Mike Downie’s The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal (pictured), Prime Video’s four-part documentary series covering the history of the iconic Canadian band, has won the People’s Choice Documentary Award at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).

The documentary is directed by the brother of the band’s singer Gord Downie, who died of brain cancer in 2017. The series is produced by Mike Downie, Kim Creelman, Bryn Hughes, Dave Wells and Kalin Moon along with former Tragically Hip band members Rob Baker, Johnny Fay, Paul Langlois and Gord Sinclair.

Canadian documentary Your Tomorrow, directed by Ali Weinstein, about the final year of Ontario Place, was the second runner-up for the award.

Among the other Canadian winners was Sophie Deraspe’s Canada-France coproduction Shepherds, which won the Best Canadian Feature Film Award. The award brings with it a cash prize of $10,000.

The French-language film was produced by Luc Déry, Kim McCraw and Élaine Hébert from Montreal-based production company micro_scope, along with Caroline Bonmarchand and Xenia Sulyma from the France-based Avenue B Productions.

“Among the many beautiful films showcased in the program this year, Shepherds rose above with its electrifying performances and staggering world-building that gave us a window into a harrowing journey of ambition, idealism, and what it means to live a full life,” said the award’s jury in a statement.

Matthew Rankin’s satire Universal Language, produced by Metafilm’s Sylvain Corbeil, won the Best Canadian Discovery Award, also worth $10,000. Universal Language was selected as Canada’s pick for Best International Feature Film at the Academy Awards.

Named as an honourable mention for the Best Canadian Discovery Award was Marie-Hélène Viens’ You Are Not Alone.

Winning the FIRESCI award was Somolian-Canadian rapper and director K’naan Warsame for the Somolian production Mother Mother.

“Mother Mother… depicts a humanistic approach towards a revenge narrative set in a country haunted by violence and grief,” said the jury. “Warsame’s feature debut, through its compelling formal attributes and charismatic acting, conveys a sense of hope and healing after tragedy.”

Winning the $10,000 Short Cuts Award for Best Canadian Film was Bec Pecaut’s Are You Scared To Be Yourself Because You Think That You Might Fail? (OPC Production).

“This filmmaker was able to capture a moment in life with such authenticity in an effortless way,” said the award’s jury. “The exploration of familial bonds and how they shift during adulthood resulted in an emotional journey from start to finish.”

The People’s Choice Award, considered a bellwether for Academy Awards success, went to the U.S. production The Life of Chuck, directed by Mike Flanagan and based on the Stephen King novella. The science fiction drama beat out Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Pérez and Sean Baker’s Anora, the first and second runners-up respectively.

The People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award went to the U.K./U.S./France coproduction Substance, directed by Coralie Fargeat. John Hsu’s Dead Talents Society and Andrew DeYoung’s Friendship were named as the two runners-up.

Image courtesy of Prime Video