North America’s largest documentary festival kicks off today. Featuring 219 films from 66 countries, Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Film Festival runs through May 9. The Toronto-based fest is digital this year due to COVID-19 and is geo-blocked to Canada. Fifty percent of the directors in the festival program are women, which means that our must-watch list is especially long this year.

We’ve collected some fest highlights below, including Bobbi Jo Hart’s portrait of a female rock group’s reunion, “Fanny: The Right to Rock,” and “Kímmapiiyipitssini: The Meaning of Empathy,” Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers’ account of how the opioid crisis has affected the Kainai First Nation in Alberta. “Zuhur’s Daughters,” from Laurentia Genske and Robin Humboldt, sees two teen Syrian refugees exploring their trans identities when they move to Germany, which brings about familial, cultural, and religious conflict. Directed by Luciana Kaplan, “The Spokeswoman” follows activist María de Jesús Patricio’s historical presidential run in Mexico.

Keep in mind this preview is not an exhaustive list. There are plenty more women-directed and -driven films to check out at Hot Docs this year, including Tanya Talaga and Michelle Derosier’s “Spirit to Soar,” which revisits the mysterious deaths of seven First Nations high school students in Thunder Bay and the recommendations an inquest into the tragedy yielded.

Here are some of the docs we’re especially excited about, with plot synopses courtesy of Hot Docs. We’ll be rolling out interviews with women and non-binary directors throughout the fest.

“Kímmapiiyipitssini: The Meaning of Empathy” – Written and Directed by Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers

What it’s about: Since 2014, the opioid crisis has claimed hundreds of lives on the Kainai First Nation in Alberta. Inspiring and urgent, this unflinching chronicle captures a community’s efforts to heal by cultivating empathy through harm reduction.

Why we’re excited: Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers isn’t just exploring a community’s response to the opioid crisis in “Kímmapiiyipitssini: The Meaning of Empathy” — she’s exploring her community’s response. Shot over a four-year period, the film features frontline workers, individuals living with active substance-use disorder, and individuals in recovery. “As a filmmaker and a community member, I felt an urgency and a responsibility to document these radical changes and also honor the lives of those lost to this crisis,” Tailfeathers told us. “Kímmapiiyipitssini is a Blackfoot teaching that reminds us that practicing empathy and compassion is how we survive as a people. It is how our ancestors survived genocide and it is how we, as a community, will survive this crisis. Kímmapiiyipitssini is our harm reduction.”

The director is hoping to help audiences understand “that people living with substance-use disorder deserve to be treated with dignity and compassion.” They need respect and treatment — not to be dehumanized, stigmatized, and put behind bars.

With “Kímmapiiyipitssini: The Meaning of Empathy,” Tailfeathers is also challenging how Indigenous communities are typically portrayed — “through the monolithic and reductive lens of tragedy and trauma.” She explained, “I want to present non-Indigenous audiences with a portrait of a strong and beautiful community that challenges those problematic representations. I also want to provide other Indigenous communities, who are facing similar issues, with a useful tool for dialogue.”

“Fanny: The Right to Rock” – Written and Directed by Bobbi Jo Hart 

“Fanny: The Right to Rock”

What it’s about: Ferocious female rockers Fanny shattered glass ceilings in the ’70s, collecting fans like David Bowie before being buried in retro record bins. Fifty years later, they reunite with a new record deal and a chance to rewrite history.

Why we’re excited: The first band of women to release an LP with a major label, Fanny ought to be recognized for the trailblazers that they are. Director Bobbi Jo Hart didn’t discover the group, which includes Asian American and queer bandmates, until five years ago. “It equally thrilled and upset me to discover such talent that should be a household name,” Hart told us. “History is written by the victors so we as women need to think like winners and assure that untold women’s herstories are brought into the light of day.” “With “Fanny: The Right to Rock,” Hart is doing just that.

