizing the story within such a difficult, intimate environment; and for crafting it with profound empathy.”
In the Emerging International Filmmaker category, the jury gave an Honorable Mention to the Danish documentary A Colombian Family by Tanja Wol Sørensen.
The online version of the Hot Docs will take place May 28 - June 6 and most of their select titles will be available to stream to Ontario residents in Canada.
