A Canadian Tarantella With Claudio Santaluce

Year 2022
Run Time 60min
Genre Documentary

If you grew up in the Toronto-area and attended family weddings or community fundraisers, you would have witnessed the rise of this young star. Despite his notable presence, there has never been a biopic on his life and artistic pursuits, until now. In this special documentary, viewers will learn about this old world master musician and what drives his passion for traditional music-making.

Directors

Genre

Documentary

Interest

Arts and Culture

Original Language

Other Language

The Fruit Machine

Director Sarah Fodey
Year 2018
Run Time 81min
Genre Documentary

The homosexual witch-hunt of public servants and military personnel in Canada from the 1950s through the early 1990s and its effects on the people whose lives and careers were disrupted or destroyed by it.

Director

Sarah Fodey

Producers

Han Nguyen, Sarah Fodey, Derek Diorio

Genre

Documentary

Interests

Discrimination, LGBTQ2S+

Original Language

English

  • Own Voice

Café Daughter

Director Shelley Niro (Kanien'kehaka)
Year 2023
Run Time 93min
Genre Drama

Tells the story of a nine year old half-Chinese half-Cree girl, Yvette Wong. On top of struggling to find her place in a small Saskatchewan community in the 1960s, she is also faced with the passing of her mother, who always told her children not to let anyone know they were Native Indian, as she believed they would have a better life if this information was kept hidden. Yvette confronts racism on the prairies in the classroom, with teachers and fellow students letting her know she is different from them. Despite wanting to be a doctor, her teacher states that girls can't be doctors, and that maybe she would be better suited as a nurse. Yvette begins to explore and embrace her Cree identity when she befriends Maggie Wolf, a part Mi'kmaq girl who encourages Yvette to be proud of her ancestry. When her Cree ancestry is revealed at school, Yvette confronts discrimination, but perseveres to pursue her dream of going to medical school.

Director

Shelley Niro (Kanien'kehaka)

Shelley Niro is a Mohawk filmmaker and multi-disciplinary artist. She is widely recognized for her photography, and in 2023, was recognized by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian with a career retrospective. Her latest film, Café Daughter, premiered at imagineNATIVE in 2023 where it won the Audience Choice Award.

Writers

Shelley Niro (Kanien'kehaka), Kenneth T. Williams

Cast

Violah Beauvais (Mohawk)

Genre

Drama

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Indigenous Filmmaker

Original Language

English

Canadian Distributor

levelFILM

The Brood

Director David Cronenberg
Year 1979
Run Time 92min
Genre Horror, Sci-Fi/Fantasy

A man tries to uncover an unconventional psychologist's therapy techniques on his institutionalized wife, amidst a series of brutal murders.

Director

David Cronenberg

Writer

David Cronenberg

Cast

Art Hindle, Oliver Reed, Samantha Eggar

Producers

Victor Solnicki, Claude Héroux, Pierre David

Genres

Horror, Sci-Fi/Fantasy

Original Language

English

Canadian Distributor

La boite à Fanny

True Confections

Director Gail Singer
Year 1991
Run Time 95min
Genre Comedy, Drama

Verna is searching for herself and Mr. Right, at the same time. Burdened with a 1990s sensibility in a 1950s/1960s conservative era, Verna tries to come to terms with a place in time that is not hip enough for her.

Director

Gail Singer

Writers

Gail Singer, Sondra Gotlieb

Cast

Leslie Hope

Producer

Roy Krost

Genres

Comedy, Drama

Interest

Female Filmmaker

Original Language

English

Ariel: Back To Buenos Aires

Director Alison Murray
Year 2022
Run Time 96min
Genre Drama

A brother and sister return to the country of their birth, Argentina, for the first time in their adult lives they fall in love with tango and uncover dark family secrets.

