A viral meme propels the story of Pernell Bad Arm, a Blackfoot man whose image was stolen and iconically reclaimed by the Indigenous online community. Fellow Kainai First Nation member Damien Eagle Bear creates a three-dimensional portrait of Pernell Bad Arm, the Blackfoot man whose image was stolen for a meme. Originally circulated in racist circles, the First Nations community reclaimed the image by adding the now-iconic slang word, “SKODEN.” Testimonials from those who knew Pernell Bad Arm from childhood on the Blood Reserve to the streets of Lethbridge, Alberta, explore who Pernell was while laying bare the systems that shaped his circumstances. Illuminated by a Blackfoot worldview of compassion and care, #skoden offers an insider perspective on a national struggle for dignity and respect.

In a small village in southern Finland, the middle-aged sisters Taina and Pirkko promised to spend weeks making 100 litres of their famous strong self-brewed beer, sahti, for a family wedding. But their batch is so tasty, they drink it all themselves. While struggling with their massive hangovers, they have a series of hilarious misadventures racing the clock to more beer to save the wedding and win back their reputation as the best sahti-brewers in the village.

From the Oscar®-winning team behind 20 Days In Mariupol, 2000 Meters To Andriivka documents the toll of the Russia-Ukraine war from a personal and devastating vantage point. Following his historic account of the civilian toll in Mariupol, Mstyslav Chernov turns his lens towards Ukrainian soldiers — who they are, where they came from, and the impossible decisions they face in the trenches as they fight for every inch of their land. Amid a failing counteroffensive in 2023, Chernov and his AP colleague Alex Babenko follow a Ukrainian brigade battling through approximately one mile of a heavily fortified forest on their mission to liberate the Russian-occupied village of Andriivka. Weaving together original footage, intensive Ukrainian Army bodycam video and powerful moments of reflection, 2000 Meters To Andriivka reveals with haunting intimacy, the farther the soldiers advance through their destroyed homeland, the more they realize that, for them, this war may never End.

Get ready to unlock the ultimate movie-watching experience with the exclusive WIFF Festival Pass. With this pass in hand, you'll have the keys to a cinematic wonderland, featuring over 300 screenings that span the full spectrum of storytelling. Price: $130 for Students (must show valid student ID) $360 for Adults Pass Details: Available for Purchase: Secure your pass online starting Sept. 4 or visit the Box Office from Oct. 16 to 22, daily from 12 PM to 6 PM (for advanced sales). The festival itself runs from Oct. 23 to Nov. 2. More Access to WIFF: Your pass will entitle you to One ticket per regular screening, per time block. This pass is not a ticket. An individual physical ticket obtained at the WIFF box office will be required to enter a screening. Valid from October 23 - November 2, 2025. Redeemable for Individual Film Tickets: Starting Oct. 22 (a day before the festival begins), you can redeem your pass for individual film tickets. Collect tickets for two days of screenings at a time for your convenience. Pass Policies and Procedures: Pass Redemption: If you purchase your pass online, remember to visit the Box Office at 109 University Ave. W (The Gallery at the Capitol), just two doors down from the Capitol Theatre, to redeem your ticket for a festival pass and an exclusive lanyard. Online passes can be picked up at the Box Office starting Oct. 16. Comprehensive Coverage: Your pass will entitle you to One ticket per regular screening, per time block, except for select special screenings: Opening Night Film ($40), Closing Night Film ($40), Centerpiece Film ($35), Special Event Screenings ($40), and Women of WIFF donor ticket ($100). Student Discounts: If you're a student, don't forget to bring your valid student ID when purchasing and picking up your pass. We've got special deals just for you! ID and Pass Verification: For every pass ticket pickup, you'll need to show a valid ID and your festival pass. It's all part of our commitment to ensuring a seamless and enjoyable experience for you. Pass Holder Station: During the festival, we've designated a station just for pass holders. It's your hub for hassle-free ticket collection! FYI: Reserved Tickets: We set aside a special allocation of tickets exclusively for pass holders. You're guaranteed a ticket up to 2 hours before the screening, so you won't miss a moment of movie magic. After that, tickets will be subject to availability. Massive Savings: If you're planning on savouring more than 18 films, the Festival Pass is your ticket to tremendous savings. With over 300 screenings to choose from, your cinematic adventure awaits!

Experience the thrill of the festival with our WIFF General Screening 10-Pack. Dive into the world of film and embark on a cinematic experience that will leave you wanting more. What's Included: Ten General Film Screenings: Get ready for an exciting lineup of films that cater to every taste. Our extensive film slate offers a diverse range of world-class cinema. Ultimate Flexibility: With the 10-Pack, you have the freedom to choose any ten general screenings that pique your interest, while saving you money. With the 10-pack you save a total of $20. How It Works: 1. Purchase Your 10-Pack: Buy your 10-Pack online or at our box office and get a ticket order. 2. Get Your Ticket Vouchers: Patrons must come to the box office and use that ticket order to collect ten general ticket vouchers. [109 University Ave W – (The Gallery at the Capitol Theatre) from Thursday, October 16 – Sunday, November 2] 3. Pick Your Films: Browse our extensive film catalog of over 300 screenings and select the ten screenings you wish to see. The world of film is at your fingertips. Mix and Match any film, or bring a friend – ticket vouchers can be used by anyone. 4. Redeem Your Vouchers: At the box office or online (using the code and pin on the back of the voucher), exchange your vouchers for tickets to your chosen screenings. 5. Experience the Excitement: Join us for an unforgettable movie-watching experience. Ticket Bundle Online orders can be redeemed at the Box Office for your vouchers during the following times: October 16 - 22: 12pm-6pm daily. October 23 - November 2: 8:00am until 11pm daily.

FREE COMMUNITY SCREENING Our audience has great taste! Join us for a free community screening of what our audience deems the best film at WIFF 2025. Vote all festival long, and the winner will be announced on the morning of November 2. Past winners of the LiUNA People's Choice Award include Anora, Irena's Vow, Women Talking, and more.

Named in honour of WIFF founder, Mark Boscariol, the 48-Hour FlickFest consists of a slate of short films shot and edited by local filmmakers and film lovers over one weekend. FlickFest is an intense, hyper-local movie-making challenge. Supplied with a line of dialogue, a character trait and a prop, filmmakers are given 48-hours to submit their films. This is a juried competition and the screening includes award presentations. Presented by Motor City Credit Union FRIDAY NOV. 1, 8:20P.M., OLG Pentastar Theatre - Capitol

Get ready for an unforgettable cinematic experience with our WIFF Premium 3-Pack! Dive into the most buzzworthy and anticipated films of the year and save big while you're at it. What's Included: Three Premium Film Screenings: Immerse yourself in the magic of cinema with three premium film screenings. These are no ordinary movies; they're captivating stories, breathtaking visuals, and unforgettable experiences. Save $21: Experience world-class cinema without breaking the bank. With the 3-Pack, you save a total of $21. How It Works: 1. Purchase Your 3-Pack: Buy your 3-Pack online or at our box office and get a ticket order. 2. Get Your Ticket Vouchers: Patrons must come to the box office and use that ticket order to collect three premium vouchers. [109 University Ave W – (The Gallery at the Capitol Theatre) from Thursday, October 16 – Sunday, November 2] 3. Pick Your Films: Explore our premium film selection which include: MILE END KICKS (Opening Night Film), AFTER THE HUNT (Closing Night Film), AI WEIWEI'S TURANDOT (Centrepiece Film), and any SPECIAL EVENT SCREENINGS. Mix and Match any three of the above films. The world's best stories are waiting for you. 4. Redeem Your Vouchers: At the box office only, our friendly team of volunteers will exchange your vouchers for tickets to your chosen screenings. 5. Experience the Excitement: Join us for an unforgettable movie-watching experience. Ticket Bundle Online orders can be redeemed at the Box Office for your vouchers during the following times: October 16 - 22: 12pm-6pm daily. October 23 - November 2: 8:00am until 11pm daily.

WIFF Local Shorts #1: Best Local Short Nominees WIFF is committed to promoting and fostering local films and filmmakers and welcomes local short and feature film submissions for programming consideration to the festival. This year’s films were selected by judges on the basis of quality and originality, and on their ability to contribute significantly to the overall success of WIFF 2025. For the first year, WIFF is awarding a $3,000 cash prize to one film from the official selection of WIFF Local Shorts. Nominees and winners are selected by the independent jury comprised of industry professionals. Films included in this slate: WIFF Local Shorts #1 - Best Local Short Nominees (46 mins) ANGEL DUST (5 mins) Directed by Alex Djordjevic & Jaxon Moore APPLE PIE (5mins) Directed by Sean Thrawn O'Neil CLICK BANG BOOM (14 mins) Directed by Michael J. Krym NOSTALGIA AND LOSS (12 mins) Directed by Yilin Evan Zhu PARALLEL (10 mins) Directed by Rawad Kansoun

WIFF Local Shorts #2 WIFF is committed to promoting and fostering local films and filmmakers and welcomes local short and feature film submissions for programming consideration to the festival. This year’s films were selected by judges on the basis of quality and originality, and on their ability to contribute significantly to the overall success of WIFF 2025. Films included in this slate: WIFF Local Shorts #2 (78 mins) KING (5 mins) Directed by Ryan Debergh TIDES (5 mins) Directed by Mengting Shen EN PLEIN AIR (14 mins) Directed by Matt Steeves SHOES IN THE CITY (5 mins) Directed by Zachary Chabot TO MAKE HOLY (7 mins) Directed by Clay LeBlanc ECHO (14 mins) Directed by Isha Faisal EYES DOWN (7 mins) Directed by John Strahl MAYFLY (7 mins) Directed by Sean Thrawn O'Neil NINETEEN AT THE END OF THE WORLD (7 mins) Directed by Nathan St. Louis MY MOTHER MARGARET (7 mins) Directed by Jaxon Moore

WIFF Local Shorts #3 WIFF is committed to promoting and fostering local films and filmmakers and welcomes local short and feature film submissions for programming consideration to the festival. This year’s films were selected by judges on the basis of quality and originality, and on their ability to contribute significantly to the overall success of WIFF 2025. Films included in this slate: WIFF Local Shorts #3 (100 mins) WRESTLING LIFE (16 mins) Directed by Luis Jimenez THREADS OF YESTERDAY (5 mins) Directed by Grace McLinden DAY OF A VAMPIRE (10 mins) Directed by Demetre Kalmantis FAILED EXPOSURE (9 mins) Directed by Demetre Kalmantis HEARTWORM (19 mins) Directed by Angelo Bombelli THE GENTLE ART OF MAKING ENEMIES (41 mins) Directed by Michael Poirier

FREE COMMUNITY SCREENING The winner of the 2025 WIFF Prize in Canadian film will be announced on Sunday, October 26 WIFF is committed to celebrating excellence in Canadian film by honouring Canadian films and filmmakers with an annual cash prize of $25,000. An independent jury comprised of film industry experts selects the winner. Past winners of the prize include WHO DO I BELONG TO directed by Myriam Joobeur; HUMANIST VAMPIRE SEEKING CONSENTING SUICIDAL PERSON, directed by Ariane Louis-Seine; RICEBOY SLEEPS, directed by Anthony Shim; and KUESSIPAN, directed by Myriam Verreault.

WIFF 2025 CLOSING NIGHT FILM From visionary filmmaker Luca Guadagnino, AFTER THE HUNT is a gripping psychological drama about a college professor (Julia Roberts) who finds herself at a personal and professional crossroads when a star student (Ayo Edebiri) levels an accusation against one of her colleagues (Andrew Garfield), and a dark secret from her own past threatens to come into the light. AFTER THE HUNT is written by Nora Garrett.

Fiercely independent 90-year-old Agatha Bock lives alone on her ancestral farm. Despite health challenges, she defiantly tends to her land, cultivating heirloom seeds passed down through generations. Employing antiquated techniques, Agatha plants and harvests her expansive field of watermelons, beans, flowers, herbs, and vegetables entirely by hand. Without a car, cell phone, running water, or even a functioning landline, Agatha’s meditative processes and daily rituals form a vivid counterpoint to the rapid pace of contemporary life. Made intentionally with sensory sensitive viewers in mind, the film carves out a (mostly) calm space in a chaotic world. Shot by an all-female crew—including director Amalie Atkins and cinematographer Rhayne Vermette— over six years on 16mm film, using a windup Bolex and an ArriSR2 studio camera, the project captures the handmade materiality inherent in both the medium of film and Agatha’s tactile world. Her century-old farmhouse, with its grey exterior, contrasts with the bursts of vibrant colour and texture inside. Unchanged since the 1950s, her home serves as a living archive of a vanishing era, rooted in her esoteric practices that predate modern conveniences. Agatha’s Almanac serves as a powerful conduit for often-overlooked stories, amplifying voices and rural perspectives. Agatha’s life offers a window into the experiences of a nearly lost generation, whose values and ways of living are at risk of fading as the world rapidly changes.

WIFF 2025 CENTREPIECE FILM AI WEIWEI’S TURANDOT follows Chinese revolutionary artist, Ai Weiwei, as he brings his artistic vision and iconoclastic activism to Puccini’s Turandot at the Rome Opera House during his directorial operatic debut, using the opera as a backdrop to address many issues that plague mankind, including the Ukraine war, refugee crises, the Covid pandemic, and more. One hundred years later, the film shows not only that Puccini’s opera is still as vital and relevant as ever, but also according to esteemed choreographer, Chiang Ching - his life-long friend featured in the film, it is also a reflection of Ai Weiwei’s life, and a fitting project for an artist known for his installations, sculpture and photography that denounce authority and champion human rights and freedom of expression.

