'Koneline: our land beautiful' named top Canadian feature at HotDocs festival

A film focusing on the Tahltan First Nation in northwestern British Columbia took home one of the top honours at the HotDocs Awards Friday night.

Koneline: our land beautiful received the best Canadian feature documentary award and a $10,000 cash prize at a ceremony held at the Isabel Bader Theatre in Toronto.

The 96-minute documentary explores the complex relationship between the vast, remote wilderness and its indigenous inhabitants.

The Norwegian film Brothers, which captures two brothers from childhood to adolescence, was named best international feature and also received a $10,000 cash prize.

The story, which follows the same long-form vein as Richard Linklater's critically acclaimed 2014 movie Boyhood, captures the milestones and personalities of two children as witnessed by their evolving mother over several years.

Two jury prizes were also given out, each carrying a cash prize of $5,000.

The Prison in Twelve Landscapes took the special jury prize for Canadian feature documentary. It examines the American prison system and questions the effectiveness of reintegration as well as issues surrounding race and poverty.

The special jury prize for international feature documentary went to God Knows Where I Am, a striking portrait of mental illness sparked by the mysterious death of a woman in an abandoned New Hampshire farmhouse.

Directors Sebastien Rist and Aude Leroux-Levesque were named recipients of the emerging Canadian filmmaker award and a $3,000 cash prize.

Their film, Living with Giants, is set against the backdrop of a remote community in northern Quebec and paints an intimate picture of daily life through a budding but troubled teenage romance.

The awards for audience favourites will be announced Monday.