The Fruit Hunters was ripe for the picking as the Toronto Documentary Forum panel selected the EyeSteelFilm project as the winner of the $40,000 Canwest-Hot Docs Pitch Prize.

Pitched by director/writer Yung Chang (Up the Yangtze), the 90-minute HD/3D feature doc about the hidden world of exotic fruit was the most well-received pitch on day two of Hot Docs’ Forum. CBC’s Michael Allder called it ‘Heart of Darkness meets fruit,’ and because of the 3D treatment, Barbara Truyen of Dutch pubcaster VPRO commented that it could ‘the fruit Avatar.’

Clearly a favorite with Canuck broadcasters, Naomi Boxer at TVO said she would be interested if the Ceeb didn’t want it, at which point Knowledge Network’s Murray Battle turned to her and said, ‘I think we should take CBC on for this.’

Chang had stepped up to the hot seat earlier in the day with producer Peter Wintonick from Montreal’s Necessary Illusions to pitch China Heavyweight. The 90-minute HD story about a Chinese coach teaching rural teens about Western-style boxing garnered interest from ESPN Films senior director Mark Durand, mentioning the sports channel’s more recent commitment to docs as a result of the success of its 30 for 30 series.

Buzkashi! from Gatineau, QC-based Buzkashi Productions also piqued a lot of interest for its cinematography, though others such as TVO’s Boxer wanted to see more focus on character development.

The Interactive Mountie Hat prize, in which a name was randomly selected to pitch on the fly, went to Kim Harris and Julia Bennett of Pink Job. The duo pitched Green to the End, a story about two elderly women on a mission to find an eco-friendly way to leave this world when their time is up. It drew interest from Planet Green’s Erin Pant, while PBS Interactive’s Eric Freeland and RTE’s David McKenna were drawn to the project’s online potential.

Other winners announced on Thursday included the $15,000 NFB Digital Development Deal, awarded to The House That Herman Built from Toronto’s Storyline Entertainment, which also took home The Cuban Hat Award, determined by ballot for all TDF observers’ favorite pitch. The Cuban Hat vote for best commissioning editor, also determined by ballot, went to Iikka Vehkalahti from Finnish pubcaster YLE.

There were other quirky projects that also captured the attention of several broadcasters, including The Diaper Dilemma from Paris-based Nord-Ouest Documentaries and Tall Girls from Berlin’s avanti media. Saudi Arabia’s Eggdancer Productions drew applause from the crowd for being the first prodco to be helmed by Saudi women, as Dania Nassief and Danya Alhamrani presented Let Me Entertain You, revolving around the challenges of being a Saudi performer.