Anna, a young delinquent, lives on the fringes of society with her brother Vincent and their friends Cindy and Mirko. Since the violent death of their parents, they have become her only family. The group survives on petty crimes, spending their days aimlessly wandering. Anna's emotional world revolves around Vincent, her one true love. Despite this bond, Anna yearns for recognition. In secret, she keeps a journal, the draft of her first novel. During a robbery involving Micky, a local gangster, Anna loses her journal, which is found by a literature teacher. He tracks Anna down and offers her the chance to leave the streets and pursue her literary work under his mentorship. Anna is tempted to accept, much to Vincent's dismay, as he doesn't want to see her leave. One night, in retaliation for the robbery, Micky violently attacks Anna's family. Abandoned, Anna flees her life of crime and seizes the opportunity to integrate into the academic and artistic spheres. However, the transition is brutal: she struggles to find her footing and forge a new identity, missing her brother terribly. Lost and haunted by her past, Anna must find Vincent and take control of her destiny for the first time.

What is the cost of speaking truth to power? In Putin’s Russia, it could mean your life. An immersive and chilling documentary, Antidote follows in real time a whistleblower from inside Russia's poison program as he attempts to escape, Vladimir Kara-Murza, a prominent political activist who is poisoned twice and now stands trial for treason and his wife Evgenia, and Christo Grozev, the journalist exposing Putin's murder machine as he is told he is under threat and is forced to go on the run himself. Emmy-winning filmmaker James Jones reveals the human cost of heroism in Antidote, with incredible access and insight into the lives of those fighting for change against a tyrannical regime that will stop at nothing to maintain the status quo.

Three unlikely thieves, led by a woman on the verge of a breakdown, rob a rural Irish Credit Union. Opening in the tragic aftermath of the heist-gone-wrong, the story uses reverse chronology to unravel the events that led to this point. What starts as a poorly executed robbery becomes a portrait of a wilful woman trapped in her own past. Aontas is about the choices that change our path, the moments we get trapped in, and how we’re prisoners of our memories.

A man tries to rise in his company by letting its executives use his apartment for trysts, but complications and a romance of his own ensue.

Winner of the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival, acclaimed director Dea Kulumbegashvili (Beginning) returns with her latest boundary pushing work, April. Skilled obstetrician Nina is accused of malpractice when a baby dies during delivery. The ensuing investigation threatens to expose Nina’s illegal sideline: offering abortions to local women. Nina remains fiercely committed to her patients, but she must walk a razor’s edge in order to survive as a pariah in a world which desperately needs her. Set against the backdrop of the starkly beautiful Georgian countryside, Kulumbegashvili’s prescient sophomore feature employs a mesmerizing visual and sonic language to create an immersive experience about the resilience of the human will.

In 1957, renowned wildlife artist Robert Bateman and spirited biologist Bristol Foster set out on a global expedition in a rugged Land Rover they christen The Grizzly Torque. Starting in the UK, their travels take them to the far corners of the earth. From the lush rainforests of the Congo to the vibrant landscapes of India, Bob paints the wonders they encounter, while Bristol films on his 16mm Bolex camera. Fifty-seven years later, the abandoned Grizzly Torque is rediscovered. As its hidden history emerges and a new owner restores it to its former glory, the tale of their environmental activism through art and science unfolds. Now iconic figures in their fields, Bateman and Foster continue to stir up excitement with their eco-conscious adventures. Featuring dazzling archival footage and vibrant artistic depictions, The Art of Adventure offers a road movie experience, blending buddy humour and environmental awe.

Thirty years ago, Gail Ritchey, a young woman from a conservative Christian community in rural Ohio, gave birth alone and left her newborn in the woods. Now a devoted mother of three, her quiet suburban life is shattered when DNA evidence links her to the infamous cold case of “Geauga’s Child,” leading to her arrest for murder. Authorities dismiss her claim that the baby was stillborn, and the media swiftly vilify her. Facing a possible life sentence, Gail turns to her husband, Mark, and their adult children, who struggle to reconcile the woman they love with the accusations against her. With her attorney, Steven, she must confront the weight of societal and religious pressures—and her own long-buried shame—to fight for her freedom. Directed by Jessica Earnshaw (JACINTA), BABY DOE cuts through the headlines to uncover the human complexity of Gail’s case. With a compassionate yet unflinching lens, the film examines the intersection of women’s health, justice, and the societal forces that continue to shape stories like hers.

The Balconettes is a bold, genre-blending horror- comedy that mixes feminist empowerment with elements of dark humor and supernatural intrigue. Set against the sun-drenched backdrop of Marseille, the film follows three women—an aspiring writer, a sex-positive camgirl, and an actress—who become entangled in a chaotic series of events after a fatal encounter with a neighbor. Merlant’s dynamic storytelling, infused with sharp wit and vibrant characters, explores themes of friendship, female agency, and revenge in a delightfully unpredictable Narrative.

When his past and his debts start to catch up with him, a high-stakes gambler laying low in Macau encounters a kindred spirit who might just hold the key to his salvation. Lord Doyle (Colin Farrell) is laying low in Macau – spending his days and nights on the casino floors, drinking heavily and gambling what little money he has left. Struggling to keep up with his fast-rising debts, he is offered a lifeline by the mysterious Dao Ming (Fala Chen), a casino employee with secrets of her own. However, in hot pursuit is Cynthia Blithe (Tilda Swinton) – a private investigator ready to confront Doyle with what he is running from. As Doyle tries to climb to salvation, the confines of reality start to close in.

A mother working at an ammunition manufacturing company is devastated to learn her son serving overseas is killed. But despair gives way to a desperate search for answers when she discovers a bullet from her factory was responsible for her son’s death.

Sixty years after playing a cult role, Barbara, recovering from a debilitating injury, is torn between her desire to direct her first film and her fear of failure. Barbaracadabra is a magic trick unfolding in real time: chaotic, unpredictable, and alive.

Bassima and Fouad, a couple of illegal Syrian immigrants, live in Montreal from precarious jobs and smuggling foreign cigarettes. They love each other and are determined to successfully integrate into society. But when Fouad is arrested and sent back to their war-torn country, Bassima finds herself on the street. Totally destitute, but determined to bring her husband back using a fake passport, she agrees, without his knowledge, to become a surrogate mother for a wealthy couple. But an unexpected event disrupts her plans, and Bassima, who has always relied only on herself to get by, realizes she must find allies if she wants to save her life and that of her unborn child.

When the Markowitz brothers pitched their idea for a “pseudo-horror” TV show for kids, they promised a celebrity would be a part of it. Vincent Price. A contract was signed for 130 hour-long episodes, but there was one problem. They didn’t know Vincent! Discover the fascinating journey of how this quirky 1970’s Canadian cult-classic began, as told by the original crew.

Suzanne, a widowed mother of three still grieving for her husband, has turned to alcohol to ease her pain, but is having an increasingly tough time maintaining a functioning façade. Until an accident on the way to school changes everything! Social services give Suzanne no choice: if she wants to keep custody of her kids, she must go into rehab. The initial detox is brutal, but Suzanne starts to find strength in the people around her: the abrasive but endearing Alice, an orphan afraid of her origins; Diane, a washed-up actress whose daughter hates her; and Chantal who has lost everything and battles despair with wry humor. In charge of them is Denis, their sports coach and car workshop teacher, who has signed them up for a women’s car rally in Morocco. Missing her kids like crazy, Suzanne finally makes a choice and joins forces with the other women, as they slowly and sometimes painfully learn to adapt to life without booze. And as bonds of friendship and solidarity grow between them, the Hope Center women prepare for the race of a lifetime, a challenge that could ultimately bring back their self-respect and save them from themselves.

Willy and Jojo, two inseparable teenagers, spend their time chasing boredom in a small village in the heart of France. They made a promise to each other: they would soon leave for the city. But Jojo is hiding a secret. And when the whole village finds out, the two friends' dreams and families are shattered.

An estranged Métis mother and daughter struggle to overcome their differences, but their world comes crashing down when an alluring woman enters their lives.

TO MAXIMIZE ECONOMIC PRODUCTIVITY, THE GOVERNMENT ORDERS THE ELDERLY TO RELOCATE TO DISTANT HOUSING COLONIES. TEREZA, 77, REFUSES–INSTEAD EMBARKING ON A JOURNEY THROUGH THE AMAZON THAT WILL CHANGE HER DESTINY FOREVER. TEREZA, 77, HAS LIVED HER WHOLE LIFE IN A SMALL INDUSTRIALIZED TOWN IN THE AMAZON, UNTIL ONE DAY SHE RECEIVES AN OFFICIAL GOVERNMENT ORDER TO RELOCATE TO A SENIOR HOUSING COLONY. THE COLONY IS AN ISOLATED AREA WHERE THE ELDERLY ARE BROUGHT TO "ENJOY" THEIR FINAL YEARS, FREEING THE YOUNGER GENERATION TO FOCUS FULLY ON PRODUCTIVITY AND GROWTH. TEREZA REFUSES TO ACCEPT THIS IMPOSED FATE. INSTEAD, SHE EMBARKS ON A TRANSFORMATIVE JOURNEY THROUGH THE RIVERS AND TRIBUTARIES OF THE AMAZON TO FULFILL ONE LAST WISH BEFORE HER FREEDOM IS TAKEN AWAY—A DECISION THAT WILL CHANGE HER DESTINY FOREVER.

The inspiring true love story of Robin and Diana Cavendish, an adventurous couple who refuse to give up in the face of a devastating disease.

Feeling invisible and rejected in the UK, two teenage girls, Doe and Muna, are lured by online promises of sisterhood and purpose in Syria. Nadia Fall’s powerful debut feature, which premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, follows their harrowing journey as adolescent alienation gives way to the brutal reality of extremism. Inspired by true stories, Brides is a deeply empathetic and urgent drama that moves beyond the headlines to humanize its subjects. It is a vital reflection on the insidious power of propaganda and the desperate search for belonging in a fractured world.

Kakunoshin Yanagida was a samurai, who was forced out of the Han due to a false accusation. He then lived in poverty with his daughter Kinu. Despite being poor, he never gave up his pride and honor that he held as a samurai. Even when playing the board game Go, which is his hobby, he always plays in a fair manner. Because of a case, the truth behind the false accusation is revealed. Kakunoshin is shaken and filled with rage. He decides to take revenge, even if it means he will be torn from his daughter. — A man is separated from his daughter by a false accusation and risks his pride as a samurai to seek revenge. Kakunoshin Yanagida, a ronin, is accused of a crime he does not commit and mourns the death of his wife. He is forced to leave his hometown, the Hikone domain, and lives with his daughter, Okinu, in a poor tenement house in Edo (Tokyo). Even under such circumstances, he does not lose his pride as a samurai. His only pleasure is to play the game of Go, which he plays without pretense. His way of playing Go reflects his sincere character. One day, Kakunoshin finds the truth behind a tragic false accusation by an old clan acquaintance and decides to take revenge. To support her father, Okinu chooses to sacrifice herself. A father and daughter's battle for pride begins. Based on a classic rakugo work (Japanese verbal entertainment), "BUSHIDO" breaks the conventional image of the samurai drama. Amidst a whirlwind of suspicion and intrigue, the film is a moving epic depicting a samurai's dignity and the love between a father and his daughter. It offers a spectrum of buman emotions and genres within a single narrative: a heart-wrenching drama, suspense, and action. The director is Kazuya Shiraishi, who is making his first period drama in his illustrious career. Shiraishi has been highly acclaimed in the film industry for such films as "The Blood of Wolves," which won the 42nd Japan Academy Prize for Best Director. Actor Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, who plays Kakunoshin, has melancholic eyes and an overwhelming charisma. He has made a strong impact as a transgender man who awakens to maternal love in "Midnight Swan," for which he won the Best Actor Award at the 44th Japan Academy Award. Kakunoshin’s attempt to live up to the principles of BUSHIDO is delicately expressed in his fingertips as he plays the game of Go and is imbued with a noble beauty. After suffering many tragedies, he awakens to take an act of revenge. Kusanagi succeeded in creating an unconventional character of a samurai.

Anand (30), a call-center employee in Mumbai, is forced to spend 10 days at his ancestral village to mourn the loss of his at the behest of his mother, Suman (50). As the mourning period begins post-cremation, he faces subtle but relentless badgering from relatives to get married so that at least his mother finds the pleasure of seeing him settled. Anand finds himself stifled, as coming out to extended family could alienate his mother from the relatives when she needs them the most. He finds solace in his childhood friend, Balya (30), as he accompanies him on his daily outings into the mountains to herd goats. Balya has been using the ‘educated girls favoring city-dwellers over farmers’ as a ruse to stay unmarried as he underges similar pressures relating to his sexuality from his family. To escape their pressures, the two men spend time together. Hailing from different worlds but bound by childhood memories, they connect over their common struggle. As the days pass, their intimacy blooms emotionally and physically. With the mourning period ending, will their burgeoning bond survive beyond the ten days? Cactus Pears explores the delicate bonds that develop under duress and the future of it.

Monika, a divorced single mom is stressed out at work and at home. Her 13-year-old is obsessing over calories and her 17-year-old is fixated on her musician boyfriend. When Monika's aunt Gurdeep urges Monika to send her daughters to India for the summer, Monika reluctantly agrees. Alia and Simi arrive in Amritsar like fish out of water. Alia freaks out over the calories of greasy Indian food and Simi would rather be back home than outfitted in “modest” Punjabi salwar kameez. Their great aunt and uncle Gurdeep and Mohan have their hands full. The old couple patiently set about giving the girls some hilarious lessons in Indian culture. Alia forms a special bond with her great uncle, a proud Sikh, and learns about her late grandmother and his dear sister Dalbir, a woman shrouded in mystery. Meanwhile back home, Monika confronts painful memories of her mother Dalbir who died in a plane crash on her way to India when Monika was a teen. A visit to her childhood Gurdwara brings turmoil when Monika is reminded that her mother left for India because of her. Monika's journey leads her to Amritsar and to a surprising revelation from her uncle Mohan about her mother. The newfound clarity offers Monika a chance to heal and reconcile with her past and her daughters. Inspired by real events, Calorie is a deeply moving, poignant, and unexpectedly funny story about family, identity, and the weight of the past—proving that sometimes, the only way forward is to go back.

