Hot Docs-Blue Ice Docs Fund & Fellowship

Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival and Blue Ice Docs are pleased to announce the eight African film projects selected to receive $115,000 CAD in development and production grants. The Hot Docs-Blue Ice Docs Fund, now in its 12th year, seeks to enable more African documentary filmmakers to tell their stories and contribute to the next generation of African documentary talent. Chosen from 87 applications from 22 countries, four of the selected projects will receive development grants, one will be provided with production grants, and three will get post-production grants.

In addition to the funding of eight projects from seven countries, six of the grant recipients have been invited to participate in a year-long mentorship program, which grants direct access to industry mentors, provides networking opportunities, and includes private filmmaker labs at Hot Docs and the Durban FilmMart/Durban International Film Festival or other festivals and markets in Africa.

Since its establishment in 2011, the Hot Docs-Blue Ice Docs Fund has supported 100 unique projects from 27 countries, with $1,433,000 granted to date.

Eligible projects were considered by the Hot Docs-Blue Ice Docs Fund Committee, which included Samaher Alqadi (Independent Filmmaker), Tapiwa Chipfupa (Ambidextrous Pictures), Mina Nabil (Fig Leaf Studios), Shameela Seedat (Undercurrent Film & Television), Khalid Shamis (Tubafilms), Mayye Zayed (Independent Filmmaker), Hot Docs Industry (Julian Carrington, Distribution Manager & Funds Programmer; and Yiqian Zhang, Manager of Funds and Labs).

Applications for the next round of disbursements will start on October 4, 2023.

Development Grants A BUTTERFLY HUG Director: Sally Abobasha Producers: Talal Afifi, Sally Abobasha Production Company: Sudan Film Factory Countries: Egypt, Sudan Two confused teen friends attempt to find their own personality by making short films on social media, while living with a fatal genetic skin disorder and facing social stigma.

BORN A GIRL Director: Kady Traoré Producer: Jean-Marc Dindané Production Company: Athéna Films Country: Burkina Faso Kady, who was circumcised 3 days after her birth, decides 21 years later, against her family's wishes, to seek a surgical repair of the after-effects left by genital mutilation. She recounts her struggle, which is also that of her sisters, the women of her village, and several regions of Burkina Faso and Africa, where this practice has left its mark. MY DREAM TO FLY Director: Asmaa Gamal Producer: Asmaa Gamal Production Company: Rec & Roll Country: Egypt Chasing his dream as a stuntman, Osama moves through his inner conflict to achieve his late brother's dream and ascends the ladder of fame from poor slums towards the outside world. WILDFIRE Director: Zahra Moloo Producers: Neil Brandt, Sergeo Kirby Production Companies: Storyscope, Loaded Pictures Countries: South Africa, Canada In Wildfire, two activists in central Africa fight to prevent their land being turned into national parks. Their story reveals the conflicting interests of conservation organizations, indigenous people and multinational corporations.

Production Grant PLAGUED Director: Nicole Schafer Producers: Nicole Schafer, Teboho Pietersen Production Company: Thinking Strings Media Country: South Africa Inside a public hospital in South Africa, young doctors and their patients find themselves ‘plagued’ by a multitude of colliding health and social ‘epidemics’ in the aftermath of the global Covid-19 pandemic.

PÜLÖ

Director: Christina Ifubaraboye Producers: Christina Ifubaraboye, Elisa Mereghetti (Co-Producer) Production Companies: IMBUU, ETHNOS (Co-production company) Countries: Nigeria, Italy

Pülö means “blood and oil” in Okrika, a Delta community in Southern Nigeria. Oil is the blood of Kirike that sustains the people, while blood is the stream of life. But what happens when this stream is poisoned? This film tells the story of an environmental tragedy on Okrika Island, caused by crude oil pollution and wastewater from oil refineries.

YOU DON’T DIE TWO TIMES

Director: Ager Oueslati Producers: Raouf Oueslati, Ager Oueslati Production Company: Taswir Edition Production Country: Algeria

Gift left Nigeria in 2017. One night, she recounts to her son Blossom what led her on this perilous odyssey. Drawn into her journey, she begins to realize the impact of her memories on her everyday life. But will she be able to overcome them?

ZION MUSIC

Director: Rama Thiaw Producers: Yanis Gaye, Rama Thiaw Production Company: Boul Falle Images Country: Senegal

Zion Music is a musical, political, and spiritual odyssey in the heart of the African continent. It revisits the 1970s and explores Africa’s political history through its musicians, their songs, and the hidden meanings within the music.