The premiere for Therapy Dogs will be shown at TIFF Bell Lightbox 3.
This feature film will also be shown as an online screening from Nov 14 – Nov 20.
Canada202183 minutesEnglish, Cantonese with English Subtitles Canadian PremiereDrama, Experimental
The Class of 2019 at Cawthra Park Secondary School is gearing up for their senior year. Teen angst fills the hallways. Nervous students convene in classrooms. Hopeful romantics ask each other out for prom. Amidst these moments of self-discovery, friends Ethan and Justin set out to shoot a film under the pretense of being a yearbook project, recording pivotal moments and character portraits during this tumultuous stage of adolescence. No one at Cawthra Park seems to be prepared for what will come next in their rebellious filmmaking adventure.
Ethan Eng’s debut feature film Therapy Dogs is an introspective look at the director’s coming-of-age in senior year. Combining elements from documentary, fiction, and experimental styles, Therapy Dogs navigates the quintessential Mississauga high school experience with evocative imagery and rhythmic sequences, offering an intensely rich window into Eng’s craft, interpersonal relationships, and his exploration of the near-universal rite of passage: the last year of high school.
– Nicolas Uribe
Justin Morrice
Ethan Eng
Kevin Tseng
Kyle Peacock
AWARDS
AGBO Fellowship, Slamdance, 2022
Ethan Eng
Ethan Eng is the Toronto filmmaker behind Therapy Dogs, a movie shot secretly during his last year of high school in 2019. It had its world premiere at the Slamdance Film Festival, making him the youngest director to ever compete, and earned him the ABGO fellowship, presented by the Russo Brothers.
12 Nov, 2022 8:00 pm
TIFF Bell Lightbox 3The premiere for Therapy Dogs will be shown at TIFF Bell Lightbox 3.
This feature film will also be shown as an online screening from Nov 14 – Nov 20.
Rated PG
Content Warning: Sexist language and situations, coarse language, smoking and drinking, drug use
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and closed English subtitles digitally.
Join us for a Q&A immediately after the theatrical presentation with director Ethan Eng.
How do our bodies and environments absorb and hold onto repetitive patterns, habits, and routines? This presentation of shorts exercises the capacity to confront harmful structures, encourage reflexivity, and affirm the embodied knowledge we carry. This shorts programme is available online.
Following her previous basketball documentary Finding Big Country (2018), Kat Jayme embarks on an equally quixotic journey to find out why the Grizzlies abandoned Vancouver.
Join us for a deep-rooted dive into Uprooted: The Plantemic, a show about houseplants surviving the pandemic. We’ll explore the narrative of this CBC Gem short-form series, the development from concept art to animation, and contextualize the series not only in its time, but also in contemporary conversations, as storytelling methods evolve. In an era of remote working, what would my houseplants think of me? Do they root for me? Find out from the creative team behind Uprooted.
The Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival is Canada’s largest pan-Asian film festival, showcasing bold contemporary cinema by Asian and Asian diasporic artists from Canada, the U.S., Asia, and around the world. Held each November in Toronto, Reel Asian presents a dynamic lineup of film screenings, panels, and special events, with programming and education initiatives continuing throughout the year. Founded in 1996, Reel Asian celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2026, marking three decades of championing underrepresented voices and fostering dialogue through film and media arts.
401 Richmond Street West, The Commons (Suite 448)
Toronto, Ontario, M5V 3A8 Canada
(416) 703 – 9333
info@reelasian.com
Charitable number: 870021383RR0001