Two longtime friends, Sébastien and Bruno, find themselves at an all-inclusive resort in Cuba, accompanied by their respective partners. The trip quickly takes a turn for the worse: Sébastien's partner, Claudia, becomes heavily involved in alcohol, while Bruno realizes it was a mistake to have invited Mia, whom he met furtively at a happy hour a few days earlier. Seven days in bad company can be a long time. To get some fresh air and distance themselves from their stifling situations, our two friends decide to take a one-hour paddleboat trip. An intimate discussion ensues between Sébastien and Bruno about their lives, their disappointments, their hopes, and sex. But the escapade doesn't go as planned; the paddleboat breaks down, and our two men are lost at sea, somewhere off the coast of Cuba as night falls. The comical situation turns dramatic, but for our two men, the surprises are only just beginning…

Checkpoint Zoo documents a daring rescue led by a heroic team of zookeepers and volunteers, who risked their lives to save thousands of animals trapped in a zoo behind enemy lines in the Russian Invasion of Ukraine. On February 24, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, starting the worst war Europe has seen in over 50 years. In the early days of the invasion, some of the fiercest fighting was on the outskirts of Kharkiv, Ukraine's 2nd largest city. On one side was the advancing Russian Army, on the other side the defending Ukrainian Army. And in between them was a zoo… called Feldman Ecopark. More than just a sanctuary for animals, Feldman Ecopark offered countless community programs, from animal therapy to charity events for children with special needs. It was a cultural center for Kharkiv’s 1.4 million citizens, unfortunately positioned less than 30 kilometers from the Russian border. When the invasion started, and Kharkiv turned into a battleground, the staff was forced to flee Ecopark, leaving 5,000 animals trapped in between the Russian and Ukrainian frontlines. Both sides were firing on each other, and everything that fell short, landed in Feldman Ecopark. But that wasn’t enough to stop several brave zookeepers from venturing back into the park time and time again to continue caring for the surviving animals. When two zookeepers were killed, four volunteers appeared on Feldman’s doorstep, ready to help in any way they could. As the war continued, and the shelling increased, it was clear that even the incredible bravery of the zoo staff wouldn’t be enough to save the animals. The zoo’s founder, Oleksandr Feldman, posted a desperate plea to social media asking for help. Miraculously, the post went viral, and zoos from across Ukraine and all of Europe volunteered to house the remaining animals. And so, the zoo staff and these volunteers resolved to do the impossible – they would sneak back into Feldman Ecopark and evacuate thousands of animals, including many dangerous predators, and bring them to safety. In doing so, they put themselves in incredible danger, risking their lives to save those of these innocent animals. Working from footage captured by the zookeepers, volunteers, news media, and himself on his own trip to Ukraine, filmmaker Joshua Zeman tells the moving, suspenseful, and powerful story of these real-life heroes. It details the initial attack, the efforts to continue tending to the trapped animals, the hair-raising evacuation, and unfortunately, the price these volunteers paid to do the right thing. The zookeepers and volunteers of Checkpoint Zoo show us the absolute best of humanity at a time when it is all too easy to focus on the worst. In the face of violence, destruction, and cruelty, this film is a testament to the power of compassion, empathy, and sacrifice.

1916. As war rages on the Western Front, the Choral Society in Ramsden, Yorkshire has lost most of its men to the army. The Choral’s ambitious committee, determined to press ahead, decides to recruit local young males to swell their ranks. They must also engage a new chorus master, and despite their suspicions that he has something to hide, their best bet seems to be Dr. Henry Guthrie (Ralph Fiennes) – driven, uncompromising, and recently returned from a career in Germany. As conscription papers start to arrive, the whole community discovers that the best response to the chaos that is laying waste to their lives is to make music together.

Seventeen-year-old CHRISTY is at a crossroads. He's just been thrown out of his pleasant suburban foster home and moved in with his estranged older brother Shane. As far as Shane is concerned this is a temporary arrangement, but Christy begins to feel at home on Cork's working class north side. As he makes friends and begins to let the community in, he also reconnects with his past through his seemingly more corrupting extended family, despite Shane’s efforts to steer him away from this crowd. Shane wants something better for Christy at any cost – even if it means he has to push him away. After so many years apart, the brothers need to now reconcile their turbulent past whilst deciding what the future looks like.

Christy Martin (Sydney Sweeney) never imagined life beyond her small-town roots in West Virginia—until she discovered a knack for punching people. Fueled by grit, raw determination, and an unshakable desire to win, she charges into the world of boxing under the guidance of her trainer and manager-turned-husband, Jim (Ben Foster). But while Christy flaunts a fiery persona in the ring, her toughest battles unfold outside it—confronting family, identity, and a relationship that just might become life-or-death. Based on remarkable true events, Christy Martin’s story is one of resilience, courage, and the fight to reclaim one’s life.

Yoshii (Masaki Suda) resigns from his stable job to make big money as a reseller. His schemes appear to be going from strength to strength until unsettling incidents begin occurring consecutively around him. A negative spiral of animosity eventually gives rise to a crazed mob of unknown number. Their target is Yoshii, whose oblivious existence is rapidly torn apart…

COEXISTENCE, MY ASS! follows Israeli activist-comedian Noam Shuster Eliassi as she creates a comedy show by the same name. Shot over five tumultuous years, the film traces Noam’s personal, professional and political journey in tandem with the region’s steady deterioration. Raised in a bilingual Israeli-Palestinian village — the only intentionally integrated community in the country — Noam grows disillusioned with traditional peace activism. She pivots to stand-up and quickly attracts attention across the Middle East. But as her star rises, everything around her falls apart. With biting satire, Noam pushes her audiences to face difficult truths that aren't always funny but do remind us that another reality is possible.

Today, in 2024, around thirty people from the same family learn that they will inherit a house that has been abandoned for years. Four of them, Seb, Abdel, Céline, and Guy, are tasked with taking inventory of its condition. These distant "cousins" will then discover hidden treasures in this old house. They will find themselves on the trail of a mysterious Adèle who left her native Normandy at the age of 20. This Adèle finds herself in Paris in 1895, at a time when the city is in the midst of an industrial and cultural revolution. For the four cousins, this introspective journey into their genealogy will introduce them to this very special moment at the end of the 19th century when photography was being invented and Impressionism was born. This confrontation between the two eras of 2024 and 1895 will call into question their present and their ideals and will tell the meaning of: The coming of the future

WIFF Prize in Canadian Film Nominee Compulsive Liar 2 (Menteuse) is Émile Gaudreault’s latest comedy. Driven by the desire to make those around her happy, Virginie lies constantly. As her partner Phil fears, her many lies start becoming reality, shaping multiverses that completely upend their lives and those of their loved ones. Having spent her life lying about her true nature, will Virginie find her way back to the truth?

WIFF Prize in Canadian Film Nominee Over the years, Nacer Belkacem has built an enviable position: loving father, happy husband, model employee, and respected citizen of his community. But under the clean surface, something is cracking. Nacer has racked up expenses, made some questionable investments, and fallen deep into debt. As his world unravels, he hatches a desperate plan to stay afloat. One life, one shot at heaven. But you must pay the price.

Counted Out investigates the biggest crises of our time through an unexpected lens: math. In our current information economy, math is everywhere. The people we date, the news we see, the influence of our votes, the candidates who win elections, the education we have access to, the jobs we get—all of it is underwritten by an invisible layer of math that few of us understand, or even notice. But whether we know it or not, our numeric literacy—whether we can speak the language of math—is a critical determinant of social and economic power. Through a mosaic of personal stories, expert interviews, and scenes of math transformation in action, Counted Out shows what’s at risk if we keep the status quo. Do we want an America in which most of us don’t consider ourselves “math people”? Where math proficiency goes down as students grow up? Or do we want a country where everyone can understand the math that undergirds our society—and can help shape it?

As the first elected councilwoman of her deeply conservative Iranian village, Sara Shahverdi — a divorced, motorcycle riding, former midwife — stands out. Tenacious and not easily intimidated, Sara is determined to uplift her community and put an end to the empty promises and laziness perpetuated by local councilmen over the years. But it is as an advocate for the girls and women in her village where she encounters the greatest opposition. Among other things, she aims to break long-held patriarchal traditions by training teenage girls to ride motorcycles and stopping child marriages. When accusations arise questioning Sara’s intentions to empower the girls, her identity is put in turmoil.

Set in China, where eligible men outnumber women by over 30 million, The Dating Game is the story of Zhou, Li, and Wu, three bachelors embarking on a seven-day dating camp, led by Hao, one of China’s most sought-after dating coaches. In their last-ditch effort to find love, the bachelors chuckle and bond as Hao makes them over, altering how they look and act online—and in real life. It’s all part of Hao’s signature “strategic deception,” a series of techniques designed to, purportedly, make humans connect. Hao’s credentials? Hao successfully wooed Wen, a stylish, educated city-girl—a real catch who is now his wife. As our three bachelors stumble through the camp’s awkward challenges, they try to make sense of their authentic and constructed selves, and find the self-confidence they need to land that date. The Dating Game is, on the surface, a whimsical romp through courtship in the digital age, but it also reveals the social challenges that leave us questioning how we seek human connection.

A lonely Gravedigger who stinks of corpses finally meets her dream man, but their whirlwind affair is cut short when he tragically drowns at sea. Grief-stricken, she goes to morbid lengths to resurrect him through madcap scientific experiments, resulting in grave consequences and unlikely love. Dead Lover is the story of a lonely Gravedigger who reeks so strongly of corpses that she can't attract a lover. She concocts fragrant perfumes in her workshop, but nothing can save her romantic prospects from her ghastly odor... Until one day, when Gravedigger meets Lover, an aristocratic dandy in town for his sister's funeral. Lover is different: numb to the pampered palette of the aristocracy, his loins are downright aroused by Gravedigger’s morbid stank. Before long, Gravedigger and Lover begin a rapturous love affair, become engaged, and dream of starting a family. As Gravedigger slips her engagement ring on Lover’s finger, she remarks to him: “the reason why you put the ring on this finger, of your one and only true lover, is because the vein right here runs all the way up to your heart.” But suddenly, Gravedigger’s dreams are ripped away when Lover tragically drowns in a shipwreck - and all that is recovered is his severed finger, still wrapped in his engagement ring. Delirious with grief and enduring love, Gravedigger resolves to bring Lover back to life using only his ring finger. Holed up in her workshop, she plants the severed digit in a flower pot and subjects it to madcap scientific experiments. Finally, one stormy night, Gravedigger’s attempt at reanimation is successful - but not how she expected. The finger bends at the knuckle and squirms in the soil, then grows lengthwise by several feet and develops an independent personality. While it can be okay company, the limitations of a four-foot finger for a spouse start to show themselves, and Gravedigger finally makes a grave realization: she needs to find a body to serve as the vessel for Lover’s re-animation. But where would someone like her get a body...? Dead Lover is a hilarious, delirious, beautiful, horny, and wholly original Frankensteinian tale about the limits one Gravedigger will go to hold onto love. It is the sophomore feature from Grace Glowicki, who directed and stars as the love-obsessed, shovel-wielding Gravedigger turned mad scientist. Ben Petrie, Leah Doz and Lowen Morrow comprise the colourful cast of supporting characters, each playing multiple roles in the style of great romps such as Monty Python and Dr. Strangelove.

Benji encounters Jake at an airport gate there is instant chemistry. Their relationship unfolds through Amsterdam trips and intimacy, revealing complex power dynamics. A must-see Bristich comedy-drama that dissects a toxic relationship with humor and raw emotion. Inspired by real heartbreak. What begins as thrilling monthly getaways to Amsterdam soon unravels into a doomed relationship of convenience. Struggling to move on after being dumped, Benji spirals into addiction and fleeting hook-ups, haunted by the love he lost. Created by a collective of working-class LGBTQ filmmakers, Departures is a darkly comic, emotionally charged journey. Think Shirley Valentine meets LGBTQ Trainspotting.

Katia est une brillante documentaliste de 35 ans qui fait preuve de singularité dans sa manière de vivre ses relations, toutes plus ou moins chaotiques. Sa participation à un nouveau reportage l’amène enfin à mettre un mot sur sa différence. Cette révélation va chambouler une vie déjà bien compliquée.

Paris, 1896. Sarah Bernhardt est au sommet de sa gloire. Icône de son époque et première star mondiale, la comédienne est aussi une amoureuse, libre et moderne, qui défie les conventions. Découvrez la femme derrière la légende.

Ahmet, a 15-year-old boy from a remote Yuruk village in North Macedonia, finds refuge in music while navigating his father’s expectations, a conserva- tive community, and his first experience with love — a girl already promised to someone else.

Based on Alexandra Fuller’s memoir of the same name, DON'T LET'S GO TO THE DOGS TONIGHT captures the childhood of 7-year-old Bobo on her family farm in Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) at the end of the Zimbabwean War for independence in 1980. Growing up in the midst of this long running war, Bobo internalizes both sides of the struggle. Conflicted by her love for people on opposing sides, she tries to make sense of her life in a magical way. Through her seven-year-old gaze we witness Rhodesia’s final days, the family’s unbreakable bond with Africa, and the deep scars that war leaves on survivors.

