This film is part of the Shorts Presentation
WEE ASIAN
This film also screens as part of the Let’s do the Time Warp Again! Shorts Presentation
Germany202413 minEnglishAnimation, Available Online
Sam, a deviant artist and proud flower person, is spending one last day in a flower spa with his mother before his final performance act.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Ariel Victor Arthanto
Ariel Victor Arthanto is an Indonesian-born animation filmmaker and illustrator based in Berlin, crafting vibrant 2D worlds that mix playful compositions, bold figures, and character-driven storytelling across film and illustration.
This film is part of the Shorts Presentation
This film also screens as part of the Let’s do the Time Warp Again! Shorts Presentation
15 Nov, 2025 10:00 am
Innis Town HallPG
Canada, Germany, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Sweden, Taiwan, U.K., USA2018–202560 minVarious languages with English SubtitlesAvailable Online
Through animation’s unique ability to push boundaries and reimagine narratives, this programme reflects the formative dreams that continue to shape Inside Out and Reel Asian. Step into this chaotic but tender journey with us.
For: time travellers; plane counters; animation lovers; dancers; weirdo blobs; fans of Lu and Kelly
*Directors in attendance starred.
Lu Linares
Co-Curator
Lu Linares is a Peruvian Canadian festival programmer and arts administrator whose work is shaped by their experiences as a queer immigrant. They are currently the programming and industry manager at the Inside Out 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival.
Germany202413 minEnglishAnimation, Available Online, Non-binary, Queer, Transgender
Sam, a deviant artist and proud flower person, is spending one last day in a flower spa with his mother before his final performance act.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Ariel Victor Arthanto
Ariel Victor Arthanto is an Indonesian-born animation filmmaker and illustrator based in Berlin, crafting vibrant 2D worlds that mix playful compositions, bold figures, and character-driven storytelling across film and illustration.
South Korea20203 minKorean with English subtitlesAnimation, Available Online, Music, Queer
One night, while Seolgi is lying on a grass field with friends, a shooting star falls and dark intrusive thoughts hit her, bursting with movement and blooming bright colours.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
Sasha Lee
Sasha Lee is an animator who likes plants and animals.
Taiwan, U.K.20246 minMandarin with English subtitles2slgbtq+, Animation, Available Online, Gay
I’ve practised these words for 20 years now, but maybe being candid isn’t the best idea. I’m starting my countdown again — another 20 years. Maybe it will be the right time by then.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
WeiFan Wang
WeiFan Wang is an animation director based in Taipei and London. His practice consists of self-reflective animations that explore intimate and unspoken emotions.
Singapore, USA20238 minNo dialogue2slgbtq+, Animation, Available Online, Experimental, Non-binary, Queer
One night, a person brushes a dog's teeth and turns into a bus.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film has no dialogue (no audio + visual descriptions).
Exyl
Exyl is a filmmaker working under the umbrella of experimental animation. They love work that is cheap. They care about being honest. They hate thinking about being marketable.
Taiwan, UK2018 6:00No dialogue2slgbtq+, Animation, Available Online, Experimental, Gay, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Non-binary, Queer, Transgender
Comprising over 2,000 hand-painted frames, Adorable presents a journey of a queer person, illustrating modern queer society, where discrimination, freedom, and love coexist.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Cheng-Hsu Chung
Cheng-Hsu Chung is a Taiwanese animation artist and director based in Berlin. Chung’s artistic practice focuses on surreal images and character performances in animation to articulate the changing nature of emotion, modern love, and the experiences queer bodies encounter.
Canada20196 minEnglishAvailable Online
With pulsating neon-light animation, Reviving the Roost is about community complexity and longing — an elegy to a lost space as much as it is director Vivek Shraya’s ode to a now-closed iconic Edmonton gay bar.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Vivek Shraya
A three-time Canadian Screen Award winner, Vivek Shraya is an artist whose body of work crosses the boundaries of music, literature, visual art, theatre, TV, film, and fashion.