Director

Alison Murray

Writer

Alison Murray

Producers

Felicitas Raffo, Alison Murray

Genre

Drama

Interest

Female Filmmaker

Original Language

English

Intersection

Director Cecilia Araneda
Year 2022
Run Time 99min
Genre Drama

Chilean refugee Daniela came to Canada as a child after her mother was assassinated during Chile's dictatorship. Her father, Pepe, never wants to speak about Chile, but when her daughter Rocío starts to ask questions, Daniela decides to apply for Chilean citizenship for a first trip back. This triggers the Chilean government to piece together records never before connected in the paper days and leads them to uncover much more than Daniela expected.

Director

Cecilia Araneda

Writer

Cecilia Araneda

Cast

Carmen Aguirre

Producers

Cecilia Araneda, Joseph Novak

Genre

Drama

Interests

Female Filmmaker, Global Experiences

Original Language

English

Enter the Drag Dragon

Director Lee Demarbre
Year 2023
Run Time 99min
Genre Action/Adventure, Comedy

An amateur detective Drag Queen finds herself heading off with gangsters, zombies, and other bad guys.

Director

Lee Demarbre

Writer

Mark Pollesel

Cast

Jade London

Producer

Lee Demarbre

Genres

Action/Adventure, Comedy

Interest

LGBTQ2S+

Original Language

English

Mother of All Shows

Director Melissa D'Agostino
Year 2023
Run Time 110min
Genre Drama

In order for Liza to cope with the impending death of her estranged mother, she retreats to a 70's variety show in her mind where the all-powerful host is her own mother, Rosa, who leads a cast of people from Liza's past and present.

Director

Melissa D'Agostino

Writers

David James Brock, Melissa D'Agostino

Cast

Wendie Malick, Melissa D'Agostino

Producers

Matt Schichter, Matthew Campagna

Genre

Drama

Interest

Female Filmmaker

Original Language

English

Mi’ma’omakw: People of the Salmon

Director Damien Gillis
Year 2021
Run Time 17min
Genre Documentary

For well over ten thousand years, the First Nations of BC’s Broughton Archipelago have lived in harmony with their environment, thriving on a diet of wild salmon and seafood which they’ve stewarded sustainably… that is, until Norwegian owned open net pen fish farms showed up and began polluting these coastal waters with their waste, parasites and diseases. Now, these nations are reclaiming their territories, leading the science-based removal of fish farms in an effort to bring back wild salmon.

Director

Damien Gillis

Genre

Documentary

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Environment

Original Language

English

The King Tide

Director Christian Sparkes
Year 2023
Run Time 100min
Genre Drama, Thriller

After the mayor of an idyllic island village discovers a child with mysterious powers awash on their shores, the once peaceful community devolves into civil war, torn over the belief that the child is the next saviour.

Director

Christian Sparkes

Writers

Kevin Coughlin, Ryan Grassby, Albert Shin, William Woods

Cast

Frances Fisher

Producers

William Woods, Allison White

Genres

Drama, Thriller

Original Language

English

Simple comme Sylvain (The Nature of Love)

Director Monia Chokri
Year 2023
Run Time 110min
Genre Comedy, Drama, Romance
This newest comedy from director Monia Chokri follows a university professor who is bored with her comfortable marriage, and finds herself drawn to the handsome contractor who’s renovating her summer home. Their budding relationship opens up the question of what happens when romance and class divisions intertwine.

Director

Monia Chokri

Writer

Monia Chokri

Cast

Pierre-Yves Cardinal, Monia Chokri, Magalie Lépine Blondeau, Francis-William Rhéaume

Producers

Nathanaël Karmitz, Sylvain Corbeil, Nancy Grant, Elisha Karmitz

Genres

Comedy, Drama, Romance

Interests

Female Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads

Original Language

French

Canadian Distributor

Immina Films

I Used to be Funny

Director Ally Pankiw
Year 2023
Run Time 105min
Genre Comedy, Drama
A dark dramedy that follows Sam (Rachel Sennott), an aspiring stand-up comedian and au pair struggling with PTSD, as she decides whether or not to join the search for Brooke (Olga Petsa), a missing teenage girl she used to nanny.

