SE and south Asian Films at Hot Docs Toronto

Hot Docs is pleased to announce the line up of South and Southeast Asian films at 2009 Hot Docs International Film Festival as follows:

Burma VJ - Reporting From A Closed Country Co-presented with Rights & Democracy

D: Anders Høgsbro Østergaard | Denmark | 85 MIN | Canadian Premiere –Special Presentations

This critically-acclaimed, multiple-award winner reveals the incredible story of underground video journalists in Burma and their tactics for bringing footage of 2007’s massive uprising to the world.

Monday, May 4 6:30 PM BLOOR

Wednesday, May 6 1:45 PM BADER

Sunday, May 10 7:15 PM ROM

Children of God

D: Seung-Jun Yi | Nepal, South Korea | 89 MIN | North American Premiere – Made In South Korea

Set at the largest sacred ground for Hindus - the crematory on the holy river Bagmati in Nepal - the film sensitively renders the lives of impoverished children who make their living from the dead.

Sunday, May 3 7:00 PM CUMBERLAND 2

Tuesday, May 5 4:30 PM CUMBERLAND 2

GANESH: BOY WONDER

D: Srinivas Krishna | Canada | 85 MIN | World Premiere – Canadian Spectrum

When news of a boy born with a facial deformity that makes him resemble Hinduism’s elephant-headed deity goes international, his family’s fate converges with India’s rich and the powerful, and a Canadian plastic surgeon who will change their lives.

Screening with:

ALWYN

D: Alwyn Barry | Canada | 13 MIN | World Premiere

Saturday, May 2 7:00 PM ROYAL

Sunday, May 10 1:30 PM BADER

HAIR INDIA Co-presented with FILMI South Asian Film Festival

D: Raffaele Brunetti, Marco Leopardi | Italy | 75MIN | Canadian Premiere –World Showcase

From Bollywood to Hollywood, lush Indian hair extensions are a lucrative global commodity. This smart and insightful film exposes the industry’s diverse stakeholders, from poor, religious hair donors, to modern, stylish Indian women.

Sunday, May 3 1:00 PM BLOOR

Tuesday, May 5 7:00 PM CUMBERLAND 2

HUNTING DOWN MEMORY

D: Thomas Lien | Norway | 80 MIN | International Premiere – International Spectrum

While searching for the horse nomads in the mountains of China, Øyvind forgets the first 27 years of his life. Upon his return home to Norway he relearns social norms with child-like innocence.

Wednesday, May 6 9:45PM ROM

Friday, May 8 4:45PM CUMBERLAND

KASHMIR: JOURNEY TO FREEDOM

D: Udi Aloni | USA, Israel, Japan | 72 MIN | North American Premiere –World Showcase

A new generation of Kashmiri Muslims abandon their weapons to form a non-violent movement promoting independence and co-existence. This resounding portrayal of struggle and virtue finds that the pursuit of peace exists in even the hardest of times.

Screening with

WAGAH

D: Supriyo Sen, Najaf Bilgrami | Germany, India, Pakistan | 13 MIN | International Premiere

Tuesday, May 5 9:30 PM ROM

Thursday, May 7 2:15 PM ROM

LOVE IN INDIA

D: Q | Germany, India | 91 MIN | World Premiere – World Showcase

Why, in the land of the Kama Sutra, is everyone so sexually conservative? Seeking the answer, a love-struck filmmaker travels across India exploring its cultural traditions and contradictions, and the true nature of sexual desire.

Friday, May 8 7:15 PM ROM

Sunday, May 10 4:00 PM CUMBERLAND 2

Sad Song of Yellow Skin

D: Michael Rubbo | Canada | 58 MIN | 1970 – NFB Spotlight

In 1970, three young American journalists in Saigon explore the consequences of the Vietnam War and of the American presence through the people who live on the fringes of the battle.

Screening with:

Lonely Boy

D: Wolf Koening, Roman Kroiter | Canada | 27 MIN | 1962

A candid look at both sides of the footlights, this short portrays the story of singer Paul Anka, who rose from obscurity to become a teen idol to millions around the world.

Saturday, May 2 4:30 PM CUMBERLAND 2

Thursday, May 7 12:00 PM ROM