Hot Docs temporarily closing cinema and laying off staff, citing financial difficulties

Hot Docs says it will close its flagship theatre in Toronto for three months and is laying off staff due to financial difficulties.

Canada’s largest film festival says it will shut the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema for approximately three months starting June 12.

The festival says during the closure period, the organization’s leadership team will conduct an “extensive review of the cinema” to determine a path back to profitability.

The latest iteration of the festival wrapped in early May amid ongoing uncertainty over its finances and concerns over a mass staff exodus.

The festival’s artistic director and 10 of its programmers quit just before it was set to announce its 2024 lineup.

A statement from the festival says that will result in temporary layoffs as the organization tries to find a path back to profitability.

“This has been an incredibly difficult decision to make, but it’s crucial for us to take this step now. This temporary closure will enable us to pause, recalibrate, and strategically plan a sustainable future for this beloved organization,” shared Robin Mirsky, co-chair of Hot Docs’ board of directors in a statement.

“We are grateful for the overwhelming support that we’ve received from our community since we vocalized our operating deficit in March. We’ve made significant progress since then, but there is still important work to do to ensure that we emerge stronger and more resilient, and that Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema continues to be a vibrant cultural hub for Toronto.”

Hot Docs had warned in April that its future was in jeopardy and appealed for support.

President Marie Nelson said economic constraints led organizers to apply “tighter curation” to this year’s edition, which featured 168 documentaries — down from 213 last year.

Hot Docs says the recent festival’s screening attendance neared pre-pandemic capacity levels and box office revenue exceeded target by 12 per cent, while the cinema’s box office was up 59 per cent, annual membership sales were up 21 per cent and concession sales went up 38 per cent.

“Unfortunately, given the slow post-pandemic recovery and the operating deficit brought about by it, a temporary closure is still necessary, even with these encouraging figures,” continued the statement.

Documentaries started airing on Thursday, April 25 and ran through May 5.

Nelson earlier said the festival was disappointed to be left out of the federal budget after asking Ottawa for $2 million in emergency support.

She says Hot Docs proposed a “leaner, meaner version of the organization” that would have been able to deliver following losses incurred during the pandemic, which forced a two-year closure of the theatre.

Nelson cited multiple hurdles that strained creative, financial and staffing efforts to pull together a 31st edition, while filmmakers slated to screen at the event acknowledged myriad pressures on the arts.