Interest: Strong Female Leads
Hockey Night
A Canadian sports classic, Hockey Night features the on-screen debut of Yannick Bisson (Murdoch Mysteries) and memorable performances from Rick Moranis and Megan Follows (Anne of Green Gables).
Director
Paul Shapiro
Writers
Jack Blum, Paul Shapiro
Cast
Megan Follows, Rick Moranis, Gail Youngs
Producer
Martin Harbury
Genres
Drama, Family
Interests
Classics, Discrimination, Sports, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Language Version
EN CC
- Own Voice
Angakusajaujuq – The Shaman’s Apprentice
Director
Zacharias Kunuk (Inuk)
In 2015, Atanarjuat was selected as TIFF’s number one Canadian film of all time. Kunuk has directed shorts such as Exile and Home and features such as Maliglutit, which was nominated for two CSAs. He recently directed the series Hunting With My Ancestors and executive produced SGaawaay K'uuna (Edge of the Knife). His latest feature, One Day in the Life of Noah Piugattuk, premiered at TIFF 2019. Most recently, he directed the short The Shaman’s Apprentice, which won the CSA for Best Animated Short among other awards at festivals worldwide.
Writers
Jonathan Frantz, Zacharias Kunuk (Inuk)
Cast
Madeline Piujuq Ivalu (Inuk), Jacky Qrunnut, Lucy Tulugarjuk (Inuk)
Producers
Neil Christopher, Jonathan Frantz, Zacharias Kunuk (Inuk), Nadia Mike
Genre
Animation
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Indigenous Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads
Original Languages
English, Inuktitut
- Own Voice
Short Film Programme
If you’d like to show several short films together as a programme, please feel free to get in touch for advice and tips on selecting the perfect combination for your needs.
Director
Various
Genres
Action/Adventure, Animation, Comedy, Documentary, Drama, Experimental, Family, Horror, Romance, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Thriller
Interests
Arts and Culture, Biography, BIPOC Stories, Bullying, Classics, Cult & Offbeat Cinema, Discrimination, Environment, ESL, Family Relationships, Female Filmmaker, Global Experiences, History, Indigenous Filmmaker, LGBTQ2S+, Literary Adaptation, Newcomer Stories, Social Justice & Politics, Sports, Strong Female Leads
Original Languages
English, French
Viola Desmond Is On The Money
Directors
Pat Jeflyn, Kim Kristy
Genre
Documentary
Interests
Arts and Culture, BIPOC Stories, Female Filmmaker, Social Justice & Politics, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
- Own Voice
Good Girls Don’t
A Filipino girl is constantly told by her parents that only boys play sports, and only a divine intervention will change their mind.
Content Note: Graphic Content & Religious Themes
Director
Ana de Lara
Writer
Ana de Lara
Cast
Lorne Cardinal (Cree), Jane McLean, Evryle Ebora
Producer
Michelle Morris
Genres
Comedy, Drama, Family
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Family Relationships, Female Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Hip Hop Mom
Director
Mina Shum
Vancouver-based Shum is best-known for her feature films Double Happiness and Meditation Park, both starring Sandra Oh. Her documentary Ninth Floor was on TIFF’s 2015 list of Canada’s top ten films. Other features include Long Life, Happiness and Prosperity; and Drive, She Said. Most recently, she has directed episodes of Frankie Drake Mysteries, Murdoch Mysteries and October Faction. She is currently directing the feature One (Nine).
Writer
Mina Shum
Cast
Lossen Chambers, Jennifer Copping
Producer
Amy Belling
Genre
Comedy
Interests
Arts and Culture, Female Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
Shum Household
Radical
Director
Deanne Foley
Writer
Mary Walsh
Cast
Mary Walsh
Producer
Annette Clarke
Genre
Comedy
Interests
Arts and Culture, Biography, Female Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
- Own Voice
Trickster
Based on the critically-acclaimed novel Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson (Haisla/Heiltsuk) and steeped in Haisla mythology, Trickster was named by Playback as the top scripted series of 2020 and received 11 CSA nominations, winning three.
Director
Michelle Latimer
A filmmaker and actor, Latimer’s first short, Choke, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. Her credits include several documentaries and dramatic shorts, such as The Underground and Nuuca. She has directed the television series Rise, Burden of Truth and Trickster.
Cast
Crystle Lightning (Cree), Joel Oulette (Cree/Métis), Kalani Queypo (Blackfoot), Anna Lambe (Inuk)
Genres
Drama, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Discrimination, Family Relationships, Female Filmmaker, Indigenous Filmmaker, Literary Adaptation, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
The Girl Who Hated Books
Director
Jo Meuris
Writer
Sugith Varughese
Cast
Michael Rudder, Elizabeth Lofranco, Harry Standjofski, Thor Bishopric
Producer
Tamara Lynch
Genre
Family
Interests
Family Relationships, Female Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads
Original Languages
English, French
Language Versions
EN CC, FR CC
Canadian Distributor
National Film Board (NFB)
Throat Song
Director
Miranda de Pencier
De Pencier is a director and producer whose first short film Throat Song won four awards including a CSA for Best Live Action Short. The Grizzlies won the DGC’s Outstanding Directorial Achievement Feature Film Award. She has produced several films, including Cake, Beginners and Thanks for Sharing and episodes of Anne With an E. She is currently producing the film The Chocolate Money.
Writer
Miranda de Pencier
Cast
Ippiksaut Friesen (Inuk)
Producers
Alethea Arnaquq-Baril (Inuk), Qajaaq Ellsworth (Inuk)
Genre
Drama
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Female Filmmaker, Indigenous Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
Northwood Entertainment
- Own Voice
With Love From Munera
Munera Yusuf, a spirited young storyteller, revisits the spaces that have shaped her healing and growth from some of the most trying moments of her past.
