Interest: Newcomer Stories
- Own Voice
The Waiting Room
A Bosnian immigrant, once a famous actor in his home country, struggles with the challenges of a new life in Canada and the memories of what he was forced to leave behind. Starring Jasmin Geljo and Cintija Asperger, who were both nominated for Canadian Screen Awards.
Director
Igor Drljaca
Writer
Igor Drljaca
Cast
Jasmin Geljo, Cynthia Ashperger
Producers
Igor Drljaca, Albert Shin, Jordan Barker, Borga Dorter, Munire Armstrong
Genre
Drama
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Newcomer Stories
Original Languages
English, Other Language
Canadian Distributor
A71 Entertainment inc.
- Own Voice
Iron Road
Soon, though, she finds herself falling in love with him, and as the physical terrain becomes more dangerous, so does the landscape of the heart. Beautifully shot and featuring screen legend Peter O’Toole in one of his last roles, Iron Road revisits an important and controversial time in Canadian history.
Originally broadcast as a CBC miniseries, REEL CANADA is proud to present the feature version of this epic tale that spans two continents.
Director
David Wu
Wu is a master editor who has worked with many legendary Hong Kong filmmakers. His directorial credits include the films The Snow Queen with Bridget Fonda, Plague City: SARS in Toronto (for which he earned the DGC Best Director nomination), See You Tomorrow, and the TV show Once a Thief. He recently edited the films You Are In My Heart and Bai du ren.
Writers
Barry Pearson, Raymond Storey
Cast
Sun Li, Luke Macfarlane, Sam Neill, Peter O’Toole
Producers
Zhao Haicheng, Anne Tait, Raymond Massey II
Genre
Drama
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Discrimination, ESL, History, Newcomer Stories, Social Justice & Politics, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
Other Language
Language Version
EN CC
Canadian Distributor
CCI Entertainment
Eternal Spring
Director
Jason Loftus
Writer
Jason Loftus
Cast
Daxiong
Producers
Masha Loaftus, Jason Loftus, Yvan Pinard, Kevin Koo
Genre
Documentary
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Discrimination, Global Experiences, History, Newcomer Stories, Social Justice & Politics
Original Language
Other Language
Canadian Distributor
levelFILM
The Cuban
The Cuban is a touching story about friendship, love and of course, beautiful music. Mina (Golga), an Afghani-Canadian pre-med student in her first placement at a long-term care home, meets Luis (Gossett Jr.) an elderly musician whose dementia has deprived him of many of the memories of his youth in Cuba. When Mina finds a way to reignite his memory using music and food from his past, the two enter on an inspiring journey of self-discovery that reawakens Mina’s love of music, and changes both of their lives.
Featuring a stellar cast and beautiful original music, The Cuban is a heartwarming cross-cultural story that received 3 Canadian Screen Award nominations.
“As a story of the curative power of music, it works, has a good beat and you can dance to it.” - Richard Crouse, film critic
Director
Sergio Navarretta
Navarretta is an award-winning director whose credits include the shorts Serena DeBergerac, and The Fortune Cookie, and the features Looking for Angelina and The Colossal Failure of the Modern Relationship. Most recently, he executive produced Lamborghini: The Man Behind the Legend. Next, he will be directing the feature The Last Palikári, and he will be working with Louis Gosset Jr. again on his next film, Elephants in the Room.
Writer
Alessandra Piccione
Cast
Ana Golja, Louis Gossett Jr., Shohreh Aghdashloo
Producers
Alessandra Piccione, Taras Koltun, Ana Golja
Genre
Drama
Interests
Arts and Culture, BIPOC Stories, ESL, Family Relationships, Newcomer Stories, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
Vortex Media
Monsieur Lazhar
Coming from a completely different culture, Monsieur Lazhar must go through a steep learning curve as he comes up against a stubborn class of quirky 11- and 12-year-olds and the school’s rigid administrative standards. And while the school goes through the long process of grieving and healing, it is gradually suspected that Monsieur Lazhar is not entirely who he has claimed to be. This is a touching story of loss and an emotionally powerful exploration of how adults help children cope with intractable issues of life and death for which none of us is truly equipped.
The film was short-listed for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.
Director
Philippe Falardeau
Quebecois director and screenwriter Falardeau has won more than 32 international awards for his films, which include Monsieur Lazhar, La moitié gauche du frigo, C'est pas moi, je le jure!, The Good Lie, the political satire Guibord s'en va-t-en guerre, and the recent My Salinger Year as well as the TV show Le temps des framboises.
