Justice Forum
For 14 years, Justice Forum has been one of DOXA’s cornerstone programs, showcasing films that facilitate active and critical engagement, create space for dialogue, and sow the seeds for social change. Each Justice Forum film is paired with a live or pre-recorded conversation between speakers relevant to its issue, including filmmakers, experts in the field, academics and/or community activists. We’re excited to offer a selection of films that foster crucial conversations around a broad range of social issues, offering necessary perspectives for change and progress.
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Films in this program:
Black Box Diaries
Shiori Ito, Japan, 2024, 103 mins
In 2015, director Shiori Ito became a part of the small minority of women in Japan who report a sexual assault after she was assaulted by an elder journalist and confidant of then-prime minister of Japan, Shinzo Abe. Ito's fight for justice is up against the inflexible Japanese legal system, which has not changed its laws on sexual assault for over one hundred years.
For screening times, click here.
Bye Bye Tiberias
Lina Soualem, Palestine/Qatar/Belgium/France, 2023, 82 mins
Leaving her native village to follow her dream of becoming an actress, Hiam Abbass also leaves behind her mother, grandmother and seven sisters. Thirty years later, she returns with her filmmaker daughter, Lina, to journey through the vanishing places and scattered memories of four generations of daring Palestinian women.
For screening times, click here.
Eternal You
Hans Block and Moritz Riesewieck, Germany/USA, 2024, 87 mins
If you had the chance to talk to a loved one after death, would you take it? Eternal You follows people from around the globe who use artificial intelligence to connect to their deceased family and friends, employing technology created by AI startups in a rapidly growing market. The inventors of these services, however, deny any responsibility for the profound psychological consequences of their experiments.
For screening times, click here.
Plastic People
Ben Addelman and Ziya Tong, Canada/France/the Netherlands/Philippines/USA, 2024, 96 mins
Almost every bit of plastic is ground down into "microplastics"—microscopic particles that drift in the air, float in the water and sit in the soil. And now, leading scientists are finding them in our bodies. Plastic People ventures far beyond the typical issues of plastic and explores the human drama of our physiological future.
For screening times, click here.
Sugarcane
Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie, USA/Canada, 2024, 107 mins
Winner of the Grand Jury award for Directing at Sundance, Sugarcane delves into the harrowing realities of residential schools in North American with unflinching courage and empathy. St. Joseph's Mission school near Williams Lake is the focal point of this riveting and layered narrative, which blends a pursuit for justice with moments of levity and cultural heritage. Most importantly, the film is a conduit for healing.
For screening times, click here.
Tea Creek
Ryan Dickie, Gitxsan/Tshimshan/Saik'uz/Nisga'a, 2024, 73 mins
Against the backdrop of colonization and the climate crisis, Indigenous entrepreneur Jacob Beaton sets out to turn his family farm into a centre for Indigenous food sovereignty and restore the abundance that once defined Turtle Island. An intimate portrayal of a passionate leader whose vision for change is creating space for Indigenous leaders.
For screening times, click here.
Union
Stephen Maing and Brett Story, USA, 2024, 102 mins
The Amazon Labor Union (ALU)—a group of current and former Amazon workers in New York City's Staten Island—takes on the one of the world's largest and most powerful companies in the fight to unionize. Chronicling the historic efforts of the ALU, Union is an intimate and surprising story of dogged determination, unorthodox tactics, and speaking up—despite David vs. Goliath odds.
For screening times, click here.
Yintah
Jennifer Wickham, Brenda Michell and Michael Toledano, Witsuwin'en, 2024, 125 mins
Filmed over 10 years, Yintah captures both a crucial historical framework and a stirring portrait of resistance by the Witsuwit'en peoples following Coastal GasLink's (CGL) decision to build a pipeline through their territory. Tsakë ze' Howilhkat Freda Huson and Tsakë ze' Sleydo Molly Wickham lead the fight with tenacity, despite an ever-increasing battery of strong-arm tactics from CGL and the RCMP. The fight isn't over yet.
For screening times, click here.