What happens when a young and curious filmmaker challenges his creativity with the limitless possibilities of a fake A.I.? A surprising mix of various stories, from new and old times, about the original myth of Dracula: a vampire hunt, zombies and Dracula crashing a strike, a science-fiction tale about Vlad the Impaler’s return, an adaptation of the first Romanian vampires novella, a tragic romance, a vulgar folktale, A.I. generated kitsch stories... and much more!

After having her entire life uprooted by moving to a new city, a young woman begins hearing strange sounds and experiencing terrifying visions. Is her house haunted? Or is it something more sinister?

Adnan, a young art student, arrives in New York City to flat-sit for the summer. He begins interning at a gallery where an unconventional older artist he once encountered is being exhibited. As moments from his past and present begin to intertwine, a series of encounters - both artistic and erotic - open cracks in his everyday reality.

She built a house for herself. Unfortunatley it turned out to be a masterpiece. Irish designer Eileen Gray builds a refuge on the Côte d‘Azur in 1929. Her first house is a discrete, avant-garde masterpiece. She names it E.1027, a cryptic marriage of her initials and those of Jean Badovici, with whom she built it. Le Corbusier, upon discovering the house, becomes intrigued, obsessed. He later covers the walls with murals and publishes photos of them. Gray describes these paintings as vandalism and demands restitution. He ignores her wishes and instead builds his famous Cabanon directly behind E.1027, which dominates the narrative of the site to this day. A story about the power of female expression, and men’s desire to control it.

Tabatha, a young, rebellious rancher, who rescues and resells horses, must make hard decisions while providing refuge and the skills of the horse trade to a group of wayward neighborhood teens.

Enzo, 16, defies his bourgeois family’s expectations by starting a masonry apprenticeship, a path far removed from the prestigious life they had envisioned for him. In their chic villa in the sun-drenched South of France, tensions simmer as relentless questions and pressures weigh on Enzo’s future and dreams. On the construction sites, however, Vlad, a charismatic Ukrainian colleague, shakes up Enzo’s world and opens the door to unexpected possibilities.

Set in a gritty, unnamed “Hightown City” plagued by a mysterious series of women’s disappearances. The story follows Joe, an ad‑seller for the city’s last remaining alternative weekly—who, unintentionally, finds himself pulled into the investigation.

MIDNIGHT MADNESS When evil, deadly water starts pooling around their feet, the citizens of Medialight must figure out a way to stay alive until it evaporates. From the makers of Don't Let The Riverbeast Get You! comes Evil Puddle, a story filled with intrigue, romance, and fantastic plot twists. You'll never look at a puddle the same way again after you've seen this thrilling picture.

Fanny lives with her father, Hubert, who never recovered from the death of his wife twelve years ago. Everything changes the day a long-buried family secret comes to light. Fanny sets out in search of the truth surrounding her mother’s death. How far will she go to uncover what really happened?

Frantz Fanon, un psychiatre français originaire de la Martinique vient d’être nommé chef de service à l’hôpital psychiatrique de Blida en Algérie. Ses méthodes contrastent avec celles des autres médecins dans un contexte de colonisation. Un biopic au cœur de la guerre d’Algérie où se livre un combat au nom de l’Humanité.

FATHER MOTHER SISTER BROTHER is a feature film in the form of a triptych. Three separate stories all concern the relationships between adult children, their somewhat distant parent (or parents), and each other.

Two brothers reunite in a last attempt to collect their rich granddad's inheritance money. The Father, The Sons and The Holy Spirit is an epic tale, filmed over 14 years, about two brothers, Henrik and Christian, who reunite in a struggle to secure their wealthy grandfather's inheritance. While Henrik tries to create stability and break the dysfunctional patterns of their family, Christian is driven by anger and hatred, which leads him into a right-wing brotherhood. The conflict between the brothers becomes a battle for not only money, but also for their children's futures, as Henrik's eldest son, Alexander, struggles to navigate in the family drama without repeating his parents' mistakes. Spanning three generations, the film sheds light on the burden of social inheritance, money, and the individual's struggle to find their own place in life.

Fear of Dancing follows director Michael Allcock’s global quest to understand why he and so many others on this planet are terrified by the simple act of dancing – what science calls chorophobia. Newly single – and back on the dating scene – the filmmaker is again forced to confront what it is that makes a person bolt for the exits when the dance floor opens up at social events. What could possibly trigger such a deep-seated reaction? Both hilarious and heartbreaking, the search for these answers reveals a rarely seen world full of unexpected turns and twists – a world rife with sex, spirituality, robots, stereotypes, virtual reality, and a deadly medieval epidemic. Along the way, Allcock meets others who have taken bold steps to overcome their chorophobia. In the end, Fear of Dancing attempts to make sense of what it means to be human through the simple act of dancing – or not.

Two lovers, parents of two children, decide to open up their relationship after 16 years together. We follow their process over a period of several months, witnessing the weakening of their union and their attempts to preserve what they have built together. Their story is told through their many experiments. In six chapters, they explore different types of relationships and witness the repercussions these have on their love. Follies is a naive, clumsy, but devilishly endearing reflection on the modern couple.

Edward, a novelist saddled with caring for his elderly mother, finally finds himself on the bring of literary success. With pressure to go on a US book tour mounting, the last thing Edward needs is his friends jetting off to Spain for an impromptu holiday, leaving their mothers on his doorstep! Over a chaotic weekend, has has to juggle his burgeoning career with the care of four eccentric, combative, and wildly different ladies.

In the early 1970s, the United States was roiled by protest: Vietnam, women’s rights, gay rights, black power and, rising up at the forefront, the American Indian Movement, AIM. Leonard Peltier was a young mechanic when he joined AIM to advocate for his people and quickly found himself swept up in a war between activists and the US government. FREE LEONARD PELTIER, the new documentary from acclaimed directors Jesse Short Bull and David France, revisits the turbulent era of AIM, bringing alive the occupations, arrests, demands, and assassinations and culminating in the FBI’s descent onto the compound on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation where Peltier was staying. After two FBI agents are killed in the ensuing shootout, Peltier is arrested, tried, convicted of their murder and sentenced to two life terms in prison in one of the most notorious and discredited legal judgments in modern America. Fifty years later, with Peltier newly out of jail by way of an end-of-term commutation (but not pardon) from President Joseph Biden, Native-led production FREE LEONARD PELTIER arrives to revisit his case in a new era and to advocate for just what its title suggests.

Set in Wuhan, a metropolis of more than 12 million that became infamous as the first city hit by COVID-19, THE GARDENER AND THE DICTATOR offers a portal back to life long before the pandemic. A loving portrait of Xianzhuang Kuai and Zhongxian Wang, the filmmaker’s elderly grandparents, the film unfolds through their daily lives as they work together to overcome physical and emotional challenges. With incredible intimacy and honesty, they share shocking and inspiring accounts of their experiences during the brutal Japanese occupation and World War II, the Cultural Revolution, and the decades of political and cultural upheaval that followed. A largely voiceless generation, this remarkable duo revisit both painful and joyous memories, many of which had been buried until the introduction of a video camera as a conduit for these testimonies. Stark contrast between their quiet home life, turbulent early experiences, and the fast-changing urban environment around them creates a nuanced reflection of the incredible pace of societal change around them. In a time where China and “the West” are more mired in conflict and distrust than ever, THE GARDENER AND THE DICTATOR is both a profoundly intimate and quirky love story and a nuanced and insightful reflection of the last century of China’s tumultuous history.

“Focus. What do you see?” Afflicted with a rare and fatal condition that affects her ability to perceive time and causes sudden blackouts, single mother Frankie Rhodes relies on self-recorded cassette tapes to help her navigate the world. Desperate to make ends meet while she fights for custody of her young daughter, she accepts a risky but high-paying job from a mysterious woman, which draws her into a world of paranoid conspiracies that threatens to swallow her whole. Shot on nights and weekends over the course of two years, GAZER finds first-time filmmaker Ryan J. Sloan and his co-writer and star Ariella Mastroianni bringing the paranoid thriller genre into wildly original new territory. They deliver a relentless and riveting neo-noir where truth and nightmares become intertwined, as Frankie must fight against a ticking clock to do all she can for her daughter as she becomes sucked into an increasingly unhinged and unstable reality.

When free-spirited Carmen enters Yasmine's seemingly perfect world of friendship and romance, long-held beliefs about love and identity begin to unravel, challenging everything she once took for granted.

1983. French President François Mitterrand decides to launch an international architectural competition for the flagship project of his mandate: the Great Arch of La Défense, aligned with the Louvre and the Arc de Triomphe. Against all odds, Otto von Spreckelsen, a Danish architect, wins the competition. Overnight, this 53- year-old man, unknown in France, arrives in Paris where he is propelled at the helm of this pharaonic project. While the architect intends to build the Great Arch exactly as he envisioned, his ideas quickly clash with realistic constraints and the vicissitudes of politics.

Baptiste, a talented imitator, is unable to make a living from his art. One day, he is approached by Pierre Chozène, a famous but discreet novelist, constantly disturbed by incessant calls from his publisher, his daughter, his ex-wife... Pierre, who needs peace and quiet to write his most ambitious text, then suggests that Baptiste become his 'answering machine' by pretending to be him on the phone... Little by little, Baptiste doesn't just imitate the writer: he develops his character!

Refusing to go to school, anxious sixteen year old Tori is driven by her mother to her grandfather's rustic cabin in Eastern Manitoba on the remote Canadian-American border. Displaced from her urban lifestyle, Tori struggles to adapt to the woodsman ways of her French Canadian grandfather Benoit, but ultimately must embrace the outdoors if she is to survive the deadly game of cat and mouse she is thrust into.

An artist haunted by nightmares chases the vision of her disappeared father to the remote island ofNewfoundland. Haunted by nightmares and visions, Vera (Hera Hilmar) abandons her life in Iceland to chase the ghost of her disappeared father to the coast of Newfoundland. After settling in a remote fishing village, she finds herself drawn to Jack (James Frecheville), a seal hunter leaving town with his failing boat and superstitious crew.

Un village en Beauce, 1952. C'est la grève à l'usine de textile. Michel, un jeune cinéaste, vient couvrir les évènements entourant la grève avec sa caméra. Ghislain, un chanteur western apprécié de tous, ainsi que sa nouvelle flamme Suzanne, tentent d'échapper aux manigances du compétiteur Jim Larochelle, un autre chanteur western et ancien amant de la douce. Une mort suspecte à l'usine ébranle le comté: un shérif du Maine du nom de Peter Strehler sera alors interpelé afin de résoudre l’enquête.

Four interconnected characters share their unique realities, highlighting the complexities between genders, generations, and cultures. While celebrating Purim at her university in Jerusalem, Fifi, a young Palestinian woman is hospitalized following a car accident. Though her injuries are minor, she fears her newfound freedom at school will now come under the scrutiny of her conservative parents. Meanwhile, back in Haifa, Fifi’s older brother Rami panics as he faces his own personal crisis - Shirley, his Jewish girlfriend, reveals she is pregnant and plans to carry the baby to term. Behind closed doors, the family's deep financial troubles come into focus while Hanan, Fifi and Rami's mother, plans her eldest daughter's wedding. Led by an incredible cast of mostly non-professional actors, HAPPY HOLIDAYS is a dynamic, sociopolitical family saga which thoughtfully considers the myriad intricacies of Israeli Arab life. Directed by Oscar-nominated Palestinian filmmaker Scandar Copti (AJAMI), the family’s stories and everyday anxieties weave together a collective portrait of a pressurized society, and “speak to a larger culture of silence, shame, social pressure and rampant prejudice” (Variety).

Heightened Scrutiny follows Chase Strangio, ACLU attorney and the first out trans person to argue before the Supreme Court, as he fights a high-stakes legal battle to overturn Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth (United States v. Skrmetti). The film exposes the dangerous role of mainstream media in fueling anti-trans legislation, uncovering how biased coverage drives hate, endangers lives, and threatens democracy itself. With insights from journalists like Jelani Cobb, Lydia Polgreen, and Gina Chua, and activists like Laverne Cox, the story dismantles anti-trans disinformation and highlights its devastating real-world impact. As SCOTUS prepares to rule on the case, Heightened Scrutiny reveals the fight for bodily autonomy as a fight for the soul of democracy, offering a powerful call to action against bigotry and injustice.

Mélanie, a lawyer suffering from an incurable disease, decides it's time to enjoy life and takes her lifelong friend, Benjamin, on a journey to Spain. They board a dilapidated van driven by Lucas, a gruff driver released from prison the day before. Unlike Mélanie, Benjamin doesn't seem in a hurry to arrive and does everything he can to prolong this improbable journey by her side.

Starring Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor, THE HISTORY OF SOUND is a sweeping, moving and tender romance that spans decades and continents. It tells the story of a love that can’t last, a life forever altered, and the ways in which music creates bonds between us that echo for a lifetime. In 1917, Lionel (Mescal, Aftersun) – a young, talented music student – meets David (O’Connor, Challengers) at the Boston Conservatory, where a connection over a deep love of music leads to a fleeting love affair. They reconnect years later, leading to an impromptu journey through the backwoods of Maine to collect traditional folk songs. This unexpected reunion and the music they preserve will shape the course of Lionel’s life for decades to come. Sumptuously realised by director Oliver Hermanus (Living) and based on a short story by Ben Shattuck, this is a beautiful and compelling cinematic experience that invites audiences to reflect on the power of music and love.

