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
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.
This film is part of the Shorts Presentation
This film also screens as part of the Unquenchable Shorts Presentation
15 Nov, 2025 10:00 am
Innis Town HallPG
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.
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.
The discussion will explore how festivals can better support accessibility — from accommodating filmmakers with disabilities and reaching diverse audiences, to guiding creators on inclusive practices like budgeting for captioning.
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.
USA20253 minNo dialogue2slgbtq+, Animation, Available Online, Non-binary, Queer, Transgender
Two dogs timidly try to seek intimacy.
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).
Jin Lim
Jin Lim is a queer, non-binary Korean American animation filmmaker. Their award-winning short films explore the intricacies of gender identity and human interconnections.
8 Nov, 2025 9:00 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
CONTENT ADVISORY
animated depictions of nudity
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.
5 Nov, 2025 7:30 pm
Hot Docs Ted Rogers CinemaGA
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 story and production designer Lillian Chan moderated by Reel Asian artistic director Aram Siu Wai Collier.
Join us at Tranzac Club for the Opening Night Gala Party after the screening of SPACE CADET!
Suggested $10 donation at the door.
9:30PM at Tranzac Club
A calm & quiet zone will be available at this event. If you require accessibility accommodation for this event, please click the link below.
Join us for an in-depth conversation about SPACE CADET. Director Kid Koala and head of story and production designer Lillian Chan will discuss the journey from book to film, exploring how to translate vulnerability into craft, and how to make authenticity come through in every frame.
Thurs, Nov 6 at 2PM at CineCyle
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.
Render Me in Your Worlds is a multi-day symposium that highlights the Sari-Sari Xchange and Reel Asian's shared mission of amplifying Asian representation in the creative emerging media industries.
K-pop? Yes, please. Demons? Sure! Hunters? OK, what? Here’s the story: Rumi, Zoey, and Mira are HUNTR/X, a world-renowned K-pop group who ALSO hunt demons to protect humans from the underworld. But one of them has a secret that could disrupt all they’ve worked for.
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.
7 Nov, 2025 8:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4GA
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.
8 Nov, 2025 1:00 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
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
Japan20248 minNo DialogueAnimation, Available Online, Experimental
A woman waits for a man by the seaside.
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 sound cues indicated).
RuiHan Yang
Born in 1999 in China’s Sichuan province, RuiHan Yang holds a bachelor’s degree in Animation from Beijing Film Academy and a master’s in graphic design from Tama Art University.
8 Nov, 2025 6:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
CONTENT ADVISORY
Animated depictions of nudity
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.
This film is part of the Shorts Presentation
15 Nov, 2025 10:00 am
Innis Town HallGA
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
