Documentaries are often referred to as ‘windows on the world,’ to the point of cliché. But, as seen by the winners of two of the top prizes at this past Friday’s awards ceremony for Hot Docs 2009, clichés always have a ring of truth to them. Through the two winners — Hubert Davis’ Invisible City and Simon El Hebre’s The One Man Village — audiences at this year’s festival could catch a glimpse of both the gritty urban environment of Toronto’s Regent Park and the deserted, war-torn Lebanese village of Ain El Halazoun, respectively.

Davis’ City nabbed the best Canadian feature honor, which came with $15,000. Davis was a little hoarse when it came time to deliver his acceptance speech, as he had just given a radio interview prior to the ceremony, and several through the week. Still, he gave thanks to the jury for proving that the residents of Regent Park aren’t invisible, and that their voices and stories can and will be heard.

The film follows two teens, Mikey and Kendell, and the challenges they face over three years. The jury praised City for maintaining ‘a focus on the raw material of real human experience while honoring the documentary as a cinematic art form.’

El Habre’s gripping The One Man Village took the prize for best international feature and $10,000. The film tells the story of the director’s uncle, who is the only person remaining in a mountain village that was rendered desolate by the civil war of 1975-1990.

The special jury prize for a Canadian feature went to Waterlife from renowned Toronto docmaker Kevin McMahon. Cooking History from Slovak producer/director Peter Kerekes claimed the special jury prize for an international feature.

The emotional highlight of the night came with the presentation of the outstanding achievement award to Alanis Obomsawin. The 76-year-old had a selection of work spanning her 40 years as an National Film Board filmmaker presented in a retrospective during the festival, including the world premiere of her latest, Professor Norman Cornett: Since When Do We Divorce the Right Answer From an Honest Answer?

In her acceptance speech, Obomsawin said that her work as a filmmaker, as a musician in the 1960s and as a member of the Abenaki Nation has always been fueled by the desire to grant aboriginal people a voice. Talking about her father, who died in his early forties, she told a story about returning to her school classroom after she had been falsely accused of a transgression by a teacher. Her father made sure she was allowed back into the school, and also that the teacher would deliver an apology in front of the class. Obomsawin, in turn, took the opportunity at the awards podium to deliver her own moving message to her father. ‘In the morning, the sun is rising, and I am dancing,’ she said, her voice quaking with emotion. ‘Can you see me?’

New talent was spotlighted with two awards categories. The Don Haig Award for emerging Canadian talent went to Brett Gaylor (RiP: A remix manifesto) and Tracey Deer (Club Native). The HBO emerging artists award went to South Korean director Chung-ryoul Lee (Old Partner).

The prize for best mid-length documentary went to Bartek Konopka’s Rabbit a Berlin, which tells the story of a rabbit reserve that grew out of a patch of land between the east and west portions of the Berlin Wall. Best short doc went to Kara Blake’s The Delian Mode, about the life and times of electronic music pioneer Delia Derbyshire, perhaps best known for the eerie Doctor Who theme.

The Lindalee Tracey Award — offered to emerging Canadian filmmakers working in the spirit of the late, renowned director and author — went to two filmmakers: Montreal’s Laura Bari and 18-year-old Will Inrig.

From Realscreen Daily