On the morning of October 7, 2023, Israeli-American Liat Atzili and her husband Aviv were at home when Hamas attacked their kibbutz. By nightfall, Liat and Aviv are captives in Gaza along with 250 other people - 12 of whom, like Liat, are American citizens. Caught between international diplomacy and a rapidly escalating war, their family must face their own uncertainty and conflicting perspectives in the pursuit of Liat and Aviv’s release. This agonizing process, and the ultimate fate of their loved ones, challenges how the members of the family understand themselves and their place in the conflict. Through the intimate lens of a family’s experience, HOLDING LIAT poses complex questions of identity across generations, as the family is thrust into the epicenter of a global conflict rapidly unfolding in real-time. An independent production of Protozoa (BLACK SWAN) and Meridian Hill Pictures (THE FIRST STEP).

Eighteen-year-old Totone spends most of his time drinking beer and hitting the dance floors of the Jura with his gang of friends. But reality catches up with him: he has to take care of his 7-year-old sister and find a way to earn a living. He then sets his mind to making the best Comté cheese in the region, the one with which he would win the gold medal in the agricultural competition and 30,000 euros.

An eight-year-old troublemaker must protect his house from a pair of burglars when he is accidentally left home alone by his family during Christmas vacation.

Diana’s attentive and devoted husband, Homer, has taken her from her hospital bed to a remote experimental trauma retreat. After an accident left her with crippling pain and memory loss, this might be their last hope that she’ll get better. Farah, Diana’s personal physician, promises that with the use of Dr. Tréphine’s cutting-edge therapies and with Homer’s helping hand, she will make a full recovery — she’ll feel like her old self again. Homer is enthusiastic about her progress, but the more treatment she undergoes the less Diana feels like herself. When the ritualistic exercises intensify, Diana experiences haunting visions and begins to notice strange changes in her husband’s behaviour. Whispered conversations behind closed doors, going missing for long periods, and his insistence she is recovering even though she feels worse. As troubling memories from her relationship begin to come vividly back to her, Diana must confront the possibility that her recovery may come at a cost far greater than she imagined—one that threatens to unravel a sinister truth about her marriage.

A sexy, darkly funny, life-affirming film. Persian-Kurdish Lela (Amira Casar) and her sensual daughter June (Ayden Mayeri) take a trip to the romantic Azores after their big loss — with opposite ideas about why they're there, how to grieve, and June’s tiny bikini. Between honeymooners, Woman Life Freedom, and their hot philosophical-surfer tour guide João (José Condessa), they find each other… coming back to life.

Montse is very excited because she is about to spend a weekend with the whole family at her house in Cadaqués, on the Costa Brava. She has been divorced for a long time, her ex has a new partner, her children have grown up and have been living their lives without paying any attention to her, but nothing and nobody will be able to spoil Montse’s mood. She has been waiting for this moment for too long, she has been dreaming about it for too long: this weekend will be an ideal weekend... even if she has to burn everything to do it.

With deep-sea mining looming, biologists race to collect and name the undiscovered species of the abyss, the last wilderness on earth. HOW DEEP IS YOUR LOVE follows biologists as they explore the deep sea, where 70% of our planet lies hidden. As they uncover mesmerising creatures and ecosystems thriving in darkness, a looming threat emerges: the prospect of deep-sea mining in this untouched wilderness. This film weaves wonder with urgency, challenging us to balance the drive for resources with the intrinsic value of an ecosystem. As we journey through this breathtaking realm, we are left to ponder – how deep is our love?

In 2004, Nevenka Fernandez, 24, Finance councillor in the Ponferrada City Council, was relentlessly harassed, sentimentally and professionally, by the mayor of her city, a man used to doing as he pleased, politically and personally. Nevenka decided to report him, knowing she would pay a very high price: those around her don’t support her, Ponferrada turns its back on her and she endures public trial in the media. Her case marks the beginning, in Spain, of the #metoo movement long before the term was coined. A story based on real events. The person at the heart of it becomes a pioneer, the first woman to take a powerful, popular politician to court for sexual abuse and harassment in the workplace.

With her life crashing down around her, Linda (Rose Byrne) attempts to navigate her child's mysterious illness, her absent husband, a missing person, and an increasingly hostile relationship with her therapist.

WIFF Prize in Canadian Film Nominee The city crackles with the energy of a chaotic urban rodeo. Fresh out of prison, Ava’s attempt to take back her burgeoning drug operation is obliterated when she witnesses a brutal crime, forcing Ava to run for her life. Director Maxime Giroux was previously nominated for the WIFF Prize in Canadian Film for his film Norbourg, and his films have frequently been featured at WIFF.

You may know him as a film critic at the Globe and Mail, but he's also the expert on one of the most family-oriented franchises. Join us for a special event with Barry Hertz to discuss his new book Welcome to the Family: The Explosive Story Behind Fast & Furious, the Blockbusters that Supercharged the World.

*2012 Winner of the LiUNA People’s Choice Award With 36 awards and 40 nominations, this irreverent, uplifting comedy about friendship, trust and human possibility is one of the top-rated movies of all time. The Intouchables is also a perennial favourite at WIFF with sold-out screenings every year. When a paragliding accident leaves him paralyzed from the neck down, Philippe (Francois Cluzet) requires a caregiver to assist him with his daily physical needs. With the help of his assistant Magalie (Audrey Fleurot), he interviews a number of highly qualified candidates, all of whom he subsequently rejects in favour of Driss (Omar Sy), a recently released ex-con who has only applied for the job to ensure that he keeps getting welfare payments. Based on a true story of friendship between a handicapped millionaire and his street-smart ex-con caretaker, The Intouchables depicts an unlikely camaraderie rooted in honesty and humour between two individuals who, on the surface, would seem to have nothing in common.

What does it take to overturn your daily routine? And how does it feel to have your daily routine, which you’ve turned into an existential necessity, overturned, after you’ve scrupulously arranged your life to avoid just that? Tennis instructor Tom serves and returns against ordinary affluent tourists at a picturesque island resort day in, day out. In the evenings he parties too much. He’s sunburnt and close to burnt out. One morning he’s approached by Anne, the beautiful mother of young Anton, for whom she wants lessons. Tom protests that he’s overbooked, but Anne is persuasive. Soon Tom is pulled into the family dynamic, which unfortunately includes the truculent Dave, Anne’s mate and Anton’s dad. Tom becomes an unwilling witness to the family’s most intimate, uncomfortable moments, even as Dave pushes Tom to party ever harder. Something’s got to give. Islands is a moving, deep character study that has the stealthy discomfort of an expert thriller.

Set against the backdrop of the Rwandan diaspora in Canada, "It Comes in Waves" follows Akai, a young man grappling with the legacy of his family's past and the profound impact of intergenerational trauma. As he navigates the complexities of immigrant life, Akai's journey becomes a universal tale of resilience, depicting how individuals and communities confront and transcend their histories.

Antoine Toussaint is a famous, disillusioned 70-year-old crooner. On a train to Geneva where he plans to end his life, Antoine meets Victoire, a good-natured fan with a few loose wires. This unlikely encounter thwarts all Antoine’s plans, for better or worse!

Vahid, an unassuming mechanic, has a chance encounter with Eghbal, a man he strongly suspects to be his former sadistic jailhouse captor. Panicked, Vahid gathers several former prisoners, all abused by that same captor, to try and confirm Eghbal's identity. As the bickering group drives around Tehran with the captive, they must confront how far to take matters into their own hands with their presumed tormentor. From master filmmaker Jafar Panahi comes a searing moral thriller that engages with complex ideas about the uncertainty of the truth and the choice between revenge and mercy, as Panahi turns his personal dissonance into a profound and galvanizing work of art.

IT’S NEVER OVER: JEFF BUCKLEY, directed by Oscar-nominated filmmaker Amy Berg (DELIVER US FROM EVIL, JANIS: LITTLE GIRL BLUE, WEST OF MEMPHIS), covers the life of the rising young star with an otherworldly voice and boundary-pushing artistry, who left the '90s music world reeling when he died suddenly, at age 30, after the release of his critically acclaimed debut album “Grace.” Told through never-before-seen footage from Buckley’s archives and intimate accounts from his mother Mary Guibert, former partners Rebecca Moore and Joan Wasser, Jeff’s former bandmates, including Michael Tighe and Parker Kindred, and luminaries like Ben Harper and Aimee Mann, IT’S NEVER OVER, JEFF BUCKLEY illuminates one of modern music’s most influential and enigmatic figures.

When a gigantic great white shark begins to menace the small island community of Amity, a police chief, a marine scientist and grizzled fisherman set out to stop it.

JUST SING is an inspiring coming-of-age musical documentary that follows the SoCal VoCals as they vie for the championship title in the International Competition of Collegiate A Cappella— the “Super Bowl of song.” Beyond the high-pressure rehearsals and fierce competition, the film delves into the personal journeys of its members, each facing their own battles in the pursuit of self-discovery, their dreams in music, and friendship. From Tiffany, a Mariachi singer determined to build a better future, to Dylan, who embraces his identity through music, and Janina, grappling with self-doubt on her way to pop stardom, each individual story is interwoven with the group’s shared ambition. As the season progresses toward the ICCA finals in New York City, the tension grows. Will they triumph with Beyoncé’s iconic anthem, or will their dreams be dashed? The exhilarating competition is balanced by the bittersweet reality that their time together is coming to a close, as they confront the inevitable transition from college to the next chapter of their lives. The end of their college journey mirrors the bittersweet moment of growing up and moving on. JUST SING is more than just a tale of music and rivalry—it’s a celebration of friendship, the pursuit of ambition, and the journey of self-realization. A poignant tribute to the connections that define us and the voices that shape our identities, this film reminds us that sometimes, the true victory is not just winning—but discovering who we are and who we’ll become along the Way.

KÖLN 75 tells the rousing and true story of the rebellious 18-year-old Vera Brandes (Mala Emde), who confidently and passionately puts everything on the line to make her dream come true. Against the will of her conservative parents, she books the Cologne Opera House at her own risk to bring Keith Jarrett (John Magaro) to Cologne for a concert in January 1975. She doesn't know it yet, but his piano improvisation, which threatens to fail until the end, is immortalized on record and considered by many one of the most popular works of art of the 20th century: Keith Jarrett's "The Köln Concert". With more than four million copies sold to date, the double album with its iconic white cover is still the best-selling jazz solo and best-selling piano solo recording of all time.

Orsolya is a bailiff in Cluj, the main city in Transylvania. One day she must evict a homeless man who lives in the basement of a building. An unexpected event creates a moral crisis she tries to solve as best she can.

Mariano De Santis is the President of the Italian Republic. No connection to any real-life presidents; he is entirely a product of the author's imagination. A widower and a Catholic, he has a daughter, Dorotea, a legal scholar like himself. As his term draws to a close, amid uneventful days, two final duties arise: deciding on two delicate petitions for a presidential pardon. True moral dilemmas, which become tangled, in ways that seem impossible to unravel, with his private life. Driven by doubt, he will have to decide. And, with a deep sense of responsibility, that is exactly what this remarkable Italian President will do.

Dans un dialogue amical et passionné, le docteur Augustin Masset et l’écrivain Fabrice Toussaint se confrontent pour l’un à la fin de vie de ses patients et pour l’autre à sa propre fatalité. Emportés par un tourbillon de visites et de rencontres, tous deux démarrent un voyage sensible entre rires et larmes : une aventure humaine au cœur de notre vie à tous.

As an unprecedented wave of book banning largely addressing race and LGBT issues is sparked in Texas, Florida, and beyond, librarians under siege join forces as unlikely defenders fighting for intellectual freedom on the front lines of democracy. Filmmaker Kim A. Snyder (Newtown, Us Kids, 2025 Oscar®-Nominated Death By Numbers) takes us to an unexpected front line where librarians emerge as first responders in the fight for democracy, free access to information, and our First Amendment Rights. As they well know, controlling the flow of ideas means control over communities. In Texas, the Krause List targets 850 books focused on race and LGBTQIA+ stories—triggering sweeping book bans across the U.S. at an unprecedented rate. As tensions escalate, librarians connect the dots from heated school and library board meetings nationwide to lay bare the underpinnings of White Christian Nationalism fueling the censorship efforts. Despite facing harassment, threats, and laws aimed at criminalizing their work—the librarians’ rallying cry for freedom to read is a chilling cautionary tale.

In a remote corner of the North Atlantic, a group of friends fall down on their luck after their coal mining jobs dissolve due to a major fire. In a moment of questionable good luck, they get hired by our hero’s uncle to come work on hislobster boat. With money in their pockets and food on the table, the monotony of pulling up lobster pots turns upside down when the catch turns from lobster to bricks of hash, and later, kilos of cocaine. Soon, relationships get tested by outsiders and each other after an anonymous tip to Federal Agents brings an undercover officer to the otherwise sleepy town. The friends have to decide whether to stay the course or run for their lives before the paranoid and suspicious Uncle Huey turns frm ship’s captain to undertaker.

A mermaid princess makes a Faustian bargain in an attempt to become human and win a prince's love.

At her mother’s urging, introverted 16-year-old Lucija joins her Catholic school’s all-girls choir, where she befriends Ana-Marija, a popular older student. When the choir travels to a countryside convent for a weekend retreat of intensive rehearsals, Lucija navigates the unfamiliar surroundings, complex teenage social structures, and her own awakening sexuality. A series of initiations, including an eye-opening experience with a dark-eyed construction worker, test Lucija’s friendship with Ana-Marija and the other girls, as she begins to question her beliefs and disrupt the harmony within the choir.