Writer
Philippe Falardeau
Cast
Mohamed Fellag, Sophie Nélisse, Émilien Néron, Danielle Proulx, Bridgette Poupart
Producers
Luc Déry, Kim McCraw
Genre
Drama
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Newcomer Stories
Original Language
French
Language Versions
EN Subtitles, FR CC
Canadian Distributor
eOne
- Own Voice
Fanny: The Right to Rock
Director
Bobbi Jo Hart
Writer
Bobbi Jo Hart
Cast
Cherie Currie, Joe Elliott, Bonnie Raitt, Todd Rundgren
Producers
Robbie Hart, Bobbi Jo Hart
Genre
Documentary
Interests
Arts and Culture, BIPOC Stories, Discrimination, Female Filmmaker, Global Experiences, LGBTQ2S+, Newcomer Stories, Social Justice & Politics, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
Adobe Productions International
La sarrasine
Montreal, 1904: an Italian-Canadian immigrant couple is caught in the heightened tension between the city’s Italian and French-Canadian communities. Winner of a Genie for Tony Nardi’s performance.
Director
Paul Tana
Writers
Paul Tana, Tony Nardi, Bruno Ramirez
Cast
Enrica Maria Modugno, Tony Nardi
Producer
Marc Daigle
Genre
Drama
Interests
Discrimination, History, Newcomer Stories
Original Language
French
Canadian Distributor
Association Coopérative des Productions Audio-Visuelles (ACPAV)
- Own Voice
Islands
In this unique “coming-of-middle-age” film, a lonely Filipino man quits his job to take care of his ailing father, while struggling with a forbidden infatuation.
Director
Martin Edralin
Writer
Martin Edralin
Cast
Sheila Lotuaco, Rogelio Balagtas, Esteban Comilang, Vangie Alcasid
Producers
Martin Edralin, Priscilla Galvez
Genre
Drama
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Family Relationships, Global Experiences, Newcomer Stories
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
Circus Zero
- Own Voice
Easy Land
Director
Sanja Zivkovic
Cast
Daniel Kash, Nina Kiri, Mirjana Jokovic, Arlene Duncan
Producers
Julie Strifler, Matt Code, Kristy Neville
Genre
Drama
Interests
BIPOC Stories, ESL, Family Relationships, Female Filmmaker, Global Experiences, Newcomer Stories, Social Justice & Politics, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
Mongrel Media
Welcome to Canada
In this feature drama based on an actual incident, Newfoundlanders share their food, culture and homes with a group of Tamil refugees found off the coast. Starring Brendan Foley and Noreen Power.
Director
John N. Smith
Smith’s credits include award-winning TV docudramas such as The Boys of St. Vincent, Dieppe and Prairie Giant: The Tommy Douglas Story, as well as numerous feature films, including Dangerous Minds, A Cool Dry Place, Geraldine’s Fortune and Love & Savagery among others. Sitting in Limbo won the Best Canadian Feature Film award at TIFF 1986.
Writers
John N. Smith, Sam Grana
Cast
Noreen Power, Brendan Foley
Producer
Sam Grana
Genre
Drama
Interests
Classics, Newcomer Stories
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
National Film Board (NFB)
- Own Voice
Legend of a Warrior
Director
Corey Lee
Writer
Corey Lee
Cast
Billy Chow, Corey Lee, Frank Pang Lee
Producers
Susan Bristow, Bonnie Thompson, Corey Lee
Genre
Documentary
Interests
Family Relationships, Newcomer Stories, Sports
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
National Film Board (NFB)
Les noces de papier (Paper Wedding)
Director
Michel Brault
Writer
Jefferson Lewis
Cast
Geneviève Bujold, Manuel Aranguiz
Producer
Aimée Danis
Genre
Drama
Interests
Arts and Culture, Newcomer Stories, Social Justice & Politics
Original Languages
English, French, Other Language
Canadian Distributor
National Film Board (NFB)
- Own Voice
Les routes en février (Roads in February)
Director
Katherine Jerkovic
Writer
Katherine Jerkovic
Cast
Arlen Aguayo-Stewart, Gloria Demassi, Mathias Perdigón
Producers
Nicolas Comeau, Micaela Sole
Genre
Drama
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Family Relationships, Female Filmmaker, Global Experiences, Newcomer Stories
Original Languages
French, Other Language
Language Version
EN Subtitles
Canadian Distributor
1976 Productions
- Own Voice
The World is Bright
Director
Ying Wang
Writer
Ying Wang
Producers
Jordan Paterson, Ying Wang, Su Jian Ping
Genre
Documentary
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Family Relationships, Female Filmmaker, Newcomer Stories, Social Justice & Politics
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
Moving Images Distribution
- Own Voice
Riceboy Sleeps
This stunning second feature from Anthony Shim follows a Korean single mother who moves to Canada with her young son in the early 1990s, following the death of her husband. As she struggles to make ends meet and provide the best life possible for her son, she has to contend with his changing attitudes towards her, and towards their Korean culture.