Director

Ally Pankiw

Ally Pankiw is an accomplished writer and director who has worked on such television shows as Schitt’s Creek, The Great and Shrill. She directed the first season of the Netflix comedy series Feel Good, and recently wrote and directed her first feature film I Used to Be Funny which won the Audience Award for best narrative feature film at Inside Out. She is currently developing the TV show Standing By with Dan Levy.

Writer

Ally Pankiw

Cast

Rachel Sennott, Olga Petsa, Jason Jones

Producers

Breann Smordin, James Weyman, Jason Aita

Genres

Comedy, Drama

Interests

Female Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads

Original Language

English

Canadian Distributor

levelFILM

Autumn and the Black Jaguar

Director Gilles de Maistre
Year 2024
Run Time 100min
Genre Comedy, Family

A young girl who befriended the last remaining black jaguar in the world goes on an incredible journey to fight the poachers who have depleted the jaguar population, and to prevent the extinction of the species.

Director

Gilles de Maistre

Writer

Prune de Maistre

Cast

Emily Bett Rickards, Lumi Pollack, Wayne Charles Baker, Paul Greene

Producers

Jonathan Vanger, Sylvain Proulx, Gilles de Maistre, Catherine Camborde, Marco Colombo

Genres

Comedy, Family

Interest

Strong Female Leads

Original Language

English

Canadian Distributor

Photon Films

Lovable

Director Alan Zweig
Year 2007
Run Time 101min
Genre Documentary

Love: Why is it so difficult? That’s the question at the heart of Alan Zweig’s poignant and personal meditation about heartache and the inability to find ‘the one’. But rather than focusing solely on himself, he turns the camera outwards, getting a range of perspectives from single female friends that show the highs and lows of their relationships, and why they think it’s never worked out for them.


Using his distinctive style and wit, Zweig manages to make a film that anyone, no matter their relationship status, can relate to, and resonate with.

Director

Alan Zweig

Writer

Alan Zweig

Cast

Alan Zweig

Genre

Documentary

Interest

Biography

Original Language

English

  • Own Voice

Cette maison (This House)

Director Miryam Charles
Year 2023
Run Time 75min
Genre Documentary, Drama, Experimental

Drawing from the events surrounding her fourteen-year-old cousin’s murder in 2008, director Miryam Charles wants to finally unpack her grief and the trauma associated with it. Through dream-like reenactments of her own childhood and an imagined life for her cousin, Charles delves into the changing emotional, political, and historical climates surrounding her family as Haitian-Canadians in Quebec.


This beautifully crafted film is a bold and thought-provoking look at family, and a moving tribute to a life tragically cut short.


“A daring blend of documentary and fantasy that invests a deeply personal drama with a wide historical scope.” – Richard Brody, The New Yorker

Director

Miryam Charles

Writer

Miryam Charles

Cast

Schelby Jean-Baptiste

Producer

Felix Dufour-Laperriere

Genres

Documentary, Drama, Experimental

Interests

BIPOC Stories, Black Filmmaker, Family Relationships, Female Filmmaker, Newcomer Stories

Original Language

French

Canadian Distributor

H264 Distribution

Mr. Dressup: The Magic of Make-Believe

Director Robert McCallum
Year 2023
Run Time 90min
Genre Documentary

For so many Canadians, Ernie Coombs and his character Mr. Dressup was an enduring childhood fixture, promoting the power of creativity, play and imagination. This heartwarming documentary traces the roots of this universally celebrated and uniquely Canadian children’s programme, its enduring legacy, and how it stayed true to its aim throughout its run of almost 30 years.


Winner of the People’s Choice Award for Best Documentary at TIFF, Mr. Dressup: The Magic of Make-Believe is an absolute crowd-pleaser that is sure to bring a tear to your eye.