The doc will celebrate the groundbreaking rock band’s achievements, undoubtedly inspiring viewers along the way. Hart told us she wants the doc to motivate audiences to “take action in their own lives to support girls and women, especially queer and women of color. And for young people of every identity to be inspired to trust their own voice, and as Fanny did, be brave enough to make their voice heard loud and proud in this world!” With an empowering message and amazing soundtrack behind it, “Fanny: The Right to Rock” promises to be a must-see.

“Zuhur’s Daughters” – Written and Directed by Laurentia Genske and Robin Humboldt

“Zuhur’s Daughters”

What it’s about: After escaping the war in Syria, a family learns to negotiate their new lives in Germany. But when the siblings begin to explore their transgender identities within their newfound freedom, their parents push back hard as they cling to strict religious and cultural ideologies.

Why we’re excited: “Zuhur’s Daughters” examines a culture clash, but from an angle that is rarely seen on-screen. When teenagers Lohan and Samar relocate from Syria to Germany, they enjoy the opportunity to live as themselves, to live as transgender. But these new freedoms also pose new problems: Lohan and Samar struggle to reconcile their gender identities with their cultural and religious beliefs, and grapple with their parents’ disapproval.

Over three years, filmmakers Laurentia Genske and Robin Humboldt follow the family as the dynamics between their old and new homes and personal, religious, and cultural identities shift. As the parents protest their children’s gender expression, they are also afraid of being judged for their beliefs in the more-liberal Germany. In recent years, immigration documentaries have tended to focus on families being physically torn apart due to inhumane laws. “Zuhur’s Daughters,” in contrast, shows a family trying to stay emotionally united in the face of enormous cultural change. It’s a story that has largely gone untold but is just as urgent.

“Children” – Directed by Ada Ushpiz

What it’s about: This observational doc captures a neighborhood in Palestine, where courageous young girls influenced by three generations of tumultuous occupation come of age learning how to protect their family’s land, rights, and values.

Why we’re excited: In the vein of portraits such as “I Am Greta” and “Us Kids,” Ada Ushpiz’s “Children” sees young activists fighting for a better world and way of life. The doc follows Palestinian best friends Dima and Janna throughout adolescence, documenting their everyday lives as teens and their political work. Following a stint in an Israeli prison, Dima publicly calls for soldiers to stop harassing her community; Janna posts on-the-ground videos of life under occupation online.

We love stories about young women finding, and using, their political voices — and we love stories about young women coming-of-age, too. “Children” promises to be both, portraying Dima and Janna as activists and leaders and as young women growing up and discovering themselves.

“Only the Ocean Between Us” – Directed by Khaldiya Amer Ali, Marah Mohammad Alkhateeb, Karoli Bautista Pizarro, and Christy Cauper Silvano

“Only the Ocean Between Us”

What it’s about: Four young directors — Indigenous Shipibo filmmakers living in Lima, Peru, and Syrian filmmakers living as refugees in Jordan — share sisterhood, daily survival, displacement, and first motherhood through their video letters.

Why we’re excited: “Only the Ocean Between Us” tells a story about refugees from the perspective of the refugees themselves. Thankfully, we are seeing more and more docs focusing on the 79 million-plus forcibly displaced people around the world, but they’re typically being shown through someone else’s lens. Khaldiya Amer Ali, Marah Mohammad Alkhateeb, Karoli Bautista Pizarro, and Christy Cauper Silvano get the opportunity to speak for themselves with “Only the Ocean Between Us.”

In a soon-to-be published interview with us, the directors emphasized how much they share in common despite coming from different cultures and countries. Their friendship “overcomes distance and language,” Pizarro told us. The foursome aim to to combat misconceptions about camp life and asylum, and to inspire audiences by showcasing the strength of women. Though it sounds like a testament to resilience and a celebration of life, “Only the Ocean Between Us” doesn’t gloss over the gross inequalities that define our world. “All human beings have dreams and aspirations, but not all of them can achieve them,” Ali told us. “The reason is that life exists with the rich and the poor, the strong and the weak, and there are those who find life’s opportunity, seize it, and strive to achieve their goals. And there are also those to whom no opportunity has come yet.”

