By John Corrado

This year’s 30th anniversary edition of Hot Docs has officially come to a close, with the festival’s Top 20 Audience Award finalists announced today. The first place winner of the Hot Docs Audience Award is Quebec filmmaker Philippe Falardeau’s Lac-Mégantic – This Is Not an Accident. The top ranking mid-length film was When Spring Came to Bucha and the top short film was Eco-Hack!

The Rogers Audience Award for Best Canadian Documentary, which carries a $50,000 cash prize for the winning filmmaker, was announced last night before a special encore screening of the film at Hot Docs Red Rogers Cinema. The award went to director Zack Russell for his film Someone Lives Here, which placed second overall in the audience poll, following carpenter Khaleel Seivwright as he builds wooden shelters for the homeless in Toronto and gets tied up in the city’s bureaucracy.

Ten of these twenty films, including Someone Lives Here, will be available to stream until May 9th.

Hot Docs Audience Awards

1. Lac-Mégantic – This Is Not an Accident
2. Someone Lives Here – streaming until May 9
3. 20 Days in Mariupol – streaming until May 9
4. The American Gladiators Documentary – streaming until May 9
5. Silent House – streaming until May 9
6. Allihopa: The Dalkurd Story – streaming until May 9
7. Non-Aligned: Scenes from the Labudović Reels
8. The Stroll
9. Angel Applicant – streaming until May 9
10. Who’s Afraid of Nathan Law?
11. Against the Tide
12. Seven Winters in Tehran
13. Eco-Hack! – streaming until May 9
14. Name Me Lawand
15. We Will Not Fade Away
16. The Deepest Breath
17. Hong Kong Mixtape – streaming until May 9
18. El Equipo – streaming until May 9
19. When Spring Came to Bucha – streaming until May 9
20. Invisible Beauty

Top Films by Program

• Artscapes: Non-Aligned: Scenes from the Labudović Reels
• Canadian Spectrum: Someone Lives Here – streaming until May 9
• Deep Dive: Lac-Mégantic – This Is Not an Accident
• International Spectrum: Angel Applicant – streaming until May 9
• Human Kind: Because We Have Each Other
• Made In Ukraine: 20 Days in Mariupol – streaming until May 9
• Markers: Feet in Water, Head on Fire – streaming until May 9
• Nightvision: Anhell69 – streaming until May 9
• Persister: Seven Winters in Tehran
• Special Presentations: Who’s Afraid of Nathan Law?
• The Changing Face of Europe: Vicky
• World Showcase: Silent House – streaming until May 9