A profoundly affecting drama about the immigrant experience, Riceboy Sleeps premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival where it won the Platform Prize and was named to their 2022 Canada’s Top Ten list.
Director
Anthony Shim
Writer
Anthony Shim
Cast
Choi Seung Yoon, Ethan Hwang, Hunter Dillon
Producers
Bryan Demore, Anthony Shim, Rebecca Steele
Genre
Drama
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Bullying, Discrimination, Family Relationships, Newcomer Stories, Strong Female Leads
Original Languages
English, Other Language
Canadian Distributor
Game Theory Films
Les oiseaux ivres (Drunken Birds)
Director
Ivan Grbovic
Writers
Ivan Grbovic, Sara Mishara
Cast
Jorge Antonio Guerrero, Hélène Florent, Claude Legault
Producers
Luc Déry, Kim McCraw
Genre
Drama
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Family Relationships, Global Experiences, Newcomer Stories, Social Justice & Politics
Original Languages
French, Other Language
Language Versions
EN Subtitles, FR CC
Canadian Distributor
Les Films Opale
- Own Voice
When Morning Comes
With a languid, poetic visual style and psychologically complex depiction of relationships, When Morning Comes is a love letter to the strength and sacrifice of immigrant mothers.
(Note: not available for screenings in Canada on CanFilmDay 2023)
Director
Kelly Fyffe-Marshall
Writer
Kelly Fyffe-Marshall
Cast
Shaquana Wilson, Djamari Roberts
Producers
Tamar Bird, Iva Golubovic, Sasha Leigh Henry
Genre
Drama
Interests
BIPOC Stories, Family Relationships, Female Filmmaker, Newcomer Stories
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
Talawa Studios
- Own Voice
Superfan: The Nav Bhatia Story
If you’ve ever watched the Toronto Raptors, chances are you’ve seen Nav Bhatia (aka the “Raptors Superfan”), stationed in the seat he’s sat in for every home game in the franchise’s history. Superfan explores how Nav found a home in Toronto, fell in love with the Raptors, and grew to be so beloved that he became the first fan ever to receive an NBA championship ring, as part of the 2019 championship Raptors team.
Featuring interviews with comedian Russell Peters, Vince Carter, Isiah Thomas, and Raptors head coach Nick Nurse, this compelling doc tells Nav’s inspiring story of perseverance, passion, overcoming adversity and ultimately finding success and joy.
Director
Amar Wala
Amar Wala is an award-winning Toronto-based filmmaker and alumni of York University’s Film Program. His debut feature The Secret Trial 5 earned him jury recognition as an Emerging Filmmaker at Hot Docs and was named as one of the Top Ten Docs of the Decade by Realscreen. Wala has also directed and produced award-winning television series such as the acclaimed CBC Arts program In The Making and the award-winning comedy series Next Stop.
Cast
Nav Bhatia
Producers
Vinay Virmani, Rinku Ghei
Genre
Documentary
Interests
Biography, BIPOC Stories, Global Experiences, Newcomer Stories, Sports
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
Good Karma Company
- Own Voice
Ararat
Director
Atom Egoyan
Egoyan received the Governor General’s award in 2015 for Lifetime Artistic Achievement. He was the first-ever Canadian director to earn two Oscar nominations (for The Sweet Hereafter). His award-winning films include Exotica, Ararat and The Captive. His most recent film, Guest of Honour, premiered at TIFF 2019.
Writer
Atom Egoyan
Cast
Simon Abkarian, Charles Aznavour, Christopher Plummer, Arsinee Khanjian
Producers
Robert Lantos, Atom Egoyan
Genre
Drama
Interests
Discrimination, Global Experiences, History, Newcomer Stories, Social Justice & Politics, Strong Female Leads
Original Language
English
Canadian Distributor
eOne