“The Spokeswoman” – Directed by Luciana Kaplan

“The Spokeswoman”

What it’s about: When healer and human rights activist María de Jesús Patricio becomes the first Indigenous woman to run for president in Mexico, her revolutionary platform advocating unity and a new approach to progress becomes mired in structural racism.

Why we’re excited: Deeply embedded in María de Jesús Patricio’s campaign, director Luciana Kaplan captured the story of a promising candidate and the movement she inspired. Also known as Marichuy, the titular character ran in 2018 on a platform dedicated to Indigenous rights, women’s issues, and the environment. Marichuy didn’t win, but she was far from unsuccessful: she brought progressive topics to the forefront of political discourse and set the stage for like-minded folks to try their hand at elected office.

“The Spokeswoman” is the tale of a trailblazer whose courage and vision will be felt for generations to come — sounds like just the sort of uplifting tale we all could use right now.

“Fly So Far” – Directed by Celina Escher

What it’s about: Once accused and imprisoned for aggravated homicide for having a late-term miscarriage, Teodora Vásquez has become the spokesperson for all such victims of El Salvador’s cruel anti-abortion laws, and a symbol of empowerment, resistance, and solidarity.

Why we’re excited: “Fly So Far” isn’t just an account of reproductive justice in El Salvador, or a cautionary tale about lawmakers trying to control women’s bodies. It’s a passion project for director Celina Escher, one born of anger and hope. “I’m a Salvadorean documentary director and a feminist, and I strongly believe that we women have the right to choose over our bodies. When I heard that women in El Salvador were imprisoned for having had a miscarriage or a stillbirth, I got very angry. Due to the total ban of abortion, women cannot interrupt a pregnancy even to save their life, or in cases of rape. Women are being criminalized for being women,” Escher told us. “I entered the Ilopango women’s prison to meet Teodora and the other women. There my anger transformed into admiration, admiration for Teodora who supports the other women, gives strength and hope. The sisterhood the women have woven over the years, the strength and determination of Teodora, and how she fights for her sisters inspired me to create this film.”

“Fly So Far” will most likely be a tough watch, but it sounds like a galvanizing one as well. Vásquez’s story, and that of her fellow prisoners, is infuriating and terrifying — and a reminder of the great things that can happen when women work together.

“One of Ours” – Written and Directed by Yasmine Mathurin

“One of Ours”

What it’s about: After a Haitian-born youth is racially profiled at an Indigenous basketball tournament, he wrestles with his shaken sense of belonging in his Indigenous adoptive family while attempting to heal from his past.

Why we’re excited: Described by director Yasmine Mathurin as an “attempt to understand what it means to heal and what it means to belong,” “One of Ours” explores adoption, identity, and the politics of Blackness and Indigeneity and how they intersect in the life of one young Canadian man. Refused the right to play in an Indigenous basketball tournament, Josiah Wilson, who was born in Haiti and adopted by an Indigenous family in Canada, is left traumatized and questioning who he is and where he belongs.

“I was struck first by how the news framed these big questions about Indigeneity on the shoulders of someone I knew as a kid,” Mathurin told us. “The scale of those questions on the shoulders of someone who was then 21 trying to play a sport he loves with his community. The contrast of that was jarring to me. Even though I felt like the news coverage was important, I think my own memory of Josiah and his family made me really curious about how they were all doing on a human level.” She added, “I’m always trying to make sense of my own identity and sense of belonging as a Haitian-Canadian who grew up in Haiti, Montreal, and Calgary. I also think a lot about my sense of belonging in my own family. When I approached the Wilson family about wanting to document their journey, these were the things I was curious about.”

In addition to grappling with what it means to be both Indigenous and Black, “One of Ours” sounds like a deeply personal story about a Canadian family that we haven’t seen on-screen before.