Hot Docs has sold its Ted Rogers Cinema to an anonymous buyer 10 months after announcing it was up for sale.

The sale, which closed on Aug. 6, includes a multi-year lease that allows the Toronto-based organization to continue operating and programming the cinema year-round. According to a news release issued Monday (Aug. 11), the buyer is a long-time neighbour with ties to the community who has chosen to remain anonymous. The cinema sold for $6.25 million, a Hot Docs spokesperson told Playback Daily.

Hot Docs first mentioned that it was seeking a buyer for the Toronto cinema in October 2024 as part of its long-term rebuilding strategy following two years of operating deficits. The organization temporarily shuttered the cinema for a three-month period last June to address its “immediate cash flow needs” and also buy time for the Hot Docs board, slimmed down from 14 members to three, to “regroup and engage in critical strategic planning to address our deficit.”

Hot Docs revealed a conditional sale offer of the cinema this April which would follow a due diligence process the organization expected to conclude in the summer.

Alongside the sale announcement, Hot Docs also unveiled that its Doc Soup series will be returning in October for its 25th season and introduced the Curious Minds Festival – in which speakers, creators, change makers and audiences will explore pressing issues and current topics – running from Nov. 6 to 9.

“This sale is an important step in the organization’s ongoing journey toward financial stability,” said Diana Sanchez, Hot Docs’ executive director, in a statement. “While we are still recovering and rebuilding, we’re thrilled that Hot Docs Cinema will remain a community hub — bringing audiences outstanding documentaries, familiar favourites and special events — while continuing to welcome fellow festivals and programming partners.”

A spokesperson for the cinema’s buyer added that “it is our goal to support the arts in Toronto and ensure that this building remains a vibrant cultural space in the Annex.”

With files from Barry Walsh

Image courtesy of Hot Docs