Accessibility
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.
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 subtitlesAvailable Online
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 subtitlesAvailable Online
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
At her 65th birthday party, Karupy makes an unexpected announcement: She will be ending her own life that very night, sparking a whirlwind of emotions amongst her family. As she prepares for this final act, her party guests confront her about her decision.
7 Nov. 6:00 pm
Nehma belongs to the Oraon tribe and lives with her children on the outskirts of Jharkhand, India. Embroiled in a custody battle and a messy divorce, she secures a job at an AI data-labelling centre under the supervision of a stern manager. As we watch her navigate the steep learning curve of her new job and quickly confront the stark realities of biased data, the distortions in the very systems designed to help us become impossible to ignore.
12 Nov. 7:30 pm
Join us at Sankofa Square on Mon, Oct 27 at 12PM as we announce our programming with four guest directors and hold an artist talk with this year's Festival Creative Artist, Janet Mac.
27 Oct. 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm
Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival is a unique showcase of contemporary Asian cinema and work from Asia and the Asian diaspora. Works include films and videos by artists in Canada, the U.S., Asia and all over the world. As Canada’s largest pan-Asian film festival, Reel Asian provides a public forum for Asian media artists and their work, and fuels the growing appreciation for Asian cinema in Canada.
401 Richmond Street West, The Commons (Suite 448)
Toronto, Ontario, M5V 3A8 Canada
(416) 703 – 9333
info@reelasian.com
Charitable number: 870021383RR0001