Malaysia, Sweden20229 minNo dialogue2slgbtq+, Animation, Available Online, Environment, Family-friendly, Queer, Romance
Newly orphaned and freshly wounded from a loss, a boy lends his companion a prosthetic arm for the day. This is a slow and meditative film about everyday gestures of love, communicated through our universal understanding of body language.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film has no dialogue (no audio + visual descriptions).
Gabriel Gabriel Garble
Gabriel Gabriel Garble works across animation, film, and geology, exploring how imagery and material ecologies intertwine.
South Korea20259 minKorean with English subtitlesAnimation, Available Online, Directed By Women, Drama
A girl unexpectedly bumps into her childhood best friend and finds herself torn between rekindling their lost connection or letting the moment slip away forever.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Hanna Kang
Hanna Kang is a graduate of the Korea National University of Arts.
6 Nov, 2025 8:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
This programme is presented with a mix of open captions, English subtitles, and no captions.
Wheelchair spaces and step-free seating is available for this screening – click below to book accessible seats.
All short films are available digitally through our Digital Shorts Pass
CONTENT ADVISORY
Flashing strobe lights; depictions of violence
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.
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.
A discussion on artist labour conditions and funding challenges. The IMAA team will present on the Alliance’s resources including the Fee Schedule, the Resource Access Network and the Advocacy Toolkit, followed by a reception and mingling portion. Attendees will have the opportunity to connect with the Alliance team, industry leaders, artists, and peers. Free and open to the public!
Germany20247 minFarsi with English subtitlesAnimation, Available Online, Directed By Women, Drama
Six-year-old Lily visits her grandmother post-masectomy in her pear garden, and is confused by grandma’s missing chest. At night, she discovers her grandmother’s shadow has her breasts, and Lily goes on a journey to get them back.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Shadab Shayegan
Shadab Shayegan was born in Tehran. While experimenting as a music student, she discovered her interest in combining images with sounds, which led her to explore the world of animation.
8 Nov, 2025 1:00 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4GA
Canada, China, Germany, Philippines, USA2024–202594 minVarious languages with English subtitlesAvailable Online
Defiance can loudly turn heads around, or remain subtle and carefully camouflaged. Between these styles, this programme sees longings vary from self-preservation, justice, vengeance, and spectacle.
For: rulemakers, loving protectors, secret-keepers, troublemakers, daredevils
*Directors in attendance starred.
Canada202510 minEnglish, Urdu with English subtitlesAvailable Online, Drama
Naim starts to notice unsettling changes in his wife’s behaviour and increasing visits from his best friend, Javed. He and his son Talha quietly navigate their suspicions and the complexities of their family relationships.
IN PERSON: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue in closed captions (no sound cues indicated).
*Haaris Qadri
Haaris Qadri is an emerging filmmaker based in Toronto and London. Qadri aims to make films that blend the authenticity of naturalism with the vividness of a painter’s realism.
China, Germany, USA202523 minSichuan Chinese with English subtitlesDocumentary, Gay, Non-binary, Queer
Caught in a struggle of love, legacy, and belief, a filmmaker undergoes a series of home remedies and spiritual rituals as their Southwest Chinese family seeks to rid their queer heir of what they perceive as an unwanted entity.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
Hao Zhou
Hao Zhou is a filmmaker from Nanchuan, China. Their queer and feminist-themed works have screened at the Berlin International Film Festival, Locarno, Rotterdam, and SXSW.
China20247 minNo dialogueAnimation, Available Online, Directed By Women, Horror
In the desolate countryside of Northwest China, our protagonist tries to kill a strange, human-faced cockroach, which has been taken by a passerby and revered as a god of the village.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Yinxue Li
Yinxue Li is a Beijing-based graduate from Tsinghua University, Academy of Arts & Design. Human-Faced Cockroach is Li’s first independent animated short film.
Canada202512 minEnglish Available Online
Cammie, a personified webcam that dreams of becoming a livestreamer, and Rat, an introverted rodent girl, are brought together on the digital self-help app, BetterHell. So unfolds this love story of two unlikely beings united by their fears of unrealized dreams and alienation.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
*Marissa Sean Cruz
Marissa Sean Cruz is a video, performance and digital artist born in Halifax.