Karl, an Austrian astronomer, professor, and museum consultant, is at a crossroads in life and work. At 70, he finds his jobs are at risk and his physicist wife distancing. Along with a colleague, Sarah, he also finds himself struggling with environmental crises reshaping their fields. Sarah, who specializes in “citizen-science,” has begun seeing Mateo, a young Ecuadorian astronomer who brings her to an old telescope in New Jersey, the site of an astonishing discovery about the origin of the universe. Karl revisits the Rosetta Mission, which landed a probe on a very distant comet. His wife, Eleanor, reflects on her attempt to witness a total eclipse in the American South and its unexpected political implications. As the historical touchstones of astronomy, his grandson’s future, and his own role as a dark sky advocate begin to spin above Karl’s head, he finds himself increasingly unmoored. After a conference in Greece, he decides not to return home and heads for a small island in hopes of finding a dark enough sky to reconnect with the stars. Abandoned at a remote mountain trail, he ascends and waits for darkness to fall.

The attempted modernisation of Melbourne in the 1950s destroyed much of the city, including its elegant cinemas and picture palaces. Now, a new Melbourne-made documentary brings them back to life.

Cities and their dwellers evolve and grow in ways that are both richly intertwined and beautifully complex. In her gentle, timeless and quietly absorbing debut feature, Love, Brooklyn, director Rachael Abigail Holder wisely portrays such winds of change in her beloved Brooklyn, through the lived-in stories of three unique Brooklynites, as imagined by screenwriter Paul Zimmerman. While they grapple with the shifts that unfold in their own lives and relationships, the city spaces that they lovingly exist in go through subtle transformations of their own. As the easygoing writer Roger, producer and star André Holland is one third of that trio, soulfully biking around the city, working his way towards an impossible deadline. He is in an initially casual, and gradually deepening relationship with the confident and no-nonsense Nicole (DeWanda Wise), who dotingly raises her daughter as a single mother and navigates the emotional challenges of the recent loss of her husband. Elsewhere, the free-spirited Casey (Nicole Beharie) tries to decide on the future of her treasured art gallery, while steering her complicated camaraderie with her ex Roger—one that feels just a little more than a friendship. Specific in the sophisticated details of its characters, deeply immersive through its astute narrative and placid rhythms, and attentive to the nuances of love and friendship, Love, Brooklyn is both a tender ode to the cities we hold dear, and a fresh addition to the great tradition of compulsively rewatchable New York movies to luxuriate in.

When an old friend takes his own life, Alan Zweig seeks out others grappling with the suicide of a loved one. As hard as it can be to speak of such an unfathomable loss, 23 friends and acquaintances feel compelled to tell their stories. Zweig engages with them as only he can—reflecting with disarming candour on the grief and resilience of those left standing. Love, Harold is a profound gesture of cinematic empathy from one of Canada’s most distinctive filmmakers.

Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer Lynsey Addario has risked her life to capture the stark realities of war — from the Middle East and Afghanistan to Ukraine. From National Geographic Documentary Films and Academy Award®-winning filmmakers E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, LOVE+WAR reveals Addario’s ascent in the male-dominated world of conflict photography. But her work comes at a steep personal cost — each assignment means stepping into danger and leaving behind her husband and two young sons. Behind the camera, Addario is torn between her unwavering commitment to the essential work of journalism and the powerful, competing demands of motherhood — grappling with what it truly means to follow your passion when it threatens everything you love.

WIFF Prize in Canadian Film Nominee Alain is getting married to Virginie. The day will be magnificent, the day will be perfect, and Alain's Lebanese aunts will talk about this wedding for years to come. But Alain has a stomach ache. A dull anger is brewing inside him. He fears the reunion of his parents, whose stormy divorce troubled his childhood. He fears the return of his anxiety attacks, he fears his addiction to medication, into which he is about to fall again. His cousin Édouard, a real brother, has promised to parade the bride and groom in a convertible Mustang. Except that on the wedding day, Édouard's mind is elsewhere. He hatches a nebulous plan and absolutely wants to talk to Alain about it. In doing so, Édouard summons the ghosts of the past and plunges Alain into an anguish bordering on delirium. Alain now has only one ambition: to survive the most beautiful day of his life.

130 years ago, the Lumière brothers invented cinema. Everything was already there: the composition, the tracking shots, the dramatic scenes, the comedy sketches, the actors... Thanks to the restoration of over 100 previously unseen Lumière ‘views’, the feature film offers us an intact spectacle of the world at the turn of the century and a stimulating journey to the origins of a cinema that knows no end.

In a tight knit Dominican American community in The Bronx, Rico (Juan Collado) is hustling his way through the summer, selling bootleg ”nutcracker” cocktails out of a beach cooler and chasing girls without a care in the world. But when his teenage girlfriend, Destiny (Destiny Checo), begins crashing at his place with his family, turning their small apartment into a stage for their messy, complicated young love, it’s only a matter of time before they’re hit with the sobering reality of growing up too fast in a city that waits for no one. Writer-director Joel Alfonso Vargas turns his hometown into the heartbeat of his debut feature, teaming up with street-cast talent Collado and Checo, to deliver a raw and deeply authentic, slice-of-life look at life in The Bronx. With humor and grit, Vargas paints a tender portrait of the chaos and charm of urban life, as well as the ups and downs of youthful abandon when life takes an unexpected turn.

When two girls go missing, Paul Chartier, an impulsive young police recruit, is assigned to “Maldoror”. This secret unit has been set up to monitor a dangerous sex offender. When the operation fails, fed up with the limits of the legal system, Chartier embarks on a solitary hunt to bring down the culprits.

Marcella Hazan changed how we cook and experience Italian food. MARCELLA is a new documentary that tells her dramatic, delicious story. Marcella lived an improbably eventful life. An immigrant woman trained as a scientist, she never set foot in a kitchen until she married and moved to America in the 1950s. A childhood injury had left her with an injured right arm, a challenge for the physical work of food preparation. But before long she was not only preparing the Italian dishes she remembered from home, but writing the definitive cookbooks that introduced millions of Americans to the glories of authentic Italian cuisine. The New York Times wrote that “the impact Mrs. Hazan had on the way America cooks Italian food is impossible to overstate.” Julia Child called her “my mentor in all things Italian.” As uncompromising as she was beloved, her influence went beyond cooking: “These were elemental truths that she was telling us,” one former student notes, “it wasn't just how to make Dinner.” Marcella’s life story is interwoven with visits to chefs preparing her most iconic recipes, and commentary by food stars Jacques Pépin, Danny Meyer, April Bloomfield, Shola Ulunloyo, Lidia Bastianich, Rancho Gordo's Steve Sando, and a passionate chorus of friends and admirers. Her widower and writing partner, Victor Hazan (now 96 years old) and her son, the cooking teacher and cookbook writer Giuliano Hazan, join in recounting Marcella’s story. Directed by Emmy and Peabody Award-winner Peter Miller (SACCO AND VANZETTI, AKA DOC POMUS, BEDLAM), MARCELLA brings Marcella’s story to old fans and new admirers.

Award-winning actress Isabelle Huppert (Oscar Nominee, Golden Globe and Emmy winner, two-time Cesar and Cannes Film Festival awards winner) stars in this US-set, radical one-character piece of convention-breaking cinema.

In 1987, at the age of just 21, Marlee Matlin shattered expectations as the first Deaf actor to win an Academy Award® for her groundbreaking performance in Children of a Lesser God. Catapulted into the spotlight, she seized the moment to challenge an industry unprepared for her immense talent, emerging as a trailblazer not only as a performer but also as an author and activist. Matlin's incredible journey continued with standout roles in acclaimed projects such as The West Wing and the Oscar®-winning CODA, all while relentlessly advocating for greater inclusion and accessibility both within Hollywood and beyond its borders. Directed by Shoshannah Stern, the film offers an unflinching look at Matlin’s remarkable life through the lens of her primary language, American Sign Language. Matlin opens up about her personal and professional struggles—her meteoric rise to fame, the challenges of navigating a predominantly hearing industry, the pain of a tumultuous high-profile relationship, getting sober and years of being overlooked by Hollywood —alongside her many triumphs. Stern’s directorial debut reimagines traditional documentary storytelling, elevating ASL as the film’s heart and soul while removing conventional voiceovers, creating an authentic and visually immersive experience. Through split-screen interviews with both Deaf and hearing contributors, the film weaves a poignant and inspiring narrative of Matlin’s legendary career, highlighting her tireless fight for inclusion and representation in an entertainment world that at first had no place for her.

Celebrated filmmaker Kelly Reichardt (First Cow, Showing Up) directs an unforgettable Josh O’Connor in THE MASTERMIND, her latest Cannes triumph. In a sedate Massachusetts suburb circa 1970, unemployed family man and amateur art thief J.B Mooney sets out on his first heist. With the museum cased and accomplices recruited, he has an airtight plan. Or so he thinks. A brilliant look at the folly of man, THE MASTERMIND also features Alana Haim, Gaby Hoffmann, John Magaro, Hope Davis and Bill Camp. Rich in textured detail, this sly depiction of an era subverts long-held illusions and confronts disillusionment.

Matimekush is a village of 700 souls adjacent to Schefferville. Located north of the 55th parallel and inaccessible by road, it has been welcoming members of the African community to its ancestral lands for about ten years. In this icy desert is the Kanatamat school, where almost all the teaching staff are from Africa. How can two peoples, who at first seem so far apart, function thanks to this new model? Despite many differences, the two groups come together, notably thanks to their strong community spirit and the great similarity of the challenges they still face to this day. Not without determination, the African teachers try to forge precious and lasting bonds with their students to help them stay on the right path, all with the greatest respect for their origins and culture. The documentary follows the often difficult construction of these special relationships, where each tries in their own way to overcome the traumas of their history.

Inspired by her own acclaimed documentary "Birth of a Family", Tasha Hubbard’s "Meadowlarks" tells the story of four Cree siblings, separated since childhood and now in their fifties, who agree to meet for the first time over a holiday weekend in Banff.

On Thursday 9th November 1961, a man named Brian descended the stairs to a cellar in Liverpool and changed the world forever. MIDAS MAN is the first, last and most respectful filmic portrait ever painted of Brian Epstein. From an original story, MIDAS MAN charts the life of a man who struggled to find his place in the world. Brian Epstein is recognised today as the man who signed The Beatles, and in doing so, created the blueprint for music artist management. MIDAS MAN charts Brian’s life, from his formative years to wild, unprecedented global success and the ensuing chaos as he managed and promoted some of the biggest acts in the world. The film explores the close relationships with his family and friends and his lifelong search for love. It brings to life an extraordinary period of cultural change and adds depth to an untold story of one of the world’s most significant outsiders. Brian Epstein lived a thousand lives in a few short years. Managing The Beatles was the easy part.

1991. Upstate New York. A group of teenage misfits, inspired by a renegade English teacher, embark on a student film project and uncover a vast conspiracy that is poisoning the ground beneath their feet. Banding together to confront the indifferent adults, corrupt politicians and a violent criminal organization threatening their small town, they produce an investigative documentary that causes shockwaves in their community. MIDDLETOWN is a coming-of-age story based on exclusive access to hundreds of hours of candid, humorous and nostalgic video outtakes, and the cooperation of Fred Isseks and his intrepid students as they reckon – thirty years later – with a defining event in their lives and a remarkable story of civic courage.

WIFF 2025 OPENING NIGHT FILM Grace Pine, a 23-year-old music critic from Toronto, moves to Montreal in the summer of 2011 with the goal of writing a 33 1/3 book about Alanis Morrisette’s Jagged Little Pill. Instead, she falls in love with two guys in the same struggling indie rock band, vowing to become their publicist. “Mile End Kicks” is a film about the Montreal music scene, romantic obsession, and Mile End, a place where young people go to retire.

On a weekend trip to the countryside, Laura, a piano student from Berlin, miraculously survives a car crash. Physically unhurt but deeply shaken, she is taken in by a local woman who witnessed the accident and now cares for Laura with motherly devotion. When her husband and adult son also give up their initial resistance to Laura's presence, the four of them slowly build up some family-like routine and spend some days of happiness together. But soon they can no longer ignore their past, and Laura has to come to terms with her own life.

Every day, Jay travels the length and breadth of Tokyo in his taxi, looking for his daughter Lily. In the 9 years since he has separated from his wife, he has never been able to get custody of his daughter. Having given up hope of ever seeing her again, he is about to move back to France when Lily hops in his cab. But she doesn't recognize him.

Andrea is a 21-year-old university student, aspiring writer, and coffee shop barista who dreams of making more than minimum wage. A chance visit to a local strip club sparks a shocking revelation: whoredom is her destiny. After months of research, Andrea contacts an escort agency and is quickly hired under the pseudonym, Mary Ann. A revolving door of johns line our protagonist’s pockets, but the cost of keeping her work a secret becomes too much to bear. Six months into her new gig, Andrea tells her Catholic mother Rosalie who is deeply concerned for her daughter’s safety – and her soul. While most of her clientele are kind, generous, and re- spectful, predators do slip through the cracks. When Andrea graduates university, her mother asks her to quit sex work. Andrea agrees with an exit date set for a year. A woman of her word, Andrea leaves her two-year agency escorting career behind to work on a farm with her boyfriend, Oliver. Another two years passes, and she itches for city life, landing her first salaried 9-5 job as an administrative assistant. But the rush hour grind doesn’t suit her, yearning for a job with independence, schedule flexibility, and earning potential. So, Andrea gets a job working as a bike courier instead – in the middle of winter. As the risks of the job begin to wear on her, she asks herself, “What’s more dangerous in this city – working as a bike courier or as a stripper?” Andrea returns to sex work via the strip club with a new persona: Sophia. She loves performing, her co-workers, and most of all, the money – but predators still lurk behind every corner. In addition to sexual assault, Sophia must field probing, inappropriate questions that seek trauma porn responses, like “What’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to you?” and “Who touched you?” With one customer, we find out why he’s asked. Part documentary and part re-enactments, Modern Whore features Andrea in interview and playing herself, in addition to a dastardly character named “Shame” — a tyrannical inner demon. The film also features interviews with Andrea’s current and former sex worker friends Kitoko Mai, Robin Banks, SJ Raphael, and Vixen Vu, Andrea’s devoutly Catholic mother Rosalie, Andrea’s long-term romantic partner Oliver, and her regular strip club client Ron. In the end, Andrea continues to dream of making a living as a writer – but until that day, she works.

