International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam founder and director Ally Derks is to receive the 2011 Doc Mogul Award at the upcoming Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, organizers said Tuesday.

“As a founder of one of the world’s most important documentary film festivals, Ally’s contribution to international documentary culture is unparalleled,” Hot Docs director of programming Sean Farnel said in a statement.

In 1991, Derks started the first FORUM at the Amsterdam festival for creating internationally co-produced documentaries, many of which have gone on to be sold and air worldwide.

Hot Docs has followed suit with its own Hot Docs Forum, formerly the Toronto Documentary Forum, which this year will take place on May 4 and 5.

This year’s doc pitch forum will include a broader range of film funders and more match-making time for producers, Hot Docs organizers said Tuesday.

“We’ve listened to our delegates’ feedback and have made some exciting improvements to the 2011 Hot Docs Forum, including bringing in a increasingly diverse roster of funders, planning a smoother schedule, and allowing for more delegate networking time,” Elizabeth Radshaw, forum and market director at Hot Docs, said.

Hot Docs is set to run from April 28 to May 8 in Toronto.