Philippines2024 20:00English, Tagalog and Hiligaynon with English subtitles2slgbtq+, Available Online, Comedy, Gay, Queer, Sports
Jelson and Ipe, two students deep in love, undergo trials of mind and body as they prepare to survive a world devastated by climate change.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
Whammy Alcazaren
Whammy Alcazaren is a multi-awarded director and production designer. He is a University of the Philippines Film Institute graduate. He is currently in development with his feature film, Noodles, Our Love was Instant and Forever.
Canada202522 minEnglish, Mandarin with English subtitles2slgbtq+, Documentary, Non-binary, Queer
After a Chinese medicine practitioner is brutalized by police at a recent protest, his community comes together in quiet acts of healing.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Yi Shi
Yi Shi is a queer Chinese multidisciplinary artist, tattooer, and filmmaker born in Hangzhou, China. Their lens-based work seeks to disrupt entrenched social structures by centring community voices while exploring the complexities of grief, care, and resistance.
7 Nov, 2025 8:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
This programme is presented with a mix of open captions, and subtitles.
Wheelchair spaces and step-free seating is available for this screening – click below to book accessible seats.
All short films are available digitally through our Digital Shorts Pass
CONTENT ADVISORY
Depictions of transphobia, violence, trauma, sexual content
Join us for a Q&A immediately after the theatrical presentation with attending guests from this shorts programme.
November 7, 2025 at 10PM
Through animation’s unique ability to push boundaries and reimagine narratives, this programme reflects the formative dreams that continue to shape Inside Out and Reel Asian. Step into this chaotic but tender journey with us.
Director's Note NARMADA: A VALLEY RISES launched my career as a documentary filmmaker — but more importantly, it was the film that transformed the way I see the world. Made against all odds, the film stands as a testament of endurance and persistence.
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.
Canada, Germany, Singapore, UK, USA2024–202589 minVarious languages with English subtitlesAvailable Online
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.
For: black sheep, go-getters, underdogs, those with a wild imagination
*Directors in attendance starred.
Canada202415 minEnglish, Farsi with English subtitlesAction + Adventure, Available Online, Comedy, Directed By Women, Drama, Family-friendly
Sisters Farrah, Miriam, and Layla gather for their monthly chai and hair removal. Meanwhile, their daughters Rina and Nora get embroiled in the whirlwind that comes with unfinished business for the suburbanite Iranian diaspora.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
*Sara Jade Alfaro-Dehghani
Sara Jade Alfaro-Dehghani is a Canadian-born filmmaker and writer of Mexican and Iranian descent, raised in Oshawa, Ont., and now based in London and Toronto.
USA2025 14:00No dialogueAnimation, Available Online, Comedy, Directed By Women, Drama, Family-friendly, Horror, Romance
Rajas is a lonely teenage photographer who gawks at a circus freakshow — until he himself is transformed.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned in all closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Nidhi Reddy
Nidhi Reddy is an Indian American filmmaker based in Austin, Texas. Her previous experimental animated short The Yellow Wallpaper (2012) screened locally and internationally. Reddy’s films comment on the absurdity of having a body and having it be perceived.
Singapore202520 minEnglishAvailable Online, Drama, Family-friendly
Shy, imaginative, eight-year-old Xuan struggles to find the perfect outfit for her school's Children's Day celebration while adjusting to a turbulent home life and an unlikely new friendship.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Giselle Lin
Giselle Lin Xuan Qing is a Singaporean writer-director. Lin is inspired by the impermanence of memory, connections, and nature, and always seeks to tell stories filled with human truth, touch, and taste.
UK2025 15:00English, Urdu with English subtitlesAvailable Online
Haunted by rising sea levels, a daughter digs up her father’s grave to move his body to higher ground.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned in all closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Elham Ehsas
Elham Ehsas is a writer, director, and actor working across film and TV. His short film Yellow (2023) was BAFTA-nominated in 2024 and shortlisted for the Academy Awards.