WIFF Prize in Canadian Film Nominee Feng Xia, a 53-year-old Chinese immigrant and mother living in Montreal, has spent her life shaped by duty — to her family, her culture, and a loveless marriage. But when she meets Camille, a spirited young Québécoise, a long-buried desire is awakened. In the balmy and joyful Montreal summer, Feng Xia takes the radical step of choosing herself — embarking on a journey of forbidden love and long-overdue self- discovery. Her awakening becomes a profound reckoning with identity, exile, and the steep cost of liberation.

FREE COMMUNITY SCREENING Five powerful journeys prove that at Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare, healing is more than medicine—it’s courage, connection and care close to home. More than Medicine: Specialized Care, Close to Home follows five extraordinary patient and family journeys, revealing how expertise, human connection, and community transform lives. Through personal stories of diagnosis, struggle, support, and triumph, this powerful portrait of Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare, Windsor-Essex’s specialty hospital, celebrates resilience and the healing power of care close to home.

Pasha Talankin is an unlikely hero—a beloved Russian primary school teacher, known as a mentor and prankster who offers students a safe haven in his office. After Russia invades Ukraine, Pasha’s role in the school changes dramatically as he is reluctantly drawn into Putin’s propaganda machine. Forced to promote state-sanctioned messages and horrified by the transformation of his school and community, he struggles with guilt and a sense of powerlessness, leading him to become an international whistleblower. As the school’s videographer, Pasha documents intimate and revealing footage of Putin’s regime, capturing the rise of militarized children’s groups, repressive laws, fervent nationalism, and the recruitment of graduating students to fight in the war. When he learns his own life may be at risk, Pasha is forced to plan a dangerous escape from Russia. Directed by David Borenstein and co-directed by Pasha Talankin, this uniquely collaborative film is as captivating and joyful as it is eye-opening and sobering. Mr. Nobody Against Putin showcases rare footage that reveals the profound impact of Putin’s regime on the lives of everyday Russians, particularly its children.

A semi-autobiographical tale set over the course of a single day in the Nigerian metropolis Lagos during the 1993 Nigerian election crisis. The story follows a father, estranged from his two young sons, as they travel through the massive city while political unrest threatens their journey home.

Mahin (70) lives alone in Tehran since her husband’s death and her daughter’s departure for Europe, until an afternoon tea with friends leads her to break her solitary routine and revitalize her love life. But as Mahin opens herself up to new romance, what begins as an unexpected encounter quickly evolves into an unpredictable, unforgettable evening.

In MY MOTHER'S WEDDING, Captain Katherine Frost (Scarlett Johansson) of the Royal Navy is about to embark on a new command when she finds herself reflecting on her childhood and her late father, John Frost, a Navy pilot. As she reads emails, her younger sister, Victoria (Sienna Miller), a famous actress, gives a live interview on a glitzy talk show where she publicly discusses her family's tragic past, primarily the loss of her father during the Falklands War and her mother's subsequent marriage to his best friend, Johnny Monson, who later went missing in action. The three sisters reunite at their childhood home in Hampshire ahead of their mother Diana's (Kristin Scott Thomas) third wedding to the amusingly named Geoff Loveglove (James Fleet) . Tensions arise as they navigate personal issues, including Victoria's romantic pursuits, Georgina's (Emily Beecham) concerns about her husband's fidelity, and Katherine's unresolved feelings for her partner, Jack. As the wedding day unfolds, long-buried family secrets are revealed, causing rifts between the sisters. Amidst the chaos, Katherine receives unexpected news from Jack, which challenges her plans and priorities.

One winter on the Japanese island of Hokkaido, a young boy named Takuya has resigned himself to the fact that he's the worst player on his ice hockey team. While practicing, he becomes transfixed by the figure skaters who share the ice rink, particularly Sakura, a rising star from Tokyo. Her coach, Arakawa, takes an interest in Takuya, seeing himself in the young boy. He pairs the two up and trains them as a competitive ice-dancing duo. Although tentative with each other at first, the kids eventually grow closer and form a deep bond with their supportive coach. But as the winter continues, unspoken feelings begin to surface and the harmony the trio once knew begins to falter. “A gentle, unassuming film about the pain and misdirection that can arise from young love,” (RogerEbert.com), Hiroshi Okuyama’s sophomore feature MY SUNSHINE is a heartwarming coming of age drama buoyed by its picturesque cinematography and beautiful score.

Akam, a young literature teacher, lives a peaceful life in Oslo until his estranged uncle, Khdr, from the Iranian part of Kurdistan comes for a surprise visit. Despite limited space in his shared flat with friends, Akam feels obligated to invite his uncle to stay for a few days. However, his uncle quickly makes himself at home and shows no sign of leaving anytime soon. Torn between his sense of familial duty and growing tension in the flat, Akam begins to suspect there's more to his uncle's visit than just a casual trip. What follows is a series of revelations and unexpected events that could have life changing consequences for them both. Marking Brwa Vahabpour’s assured feature film debut, My Uncle Jens explores, with a light touch and warm sense of humor, the challenges of balancing societal and familial expectations with the deeply personal desire to live life on one’s own terms.

Nechako is a story of survival 70 years in the making. The saga begins in the early 1950s in northwestern British Columbia, when the Kenney Dam was built to power an aluminum smelter. The for-profit project diverted 70 percent of the Nechako River into an artificial reservoir, flooding lands, displacing wildlife, destroying ecosystems and severely impacting the lives of local Stellat’en and Saik’uz Nations. The dam decimated salmon runs, which are vital to the Nations’ way of life and provide a food source that composes up to 90 percent of their diet. What followed were decades of resistance, including legal actions against the Canadian federal and provincial governments and Alcan (later Rio Tinto Alcan, a subsidiary of the global mining conglomerate), beginning in the 1980s. Indigenous Elders had to prove not only that they held a right to the lands and waters they’d coexisted with for centuries, but that their people had existed there at all. Fast forward to the present day, as the Nations wage a potentially precedent-setting legal battle against Rio Tinto Alcan. This crucial documentary follows the people fighting to restore a river and a way of life: Nations going up against industry, community leaders advocating for their people, Elders documenting their histories, and First Nations members living off the land, monitoring and protecting lands and waters, and sharing vital survival skills. It also weaves in the journey of director and Indigenous scholar Lyana Patrick (A Place to Belong, The Train Station), as she reconnects with her Stellat’en First Nation community and lands. Nechako is a chronicle of hope and resistance against all odds, amidst large-scale environmental destruction and despite the will of powerful institutions. It is also a call to action as the world reckons with waves of climate crises. The film asks what survival looks like when it serves everyone, and urges viewers to consider those already fighting for our collective future.

A tragicomic puzzle comes together one December day in 1989, Romania. Six people struggle to find their footing as society breaks down. It is the 20th of December, 1989, and Ceaușescu’s regime is on its last legs. The army violently suppresses an uprising in Timișoara, but any news that reaches Bucharest is scant and sanitised. Six people find themselves in the eye of the storm without realising it. A TV director has to find a way to save his New Year’s show after the key actress defects. The solution lies with a distressed theatre actress who can’t reach her ex-boyfriend in Timișoara. Meanwhile the director’s son, a student, plans to flee to Yugoslavia by swimming across the Danube. Watching the son is an officer of the Securitate secret police, who struggles to move his mother from her soon-to-be-demolished house to a new apartment she cannot stand. The move is being executed by a factory worker, who panics after his son writes a letter to Santa Claus that reveals his father wants Ceaușescu dead. All these lives, under constant and invisible surveillance by the Securitate, converge in a tragicomedy that climaxes with the bang of a firecracker in an highly unlikely pair of hands, effectively kicking off the revolution.

Fearing they won’t be believed, two young Indigenous women go on the run after one’s defense of the other results in a violent attack against a police officer. In this tense and emotionally charged story, two childhood friends find themselves testing their resilience and loyalty in an ultimate fight for justice. Madison, a University of Toronto student, is sharp and career focused while Nika prefers the solitude and simplicity of life on the reservation. During a weekend back home, Nika rescues Madison from a sexual assault by a policeman, but the violent encounter leaves the officer critically injured. Fearing they won’t be believed, the Indigenous women go on the run; first seeking refuge on the reserve and then deep into the wilderness, until they’re chased back to the city. Two sharp-eyed detectives begin to uncover the truth, but when the case involves one of their own, the justice system reveals its deeply ingrained biases, blurring the lines between right and wrong.

A sudden diagnosis leaves Nino, a young man in his late 20s, facing mortality with grace, quiet humour, and the company of family and friends over the course of his birthday weekend, all anchored by Quebec actor Théodore Pellerin’s soulful performance.

From director Park Chan-wook and based on Donald E. Westlake's novel THE AX, the story follows Man-su on his desperate hunt for a new job after his abrupt layoff from the paper company he served for 25 years.

Simone, une flic aux idées conservatrices, est infiltrée dans un collectif féministe qu'elle suspecte de complicité de meurtre. A leur contact, Simone s’ouvre progressivement à leurs idées. Mais lorsqu’elle est soupçonnée par le groupe d'être une taupe, elle se sert du premier venu pour se couvrir : Paul, un homme doux, inoffensif et respectueux des femmes qui vit dans l’ombre de sa moitié, faisant de lui, malgré elle, un coupable innocent. Simone, catastrophée de ce qu’elle a fait, tente de réparer sa faute... Comment Paul va-t-il réagir ?

Nouvelle Vague is Oscar-nominated director Richard Linklater’s love letter to the revolutionary magic of the French New Wave, reimagining the making of Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless, which ultimately cemented Godard as a pioneer of global cinema. As critic-turned-director Godard makes and breaks the rules, a mix of fresh faces and daring talents — including Zoey Deutch as Jean Seberg, Aubry Dullin as Jean-Paul Belmondo, and Guillaume Marbeck as Godard himself — bring his spontaneous, electric film to life. Capturing the youthful dynamism and creative chaos at the heart of one of the world’s most beloved and influential movies, Nouvelle Vague transports us to the streets of 1959 Paris for an ode to the power of cinema to transform our lives.

Odd Fish is a feel-good film that follows childhood friends Hjalti and Björn, who run a seafood restaurant in their hometown during the summer. They dream of keeping the restaurant open year-round, and when an unexpected opportunity arises, Björn reveals to Hjalti that she is a transgender woman and will be known as Birna from now on. These changes test their friendship, and both must face life with a new perspective to preserve what matters most.

Iris and Isaac’s first romantic weekend getaway as a couple goes awry . Convinced that he’s just confused; Iris goes to increasingly ridiculous and irrational lengths to prove to him that they are meant to be together.

Set against the backdrop of the 2008 economic crisis, Omaha follows a struggling father (John Magaro) who embarks on a road trip across the American West with his two children, Ella and Charlie, in search of hope and a better life. What begins as a seemingly spontaneous family journey gradually reveals deeper layers of both grief and resilience, as Ella starts to sense that her father’s intentions may be masking a more profound truth. At its heart, Omaha is a story about fatherhood. Director Cole Webley, in his feature directorial debut, captures the universal journey of a father who deeply loves his children but is uncertain about the best way to navigate the challenges they face. Through the family’s road trip across the American West, the film explores the complexities of love, responsibility, and the search for meaning in the face of hardship. With its quiet, stripped-down storytelling, Omaha resonates emotionally, capturing the deep, unspoken bond between a father and his children while reflecting on the resilience required to keep a family intact during uncertain times.

A mother's unwavering devotion helps her son, born with a clubfoot in 1963, overcome physical challenges and social barriers. Her powerful promise drives their remarkable journey through life's ups and downs.

From first-time feature filmmaker Oscar Boyson comes a thoroughly audacious coming-of-age story that fearlessly explores the impact of social media and American gun culture on modern adolescence through an incisive yet blackly comic lens. Hoping to impress an activist classmate, wealthy New York City teenager Balthazar “Balthy” Malone (Jaeden Martell, It, Knives Out) begins posting emotional videos on social media, pleading for stricter gun laws. But his tearful clips soon attract the attention of an online troll who claims he is planning a school shooting. Acting on impulse, Balthy heads to Texas to try to prevent the tragedy by befriending the potential shooter “IRL”—a term his crush used and Balthy misunderstood. But the misguided teen’s journey to the south takes a turn for the surreal once he meets fellow lost soul Solomon (Asa Butterfield, Sex Education, Hugo) IRL. Together, the two boys from vastly different worlds must navigate a confusing and combustible set of misunderstandings, both absurd and terrifying. Even though they find genuine moments of connection, their path nevertheless moves them ever closer toward an all-too-preventable fate. A masterful marriage of dark comedy and bracing, nuanced character drama, Our Hero, Balthazar stars Jaeden Martell, Asa Butterfield, Chris Bauer, Jennifer Ehle, Anna Baryshnikov, Noah Centineo, Becky Ann Baker, Avan Jogia and Pippa Knowles. Co-written by Boyson and Ricky Camilleri, the film is also produced by Boyson and Camilleri, as well as Jon Wroblewski, David Duque-Estrada, Miles Skinner, Alex Hughes and Jaeden Martell.