Content note: Mention of attempted suicide.
Director
Yazmeen Kanji
Writer
Yazmeen Kanji
Genre
Documentary
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Female Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Sensei
Director
Jill Roberts
Genre
Documentary
Interests
Female Filmmaker, Sports, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
- Own Voice
N’xaxaitkw
Director
Asia Youngman (Cree-Métis)
Genres
Drama, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Female Filmmaker, Indigenous Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
- Own Voice
Nancy’s Workshop
Director
Aïcha Diop
Genre
Documentary
Interests
Arts and Culture, BIPOC Stories, Female Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads
Original Languages
English, French
Mon Cirque à Moi (My Very Own Circus)
While some children may want to run away and join the circus, Laura (Jasmine Lemée), a young girl in rural Quebec, has grown up in a travelling circus and desperately wants a normal life. Her father (Patrick Huard) is a clown in the circus and can't understand the need for a conventional life, believing that learning happens on the road. As their differences become more apparent, he must accept the fact that his daughter may not want to follow in his footsteps, and let her live the life that she wants.
Miryam Bouchard's debut feature Mon cirque à moi is a heartwarming and hilarious crowd-pleaser that celebrates the power of family in all of its forms.
Director
Miryam Bouchard
Bouchard is an award-winning writer and director. She started her career by directing music videos, and has directed many shorts and TV series, including M’entends-tu?, L'Échappée, Mon ex à moi, Les Chroniques d'une mère indigne, Yin Yang, and La guerre des sexes. Mon Cirque à Moi was her debut feature. She has also directed Lignes de fruite and 23 Décembre.
Writers
Miryam Bouchard, Martin Forget
Cast
Patrick Huard, Jasmine Lemée, Sophie Lorain, Robin Aubert
Producer
Antonello Cozzolino
Genre
Comedy
Interests
Family Relationships, Female Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
French
Language Version
EN Subtitles
Canadian Distributor
eOne
Trigger
Director
Bruce McDonald
McDonald directed the cult hits Highway 61, Roadkill, Hard Core Logo, The Tracey Fragments, starring Elliot Page, Pontypool, and the award-winning series Twitch City, episodes of Degrassi and Heartland. His recent films include Trigger, The Husband, Hellions, Weirdos and Dreamland. He recently directed the series Creeped Out and Malory Towers and is currently working on the films Switched at Death and I Have a Bad Feeling About This.
Cast
Tracy Wright, Molly Parker, Daniel MacIvor, Bob Martin
Producers
Leonard Farlinger, Jennifer Jonas, Daniel MacIvor
Genre
Drama
Interests
Arts and Culture, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
National Film Board (NFB)
Riot Girls
In this spirited, punky post-apocalyptic adventure film, all the adults are wiped out by a mysterious plague, leaving kids and teens to fend for themselves. In the town of Potter’s Bluff, there is a sharp divide between two groups: the have-not Eastsiders vs. the tyrannical Westside Titans.
When one of their own is captured by the Titans, it's up to female punk rockers and best friends Nat (Iseman) and Scratch (Kwiatkowski) to lead the East side teens on a dangerous, high-octane mission that forever alters the future of their community.
Riot Girls is a punchy, poppy tribute to girlhood that raises a studded middle finger against classism and conformist culture. Packed with punk rock anthems and comic-book undertones, this film is a love letter to teenaged misfits everywhere.
“Riot Girls confidently and entertainingly sets itself apart from the pack rather nicely thanks to a well rounded script, playful direction, and a whole lotta swagger.” - Andrew Parker, The Gate
Director
Jovanka Vuckovic
Writer
Katherine Collins
Cast
Madison Iseman, Paloma Kwiatkowski, Munro Chambers
Producer
Lauren Grant
Genres
Action/Adventure, Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Interests
Female Filmmaker, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
levelFILM
Haunter
On the night before her sweet 16th, Lisa (Abigail Breslin) becomes stuck in time, reliving the day over and over.
Director
Vincenzo Natali
Writer
Brian King
Cast
Abigail Breslin, Peter Outerbridge, Michelle Nolden
Producer
Steven Hoban
Genre
Horror
Interests
Family Relationships, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
eOne
Last Woman Standing
Directors
Juliet Lammers, Lorraine Price
Writers
Juliet Lammers, Lorraine Price
Cast
Ariane Fortin, Mike Moffa, Mary Spencer
Producers
Aisling Chin-Yee, John Christou
Genre
Documentary
Interests
Female Filmmaker, Sports, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)
Sitting in Limbo
Boasting an infectious reggae score by Jimmy Cliff, the film was developed as part of the National Film Board’s Alternative Drama program, which placed non-professional actors in realistic situations. Issues including racism, poverty and teenage pregnancy are highlighted in what is also a very warm and pleasing film.
Sitting in Limbo achieved Honourable Mention for “its freshness and vitality” at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Director
John N. Smith
Smith’s credits include award-winning TV docudramas such as The Boys of St. Vincent, Dieppe and Prairie Giant: The Tommy Douglas Story, as well as numerous feature films, including Dangerous Minds, A Cool Dry Place, Geraldine’s Fortune and Love & Savagery among others. Sitting in Limbo won the Best Canadian Feature Film award at TIFF 1986.
Writers
David Wilson, John N. Smith
Cast
Pat Dillon, Fabian Gibbs, Sylvie Clarke
Producers
John N. Smith, David Wilson
Genre
Drama
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Classics, Discrimination, Global Experiences, Social Justice & Politics, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
Astral Films