Germany20247 minFarsi with English subtitlesAnimation, Available Online, Directed By Women, Drama
Six-year-old Lily visits her grandmother post-masectomy in her pear garden, and is confused by grandma’s missing chest. At night, she discovers her grandmother’s shadow has her breasts, and Lily goes on a journey to get them back.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Shadab Shayegan
Shadab Shayegan was born in Tehran. While experimenting as a music student, she discovered her interest in combining images with sounds, which led her to explore the world of animation.
Canada202518 minEnglishAction + Adventure, Available Online, Documentary, Sports
Joey, a Filipino Canadian fashionista, enters the world of professional wrestling and faces the hardships of getting his “green light."
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
*Mateo Jose Ignacio
Mateo Jose Ignacio is a Toronto-based Filipino filmmaker passionate about storytelling. Through his work, he loves sharing the warmth and vibrancy of the culture that shaped him.
8 Nov, 2025 1:00 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
This programme is presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Wheelchair spaces and step-free seating is available for this screening – click below to book accessible seats.
All short films are available digitally through our Digital Shorts Pass
CONTENT ADVISORY
Strobing lights, depictions of death, verbal abuse, violence
Join us for a Q&A immediately after the theatrical presentation with attending guests from this shorts programme, moderated by Rea Zala.
November 8, 2025 at 2:30PM
For the 29th edition of Reel Asian, we’ve teamed up with a group of amazing local Toronto artists to create a collection of limited handmade merch, each piece designed with care, creativity, and a whole lot of love for our community. From one-of-a-kind trinkets to thoughtfully crafted keepsakes, these custom pieces celebrate the artistry and collaboration that make Reel Asian so special.
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.
Hang out with us for Festival Happy Hour, open to the public! Grab a drink and join in on the casual activities each day.
Canada, Germany, Japan, USA2024–202545 minVarious languages with English SubtitlesAvailable Online
With free drop-in programming for all ages and all generations to come together, Wee Asian returns with free relaxed screenings accompanied by storytelling, arts activities, and play!
From sharing meals to counting planes and planting beans, these films lead us through stories of unexpected vulnerability, resilience, and companionship.
For: budding gardeners; critters and crawlers; day — and night — dreamers; those ready to make art and then take a nap
*Directors in attendance starred.
Canada20258 minEnglish2slgbtq+, Animation, Available Online, Comedy, Directed By Women, Drama, Experimental, Horror, Queer, Romance
After Bug’s ex-girlfriend June calls to pick up her stuff from their apartment, he makes his best attempt to win her back.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Silverfish Pictures
Silverfish Pictures, a 13-member stop-motion studio, thrives on pushing the boundaries of stop-motion filmmaking and creating fun and thoughtful stories.
Canada20254 minEnglishAnimation, Available Online, Directed By Women, Documentary, Experimental, Family-friendly
The director’s 81-year-old father — an ever-determined and resourceful gardener — attempts to grow the Sri Lankan winged bean in his suburban backyard garden in Markham, Ont.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
*Champika Fernando
Champika Fernando is a Sri Lankan Canadian filmmaker whose work explores magic in the everyday. They are especially interested in telling deeply personal stories through approaches that are technically accessible.
Germany202413 minEnglishAnimation, Available Online, Non-binary, Queer, Transgender
Sam, a deviant artist and proud flower person, is spending one last day in a flower spa with his mother before his final performance act.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Ariel Victor Arthanto
Ariel Victor Arthanto is an Indonesian-born animation filmmaker and illustrator based in Berlin, crafting vibrant 2D worlds that mix playful compositions, bold figures, and character-driven storytelling across film and illustration.
Canada20254 minEnglishAvailable Online, Environment, Experimental, Sports
Hand-processed, solarized, tinted, and toned, Serene Hues is a meditative journey into the tranquility and vibrant beauty of nature.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
*Rita Tse
Born and raised in Hong Kong, Rita Tse is an experimental filmmaker based in Toronto, with specific interests in gender, ethnicity, and memory. Her latest works have mainly explored artisanal manipulation techniques on celluloid.
