Supported by
Hot Docs Festival 2026 Opening Night Film + Top Ten Audience Favourite
Winner, Best Canadian Feature, Inside Out 2026
In Toronto’s vibrant music, art and fashion scene of the 1970s and 1980s, Carole Pope made her mark with the new wave band Rough Trade, which produced bold, boundary-breaking music delivered with a sexy punk edge. “High School Confidential,” the band’s breakthrough hit, did something not many had done before: it featured an openly queer performer fearlessly expressing lesbian desire on daytime radio. Now in her 70s, Pope continues to channel her creativity into new forms. Her latest project is a musical that draws on her life and career with Rough Trade, as well as the story of her beloved late brother Howard, himself a celebrated musician and AIDS activist. Told with refreshing candour and drawn in part from Pope’s autobiography, her story pulses with backstage seductions and on-stage swagger. Featuring interviews with celebrity friends like Peaches, k.d. Lang, Jann Arden and Rufus Wainwright, Antidiva: The Carole Pope Confessions is a long overdue cinematic tribute to a fierce and talented queer maverick. Aisha Jamal, Hot Docs
Join director Michelle Mama for a special post-screening Q&A.
The feature will be preceded by MADE | NOUS: Stories That MADE Us episode 2:
On the Road Headed Eastbound with George Stroumboulopoulos (D: Alex Craig | Canada | 15 min)
Episode 2 brings us from the vibrant streets of Montreal to the Acadian shores of New Brunswick, exploring the children’s programming and cultural icons, like Mr. Dressup, that shaped generations. Along the way, we trace Quebec’s dual storytelling identity, the risks behind creative ambition, and the deep sense of national pride that carried Hockey Night in Canada all the way to space with Chris Hadfield.
Promotional Partners: The ArQuives, Cinema Studies Student Union (CINSSU) - University of Toronto, Rainbow Health Ontario, and Sonic Boom
TICKETS (+HST)
General: $15
Members: $10, $8, FREE