On February 23, Innis College hosted a screening of the documentary Black Ice, in collaboration with the Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education (KPE) and the Cinema Studies Institute. The screening was followed by a discussion between the director, Hubert Davis, and KPE Professors Simon Darnell and Janelle Joseph. Kunal Dadlani wrote about it for The Varsity, the University of Toronto student newspaper.
Black Ice premiered at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival, winning the People’s Choice Documentary Award and is now available on Crave. Davis has previously explored the social and cultural impacts of basketball in the Oscar-nominated documentary Hardwood and in Giants of Africa. In Black Ice, Davis turns to hockey with executive producers Drake and Lebron James.
After the viewing, Darnell, Joseph, and Davis discussed the major themes of the movie and how it connects to the real world.
“[Hockey] is an integral part of our identity,” Davis explained. “If we can talk about some of the issues going on in hockey, then we [can] have the chance to talk about some of the issues going on in the country.”
With impactful stories, Black Ice highlights the challenges Black hockey players face, ultimately exposing the systemic racism within the sport.