USA20254 minEnglishAnimation, Available Online, Comedy, Directed By Women
Tonight, dinner starts with a slice of tomato.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
Huayi Yi
Huayi Yu is a BFA4 character animation student at CalArts. She makes still and moving images inspired by shapes that seem to tell stories, blending playful animation transitions with subtly humorous characters.
Japan202512 minJapanese with English subtitlesAnimation, Available Online, Drama, Family-friendly
At a midnight highway rest area, weary travellers quietly relax their minds.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
Saki Muramoto
Born in Japan, Saki Muramoto graduated from Tokyo University of the Arts’ Graduate School of Film and New Media, in the animation department, in 2013. She now works as a freelance animation director and illustrator.
15 Nov, 2025 10:00 am
Innis Town HallRelaxed Screenings take place
at 10AM and 1PM.
Wee Asian is free and drop-in.
No tickets required!
This programme is presented with a mix of open captions, and English subtitles.
Wheelchair spaces and step-free seating is available for this screening – click below to book accessible seats.
From 11AM to 3:30PM, participate in a range of playful and expressive arts activities on a drop-in basis!
Courtesy of Annick Press and Penguin Random House, disocver a new world or meet your next favourite author from this seleciton of books! The Wee Asian Mini-Book Nook will be open for visitors at the TIFF Atrium from Fri, Nov 7 to Sun, Nov 9, and take place in Innis Town Hall for Wee Asian on Sat, Nov 15.
11AM–3:30PM Drop-In
Encapsulate your time at Wee Asian at the live-portrait booth with local artist Rebecca Hong! Portraits limited per session so make sure to sign-up for a spot on the day-of.
11AM–12:30PM, 1:30–3PM
Rebecca Hong
Rebecca Hong is part creative, part momo and part corporate worker. She loves doodling cute things.
Ahead of the live reading of RA!TA!MA!CUE! by Howie Shia at 2:30PM, make your own hand drum with beans and plates! Let's make some noise!
11AM–2:30PM Drop-In
Enter the ecosystem of Muse by festival creative artist Janet Mac! Draw in your own critters and/or add your own caption into the environments that bring you joy and peace.
11AM–3:30PM Drop-In
Janet Mac
Janet Mac is a Chinese-Canadian 3D illustrator and animator based in Tkaronto. Her personal art practice explores the joy, beauty and silliness in the small details of everyday life.
Come and meet the team of Embrace Learning, a community supporter at Wee Asian, to hear about the range of services they provide!
11AM–3:30PM Drop-In
Embrace Learning and Development Centre
Embrace Learning and Development Centre: Embrace, engage, empower.
ABA therapy and personalized support for growth, independence and connection.
March and beat to your own drum in the cinema with author Howie Shia during the live reading of his just released children’s book RA! TA! MA! CUE!
A unique picture book adventure for music lovers of all ages about how to never be quiet, never give up, and never underestimate the power of percussion.
Months have passed since the Grown-Ups were taken captive, forced to brush the teeth and scratch the backs of the Growlies. One day the children make a decision: Ratamacue! It means “no more waiting.” It means it’s time for a rescue mission! They set off on a wild and uncertain journey, forming a drumline to overcome the many obstacles in their way. In the end, the Growlies’ meanness is no match for the children’s magic: their collective music.
2:30PM
Howie Shia
Howie Shia is an illustrator, writer, and animation director. He has worked with Disney, Netflix, and the National Film Board of Canada. He lives in Toronto, Canada, with his most excellent wife, two kindly children, too many books, and not enough drums.
Check out this year’s volume of DIY creative activities from the comfort of your home on our YouTube channel!
Ever had questions you'd like to ask your sibling, parents, or another family member? NIHAL'S GARDEN director Champika Fernando offers some tips and tricks on how to interview your family.
Champika Fernando
Champika Fernando is a Sri Lankan Canadian filmmaker whose work explores magic in the everyday. They are especially interested in telling deeply personal stories through approaches that are technically accessible.
