Canada202586 minNo dialogueAnimation
Ever since astronaut-in-training Celeste was a child, Robot has served as a surrogate parent while her mother explored the galaxy. When Celeste starts a months-long mission after graduation, the pair must explore the unknowns of life without each other.
On her mission, Celeste stumbles upon a clue to her mother’s disappearance. Back on Earth, without Celeste to take care of, Robot’s mission goes from straightforward to existential. Separately but together, the two explore their purpose — inside and beyond the stars.
World-renowned scratch DJ and artist Kid Koala adapts his graphic novel of the same name into a dream cinema project. Working with a long list of collaborators from his extensive career (including songs by Karen O and Digable Planets’ Ladybug Mecca), Kid Koala evokes classic movies of the silent film era by using no dialogue and only beautiful images and sound driven by his original scratch soundtrack.
An independent, animated film adventure 14 years in the making, Space Cadet is a true accomplishment of gritty determination and soaring creativity. It is a beautiful testament to dreaming of possibilities while grounded with love.
– Aram Siu Wai Collier
Kid Koala
Kid Koala (Eric San) is a Montreal-based DJ, composer, and visual artist. Creator of five solo albums and the graphic novels Nufonia Must Fall and Space Cadet, he has collaborated with Gorillaz and Radiohead. His first animated feature, Space Cadet, premiered at the Berlinale and screened at the Toronto International Film Festival.
8 Nov, 2025 10:00 am
TIFF Lightbox C3GA
CONTENT ADVISORY
trypophobia
This film has no dialogue (no audio + visual descriptions).
Wheelchair spaces and step-free seating is available for this screening – click below to book accessible seats.
Join us for a Q&A immediately after the screening with director Kid Koala and head of animation Lillian Chan, moderated by Reel Asian associate director Kelly Lui.
We each bring our own style to the table — whether that's upholding tradition or breaking it, following the rules or bending them. These films explore familial complexity through play, transformation, agency, and hope.
Join us for a conversation with directors and filmmakers Mayumi Yoshida, Janus Victoria, Timothy Yeung, and Nach Dudsdeemaytha on the creative, logistical, and personal realities of co-producing films across borders. Each filmmaker brings a unique perspective on how shooting overseas shaped their debut features - from financing and creative collaboration to the evolution of personal and cultural perspective.
Filmmaker Ian Tuason’s debut feature The Undertone, recently acquired by A24, transforms the intimacy of caregiving and the eerie power of audio into a chilling, single-location horror story.
Founded in Toronto in 1997, Reel Asian is Canada’s largest pan-Asian film festival and a year-round cultural organization dedicated to championing Asian and Asian diasporic artists and storytellers. What began as a grassroots film festival has grown into a national platform supporting filmmakers and audiences through screenings, education, industry initiatives, artist development, and community programming presented across Toronto, the GTA, and online across Canada.
401 Richmond Street West, The Commons (Suite 448)
Toronto, Ontario, M5V 3A8 Canada
(416) 703 – 9333
info@reelasian.com
Charitable number: 870021383RR0001