Marie and Julien have been married for fifteen years. When Julien's first love get back in town, Marie, insecure, finds comfort in Thomas, her charming manager. After a short and passionate affair, she breaks up. Thomas suddenly reveals his true nature. Blackmail, pressure, manipulation: he wants Marie for himself. She decides to fight back but the situation is critical : Julien and her will have to make difficult decisions and take risks

With a mother working abroad illegally and a grandma too old to substitute a parent, Sandro is left practically alone after his father’s departure. To fulfill a new obligation as a son of a future monk, he must turn to religion himself, and without realizing it, becomes oppressed by the invisible spiritual surveillance of his father and God that shapes his behavior. This sudden change comes at the peak of Sandro’s sexual awakening, creating in him a powerful conflict between body and soul. Convinced that sex before marriage is sinful, he represses his desires towards his highschool sweetheart, Tina, and instead starts to manifest all this sexual frustration in inappropriate ways, like touching random girls in public and exposing himself to the mother of his football teammate, Lasha. While developing an erotic fixation towards Lasha’s mother behind his back, Sandro easily falls under his influence as Lasha is slightly older and very charming. But he is also a nationalist, who quickly lures Sandro into a rising Christian Fascist movement. Sandro tries to reconcile these opposing forces within his heart. He fights for survival and tries to make sense of the notions of faith, love and manhood at the most formative time of his life - a trial that will eventually prove to be a revelation of his humanity.

Mehdi plans to spend a peaceful summer in his in-laws' sumptuous home. But upon his arrival, a conflict erupts between his fiancée's family and the villa's caretaker couple. Since Mehdi comes from a modest background, he thinks he can lead the negotiations between the two parties and bring everyone back to reason. However, things turn sour...

Paul suffers from depression and social anxiety. He leads a solitary and routine-bound life at home. As a big fan of Alice in Wonderland, he’s always thinking up new ways to make his world brighter and artful. One solution he finds is to seek safety and security by doing housework for dominant women. Breaking out of his angst-ridden routine, Paul becomes the deeply submissive Cleaning Simp Paul. Obsessed with his Instagram profile, Paul retreats into a virtual therapeutic fantasy that he calls Cleaning to Save My Life. One insta reel at a time, he fights to achieve inner peace by pleasing his favourite dommes. Filmed from a candid, nonjudgmental perspective, Paul is a portrait of an eccentric but endearing person who delivers a unique take on our sometimes-idiosyncratic quest for well-being.

When a magical meteor crash lands in Adventure City, it gives the PAW Patrol pups superpowers, transforming them into The MIGHTY PUPS! For Skye, the smallest member of the team, her new powers are a dream come true. But things take a turn for the worse when the pups' archrival Humdinger breaks out of jail and teams up with a mad scientist to steal the superpowers for the two villains. With the fate of Adventure City hanging in the balance, the Mighty Pups have to stop the supervillains before it's too late, and Skye will need to learn that even the smallest pup can make the biggest difference.

WIFF Prize in Canadian Film Nominee Adam is a kind-hearted kennel-owner. Hypersensitive and borderline depressed, he hides his existential fears from his affection-avoidant father, and lets his young assistant take advantage of his good nature. To help combat his eco-anxiety, Adam orders a therapeutic solar lamp. Through the lamp’s supplier’s technical support line, he meets Tina, a radiant woman with a voice that soothes all of his worries. This unexpected encounter changes everything: Earth trembles, and hearts explode... It’s love!

A paranoid young man launches a bizarre crime spree against the citizens of Toronto.

Colin, a timid man, meets Ray, a confident biker gang leader, who initiates him into a submissive relationship, challenging Colin's mundane existence and prompting personal growth through their unconventional dynamic.

WIFF Prize in Canadian Film Nominee The Pitch follows Diana Matheson as she leads a bold effort to build something that should have existed long ago — a professional women’s soccer league in Canada. Working alongside fellow players, advisors, and allies, Matheson confronts an entrenched system that has long sidelined women — one that capitalized on their global success but failed to invest in their future at home. With no league, no blueprint, and little institutional support, they push forward against inertia, resistance, and a culture shaped by doubters and naysayers. Filmed over two years, the documentary offers rare access to a high-stakes, history-making effort. Through backroom negotiations, quiet setbacks, and surprising breakthroughs, The Pitch captures a movement that is as much about justice as it is about sport. It’s a story of legacy, leadership, and the will to rewrite the rules.

Set in 1990s Syracuse and featuring breakout performances from stars Tom Blyth (HUNGER GAMES: THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS & SNAKES) and Russell Tovey (LOOKING), director Carmen Emmi’s Sundance award-winning thriller follows a promising undercover officer (Blyth) assigned to lure and arrest gay men who defies orders when he falls in love with a target (Tovey). At his mother’s New Year’s Eve party Lucas, a young police officer, loses a letter no one was ever meant to read. Amid the backdrop of the suffocating family party, the search for the letter unlocks memories of a past he’s tried to forget: months earlier, while working undercover in a mall bathroom, Lucas arrested men by seducing them. But when he encounters Andrew, everything changes. What begins as another setup becomes something far more electric and intimate. As their secret connection deepens and police pressure to deliver arrests intensifies, Lucas finds himself torn between duty and desire. With time running out and his past closing in, PLAINCLOTHES builds toward a New Year’s Eve reckoning where everything he’s buried threatens to erupt.

Oscar Restrepo’s obsession with poetry has brought him no glory. Aging and erratic, he has succumbed to the cliché of the poet in the shadows. Meeting Yurlady, a teenage girl from humble roots, and helping her cultivate her talent brings some light to his days. But dragging her into the world of poets may not be the way.

A cultural sensation from its inception in the early 2000s, Dateline NBC’s candid-camera investigative series To Catch a Predator ensnared sex offenders and lured them to a film set, where they would be interviewed and arrested while cameras rolled. The show was a hit and transformed its host Chris Hansen into a moral crusader and TV star, while spawning a worldwide industry of imitators and vigilantes. But why did we watch so voraciously — and why do we continue to devour its web-based, clickbait-driven offshoots? Looking back on the show and the countless franchises it spawned, filmmaker David Osit turns his camera on journalists, actors, law enforcers, academics, and ultimately himself, to trace America's obsession with watching people at their lowest. PREDATORS is a chilling, edge of your seat film that delves into the murk of human nature to observe hunter, predator, subject and spectator alike, all ensnared in a complicated web of entertainment as far as the eye can see.

While people across 1990s Iraq struggle to survive the war and food shortages, the President requires each school in the country to prepare a cake to celebrate his birthday. Despite her efforts to avoid getting picked, 9-year-old Lamia is chosen among her classmates. The young girl must now use her wits and imagination to gather ingredients and prepare the mandatory cake in THE PRESIDENT’S CAKE.

The renowned psychiatrist Lilian Steiner (Jodie Foster) mounts a private investigation into the death of one of her patients, whom she is convinced has been murdered.

Will could never compete in the sport he’s always loved: racewalking. While struggling to find respect as a coach, Will’s fortunes change when he spots a burnout pitcher with the most impeccable racewalking stride he’s ever seen. Together, Will and Matt team up, face the challenges of a sport that doesn’t want them, and to try to take down the best walker in the country.

Radio Renaissance: Amherstburg’s New Wave takes viewers inside the inspiring story of CKBG 107.9 The Burg, a grassroots radio station launched in the heart of Amherstburg, Ontario. At a time when small-town radio seemed destined to fade, one man’s determination brought it roaring back to life. Nearly 80 years old, legally blind, and battling stage four cancer, founder Marty Adler defied all expectations to put Amherstburg on the airwaves. The series follows the dedicated team of employees and volunteers who now carry forward his vision. From promoting local musicians and businesses to delivering hometown news and holiday cheer, CKBG has quickly become more than a station- it’s the voice of the town itself. Through their daily grind, we see how the airwaves knit together a community that feels like it belongs in a Christmas movie: heritage streets, riverside beauty, and a proud population that rallies around its own. With humour, heart, and small-town grit, Radio Renaissance reveals what it takes to build something lasting against all odds. It’s about more than radio- it’s about the resilience of a community, the power of connection, and how one person’s dream can give an entire town a new voice.

A fearless teacher secretly gathers seven of her female students to read forbidden Western classics in Tehran. Azar Nafisi, a former professor at Tehran University, secretly gathers seven of her most committed female students to read forbidden western classics. As fundamentalists seize control, the women remove their veils, speak about their intimate hopes, loves and disappointments, their femininity and their search for a place in an increasingly oppressive society. By reading Lolita in Tehran, they celebrate the liberating power of literature in revolutionary Iran and form their own future.

A grammar guru takes her pop-up grammar advice stand on a rollicking road trip across all 50 states to show that comma fights can bring us closer together in a divided time. One fall day, Ellen Jovin set up a folding table on a Manhattan sidewalk with a homemade sign that said “Grammar Table.” Right away, passersby began excitedly asking questions, telling stories, and filing complaints. What happened next is the stuff of grammar legend. Ellen and her filmmaker husband, Brandt Johnson, took the table on the road, visiting all 50 states as Brandt shot the grammar action. But this story transcends grammar. It’s the story of an epic quest in a divided time to bring us all closer together.

Set in modern-day Tokyo, RENTAL FAMILY follows an American actor (Brendan Fraser) who struggles to find purpose until he lands an unusual gig: working for a Japanese "rental family" agency, playing stand-in roles for strangers. As he immerses himself in his clients’ worlds, he begins to form genuine bonds that blur the lines between performance and reality. Confronting the moral complexities of his work, he rediscovers purpose, belonging, and the quiet beauty of human connection.

A few hours before his third Michelin star was awarded, renowned chef Paskal Jankovski disappeared with his second chef during a hunting trip. At 20, his daughter Clara found herself alone at the helm of the restaurant. Two years later, she received a mysterious invitation to Taiwan…

Helen, a lawyer in her forties, goes to the police station to lodge a complaint of domestic violence. Facing her, two doors, and behind each one, a police officer ready to hear her. Helene's fate will depend on which one she chooses.

One night every year a family transforms their home and yard into a haunted house and invite their neighbors to walk through it. What used to be a group effort has increasingly become the dad’s obsessive fantasy that his family is expected to enact.

The bona fide classic of midnight madness is back at WIFF! When Greg Sestero, an aspiring film actor, meets the weird and mysterious Tommy Wiseau in an acting class, they form a unique friendship and travel to Hollywood to make their dreams come true. The film centers on Johnny (Wiseau), a man who has it all: great friends, a good job and a gorgeous fiancee named Lisa (Juliette Danielle). But Lisa’s innocent act masks the fact that she’s looking to bring Johnny down, and her manipulations are tearing Johnny apart. As Lisa informs her cancer-ridden mother, Claudette, that Johnny hit her (which he certainly did not), Jonny’s best friend Mark (Sestero) finds his resistance to Lisa’s seductive charms weakening. Meanwhile, local orphan Denny loops up to Johnny and needs the older man’s help after the teen rips off a drug dealer. What kind of drugs? It doesn’t matter. Then guys play football in tuxedos, because you can play football anywhere.

Leaders of iconic Indigenous basketball team the Skidegate Saints compete for two titles - defending the All Native Basketball Championship, while battling for title to their land and waters. Saints and Warriors is the epic and inspiring story of how basketball became not only an obsession, but a means for survival for the Haida people and their culture on the remote Indigenous Nation of Haida Gwaii on the northwest coast of Canada, near Alaska. Over the course of the 2023-24 basketball season, we follow the legendary Haida basketball team the Skidegate Saints who have dominated the iconic All Native Basketball Tournament for the past decade. As aging team leaders Desi Collinson, Gaagwiis Jason Alsop, and Duane Alsop attempt to defend their title, the surprising defection of star teammate Jesse Barnes to a rival big city team sets local heroes on a collision course in a dramatic championship game. Meanwhile, leading members of the Saints team are also leaders of the Haida government who are fighting a decades long court battle with the provincial and federal government to take back Aboriginal title of their land from the governments that stole their land with the Indian Act of 1876. These intertwining battles on and off the court showcase the stunning role that "a silly game of putting the ball in the hoop" plays in Haida Gwaii as a tool for political action, community leadership, and the survival of culture.

July 2024, the Olympic Games are approaching. Elisabeth is a hearing-impaired American living in Paris. As her visa is about to expire she accepts a job as an Airbnb concierge to stay in France. She then meets Elijah, a laid-back Californian. Against her will, she has to cross Paris with him, right in the middle of the Olympic opening ceremony.

Amid the raucous revelry of Carnival week, a widower named Marcelo (Wagner Moura) arrives in 1977 in Recife, Brazil, a city as vibrant as it is violent. A technology researcher who suddenly finds himself an unwitting target in the heart of the dictatorship's political maelstrom, Marcelo is a man on the run from mercenary killers, from ghosts of the past and from the ruthless, mischievously militant spirit of Brazil in 1977. In the midst of these mounting threats, Marcelo, with the help of a mysterious woman named Elza and her compatriots in the country's growing underground resistance, remains primarily focused on escaping Brazil with his young son. Master filmmaker Kleber Mendonca Filho teams up with renowned actor Wagner Moura - giving an extraordinary, career-defining performance - to craft a thrillingly unpredictable, playfully shape-shifting epic steeped in history even as it feels remarkably contemporary, paying affectionate tribute to the movies of Filho’s youth while unfolding against the backdrop of political turmoil and palpable danger.

19 year old Kristi discovers a secret her doctor and parents have kept from her all her life. Her search for truth uncovers a radical psychology experiment on a pair of identical twins that led to a global medical scandal. It’s 1995 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. During a feminist studies class, college student Kristi opens her textbook to discover something that turns her world upside down. For as long as she can remember, Kristi has felt different- now she knows why. Demanding her medical records, Kristi is finally confronted with the devastating truth: she has been lied to all her life by those she trusted the most. What follows is the unearthing of an extraordinary and disturbing secret that goes far beyond her own life, leading to the discovery of a psychology experiment on a pair of twins – once hailed as a revolutionary success but now revealed to be a terrible lie affecting thousands around the world.