Curious to learn how festival creative artist Janet Mac captured sunprints for her artwork? You can create your own at home with some common ingredients and lots of window-time.
Janet Mac
Janet Mac is a Chinese-Canadian 3D illustrator and animator based in Tkaronto. Her personal art practice explores the joy, beauty and silliness in the small details of everyday life.
Feng Xia, 53, lives a modest but decent life in Montreal: She has a house and is married with two children. But she finds herself growing dissatisfied with her loveless marriage and cloistered life of obligation. After taking a conversational French class, Feng Xia finds the city has opened up to her in new ways, including curious dalliances with dating apps. There, she meets Camille, a Quebecois woman who challenges her spiritually and sexually. Their affair awakens Feng Xia’s long-buried desires during a glowing Montreal summer.
Wind down mid-festival with us at 401 Richmond’s lower lobby for a cozy Happy Hour Mini-Market in partnership with Pamplepuss. Shop our limited custom #ReelAsian29 collection, designed by local artists, and enjoy a few friendly rounds of mahjong with the community.
How far would you go to uncover a family history that has been purposefully buried? What are the consequences of resurfacing these stories to fulfil your own? In an extremely candid documentary, filmmaker Tony Nguyen embarks on a scrappy investigation to reconnect to his father, who was estranged from his family due to the Vietnam War.
Germany202413 minEnglishAnimation, Available Online, Non-binary, Queer, Transgender
Sam, a deviant artist and proud flower person, is spending one last day in a flower spa with his mother before his final performance act.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Ariel Victor Arthanto
Ariel Victor Arthanto is an Indonesian-born animation filmmaker and illustrator based in Berlin, crafting vibrant 2D worlds that mix playful compositions, bold figures, and character-driven storytelling across film and illustration.
This film is part of the Shorts Presentation
Buy tickets here
This film also screens as part of the WEE ASIAN Shorts Presentation
6 Nov, 2025 8:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
China, Germany, USA202523 minSichuan Chinese with English subtitlesDocumentary, Gay, Non-binary, Queer
Caught in a struggle of love, legacy, and belief, a filmmaker undergoes a series of home remedies and spiritual rituals as their Southwest Chinese family seeks to rid their queer heir of what they perceive as an unwanted entity.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
Hao Zhou
Hao Zhou is a filmmaker from Nanchuan, China. Their queer and feminist-themed works have screened at the Berlin International Film Festival, Locarno, Rotterdam, and SXSW.
7 Nov, 2025 8:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
CONTENT ADVISORY
conversion therapy; depictions of transphobia
Canada, Germany, Sweden20246 minEnglishAboriginal + Indigenous, Animation, Available Online, Directed By Women, Documentary, Experimental
Take a deep breath. As you exhale, imagine that in about three years, anywhere you went on the planet, you found the molecules that are inside of you in this moment.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
This title is available digitally only in Ontario.
Alisi Telengut, Diego Galafassi
Alisi Telengut is a Canadian artist of Mongolian origin, living between Berlin and Tiohti:áke/Montréal. Her work has received multiple awards and has been screened and exhibited internationally.
Diego Galafassi is a director, writer, and producer of documentaries, experimental film, new media, and participatory performance.
This film is part of the Shorts Presentation: COLLIDERS shorts programme.
16 Nov, 2024 5:00 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4Canada, Germany, USA1995-2024TRT: 69 minVarious languages
This programme invites audiences into a storytelling dialogue between imagineNATIVE and Reel Asian on the solidarity between Indigenous and settler Asian people. Tenacious and confrontational, this collection transports resilience from the past and into the present.
For: the mischievous; co-conspirators; partners-in-crime; fans of Adam Beach, Lily Gladstone, and Sandra Oh
CO-CURATOR: Kaitlynn Tomaselli is Anishinaabe and Italian from Manitoulin Island. An emerging curator and arts administrator, she currently works for the world’s largest presenter of Indigenous screen content, imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts.
*Directors in attendance starred.