The Magic of Make-Believe not only serves as a reminder of the joy Coombs brought to our young lives, but it also emphasizes the need for Mr. Dressup's patience and kindness today more than ever.” – Rachel Ho, Exclaim!

Director

Robert McCallum

Writers

Robert McCallum, Jordan Christopher Morris

Producers

Nina Keogh, Matthew Hornburg, Mark J.W. Bishop, Jordan Christopher Morris, Aeschylus Poulos

Genre

Documentary

Interests

Arts and Culture, Biography, ESL, History, Newcomer Stories

Original Language

English

Canadian Distributor

Amazon

  • Own Voice

Hey, Viktor!

Director Cody Lightning (Cree)
Year 2023
Run Time 102min
Genre Comedy

Twenty-five years after starring in the hit 90s film Smoke Signals, Cody Lightning directs and stars in this uproarious mockumentary about a fictionalized version of himself attempting to make a sequel. When a mysterious fan offers a full budget for the film, Cody jumps at the chance, promising the full participation of the original cast. The only thing standing in his way is the small fact that the entire original cast hates him. 


A refreshing and occasionally raunchy comedy, this charming underdog story is a great movie about how to make a terrible one.

Director

Cody Lightning (Cree)

Writer

Cody Lightning (Cree)

Cast

Cody Lightning (Cree)

Producers

Blake McWilliam, Sara Corry, Samuel Miller, Kyle Thomas

Genre

Comedy

Interests

Arts and Culture, BIPOC Stories, Cult & Offbeat Cinema, Indigenous Filmmaker

Original Language

English

Canadian Distributor

levelFILM

Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person

Director Ariane Louis-Seize
Year 2023
Run Time 90min
Genre Comedy, Drama, Romance

Young vampire Sasha is going to die if she doesn’t kill. Being entirely opposed to taking a human life to feed on, she has long relied on her family’s murderous habits to get her blood, until they suddenly cut her off. Enter Paul, a lonely teen who is considering ending his own life, and is more than willing to do so to help Sasha survive. As they each prepare for the next step in their budding doomed relationship, a true bond forms between them – one that is as sweet as it is inconvenient.


This truly unique coming-of-age story is a heartwarming and clever spin on the vampire genre, and has captured awards at festivals around the world.


“Ariane Louis-Seize makes her feature-length directorial debut with this daring and daffy horror-comedy that plays like Romeo and Juliet meets Beetlejuice and Amelie [sic].” – Kristy Puchko, Mashable

Director

Ariane Louis-Seize

Writers

Ariane Louis-Seize, Christine Doyon

Cast

Félix-Antoine Bénard, Sara Montpetit

Genres

Comedy, Drama, Romance

Interests

Cult & Offbeat Cinema, Female Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads

Original Language

French

Canadian Distributor

H264 Distribution

  • Own Voice

My Animal

Director Jacqueline Castel
Year 2023
Run Time 104min
Genre Drama, Horror, Romance

Living with a curse that turns her into a wolf if she’s out of the house after midnight, Heather (Menuez) is kept on a tight leash by her overbearing parents. But everything changes when she falls for the new girl in town, Jonny (Stenberg). The two form an instant connection, but as their relationship develops, it causes Heather to rebel, increasing the risk that her secret could be exposed – with disastrous consequences.


A stylish and tense horror-romance, this exciting first feature from director Jacqueline Castel features amazing performances from its two emerging leads, brought together with a cast of Canadian icons.


My Animal marks an impressive, confident feature debut for several key talents.” – Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter

Director

Jacqueline Castel

Writer

Jae Matthews

Cast

Amandla Stenberg, Bobbi Salvör Menuez

Producers

Andrew Bronfman, Michael Solomon

Genres

Drama, Horror, Romance

Interests

Cult & Offbeat Cinema, Female Filmmaker, LGBTQ2S+

Original Language

English