USA201912 minEnglishAboriginal + Indigenous, Available Online, Directed By Women, Drama
The lives of a Native woman and a troubled young boy intersect over the course of a school day on a reservation in Oklahoma.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
ONLINE : This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
Erica Tremblay
Erica Tremblay’s films have played at Sundance and SXSW. She was a director and writer on the FX show Reservation Dogs, and her first feature film, Fancy Dance, is now streaming worldwide on Apple TV.
Canada20205 minNo Dialogue2slgbtq+, Aboriginal + Indigenous, Available Online, Directed By Women, Experimental, Music, Romance, Science Fiction
This experimental examination of threshold states moves through deep space time in underwater realms. Mirrored bodies spiral, suspend, and dance through Te Reo Māori and nêhiyawêwin lamentations.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: No dialogue (no audio + visual descriptions)
Moe Clark, Victoria Hunt, James Brown
Weather Beings is a Two-Spirit/takatâpui collaborative performance between Victoria Hunt (Maori dancer, choreographer) and Moe Clark (Métis sound designer, vocalist) that explores the connections between Mâori whakapapa and Métis wâhkôhtowin (the kinship system).
Canada199527 minEnglishAvailable Online
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented with English subtitles only (no subtitles for English dialogue)
Helen Lee
Helen Lee is a Seoul-born, Toronto-based filmmaker whose works explore intersectionalities of place, identity, and sexuality. She works in fiction and essay films, featuring diasporic gendered subjects from feminist and transnational perspectives.
Canada, Germany, Sweden20246 minEnglishAboriginal + Indigenous, Animation, Available Online, Directed By Women, Documentary, Experimental
Take a deep breath. As you exhale, imagine that in about three years, anywhere you went on the planet, you found the molecules that are inside of you in this moment.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
This title is available digitally only in Ontario.
Alisi Telengut, Diego Galafassi
Alisi Telengut is a Canadian artist of Mongolian origin, living between Berlin and Tiohti:áke/Montréal. Her work has received multiple awards and has been screened and exhibited internationally.
Diego Galafassi is a director, writer, and producer of documentaries, experimental film, new media, and participatory performance.
Canada202319 minEnglish, ArabicAboriginal + Indigenous, Available Online, Directed By Women, Drama
Together, Nawal, a young Palestinian woman, and Tanya, an older Indigenous woman, start a guerrilla garden on the lawn of their apartment building and battle middle management to make it to harvest.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
ONLINE : This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
*Fateema Al-Hamaydeh Miller
Fateema Al-Hamaydeh Miller is a mixed-race Palestinian Canadian filmmaker whose work explores themes of fragmented identity, grief, and post-traumatic growth, through “oh no, should I laugh?” comedy.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
16 Nov, 2024 5:00 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
DIGITAL SHORTS
All shorts are available online via a Shorts VOD Pass. Valid from 10AM on Monday, Nov 18 thru 11:59PM on Sunday, Nov 24, 2024.
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This programme is presented with a mix of open captions, English subtitles, and no captions. Wheelchair spaces and step-free seating is available for this screening – click below to book accessible seats.
Sit in on this exclusive screening and deep dive of LATE BLOOMER, the groundbreaking series from the creative mind of Jasmeet Raina (Jus Reign). Centred on Jasmeet Dutta's life, the show unpacks family expectations, intergenerational relationships, and racial identity in ways rarely seen on Canadian TV. We’ll screen Episode 1: "Nudes" and Episode 4: "The Turban," offering a glimpse into Jasmeet’s complex journey as he navigates personal desires that go against familial pressures. Stick around to hear from the creative team about how Late Bloomer has landed in the community, and how it will continue to shape these conversations in real life.
Join us for Festival Happy Hour between film screenings! Open to the public, come participate in casual activities every day.
While picking juicy lychees on an endless summer day, Ting is uneasy. She’s on the verge of marriage in her hometown in mainland China. Before she ties the knot, Ting ventures to Hong Kong to find the father she’s never known. While on her journey, she finds she has other loose ends to tie up, too.
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
