Reel Asian and the Writers Guild of Canada present a candid conversation on the pathways and pitfalls of building a sustainable career in screenwriting. With Asian Canadian writers at the forefront, this session will explore the realities of navigating writers' rooms, landing representation, and making sense of the business side of TV and film.
Panellists will reflect on their own journeys — from making an impression to handling notes and rewrites — while demystifying the structures of television writing. Beyond the craft, this discussion will explore strategies for self-promotion, building meaningful industry relationships, and understanding what producers and commissioning editors are really looking for. The conversation will also address larger systemic barriers writers face, and how community and resilience play a vital role in sustaining long-term careers.
Nathalie Younglai
Writer-Director
Lakna Edirisinghe
Writer/Producer
Lakna Edirisinghe is a Sri Lankan-Canadian writer/producer based in Toronto. She’s written for a wide variety of shows, including hour-long dramas like Diggstown (CBC), half-hour comedies like Late Bloomer (Bell/Crave), and kid’s comedies like Odd Squad (PBS), for which she was nominated for an Emmy. She’s won a WGC Award and a Canadian Screen Award.
Romeo Candido
Director, writer, composer, and producer
Romeo Candido is an Emmy-nominated director, writer, composer, and CSA-winning producer whose dynamic career spans film, television, theatre, and music. He was the showrunner and series director for Gangnam Project S1(CBC/BBC) and co-showrunner for The Next Step (BBC). His directing credits include Workin’ Moms (Netflix/CBC), This Hour Has 22 Minutes (CBC), Popularity Papers (YTV), Second Jen (Rogers), and the Emmy-nominated Circuit Breakers(Apple TV). As a writer, he has contributed to Son of a Critch (CBC/CW) and Another Life (Netflix). He is the creator and showrunner of the CSA-nominated Topline for CBC Gem, and the writer-composer of the Sterling Award–winning theatrical musical Prison Dancer which enjoyed sold out runs at the Citadel Theatre in Edmonton and the National Arts Centre in Ottawa.
JP Larocque
Screenwriter and Producer
JP Larocque is an award-winning screenwriter and producer with experience in comedy (CBC’s Sort Of and North of North, CTV’s JANN), drama (CBC’s Allegiance, SkyMed, Dig
They are creator and executive producer of the digital comedy series Gay Nerds on OUTtv. In 2024, The Globe and Mail listed them among “the 25 most influential people in Canadian television.”
As a journalist, JP has bylines in Maclean’s, The Walrus, The Toronto Star, Flare, This Magazine, Xtra, and The Beaverton, with additional work in the anthologies City Voices: A Book of Monologues by Toronto Artists (2012), and The Secret Loves of Geeks (2018).
12 Nov, 2025 2:30 pm
CineCycle129 Spadina Avenue (coach-house down the lane behind), Toronto, ON M5A 1J7
This venue is not accessible to people using wheelchairs, and would present significant challenges to people with moderate to severe mobility difficulties. This venue is not suitable for those with low vision.
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.
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.
Join us for an in-depth conversation about SPACE CADET, a moving animated film that speaks volumes without a single word of dialogue. Director Kid Koala will share how a memory of watching Charlie Chaplin films with his grandmother became the north star that guided this deeply personal story.
In partnership with the DOC Institute, Reel Ideas will host a panel as part of the speaker series Truth Matters – Critical Dialogue in a Post-Truth Era, supported by the Toronto Arts Council.
This panel will explore how racialized and independent creators bring their films to communities and audiences. The conversation will shed light on how creators might navigate through barriers and challenges and the strategies and partnerships filmmakers use to ensure their stories are seen and heard, while also reflecting on the artistry, intention, and creative decisions that shape how these films connect with viewers. Whether you are a filmmaker, producer, programmer, or audience member interested in the future of documentary, this event will provide valuable insight into how stories find their way into the world.
Chrisann Hessing
Filmmaker
Chrisann Hessing is an award-winning Toronto-based documentary filmmaker and founder of Culture Shift Media, a boutique company creating films that inspire social change. Guided by the belief that storytelling is healing, she collaborates with filmmakers and changemakers to spark meaningful dialogue and drive lasting impact.
Min Sook Lee
Director, THERE ARE NO WORDS
Min Sook Lee is an award-winning director whose work explores themes of labour, migration and social justice. Her acclaimed documentaries include Migrant Dreams (2016), named Best Labour Documentary by the Canadian Journalists Association and recipient of the Canadian Hillman Prize; The Real Inglorious Bastards (2012), winner of a Canadian Screen Award; Tiger Spirit (2008), which won the Donald Brittain Gemini Award; Hogtown (2005), named Best Canadian Feature at Hot Docs; and the Gemini-nominated El Contrato (2003). She is a recipient of numerous awards, including the Cesar E. Chavez Black Eagle Award, and the Alanis Obomsawin Award for Commitment to Community and Resistance. Canada’s oldest labour arts festival, Mayworks, has named the Min Sook Lee Labour Arts Award in her honour. Lee is an Associate Professor at OCAD University, where her area of research and practice focuses on the intersections of art+social change in labour, border politics, migration and social justice movements.
Tony Nguyen
Director, YEAR OF THE CAT
Tony Nguyen is an Oakland filmmaker whose work explores the Vietnamese refugee experience (Enforcing the Silence, Giap’s Last Day at the Ironing Board Factory) and the overlooked stories of individuals and communities that make up the fabric of the Town (Fresh Frozen, I See Me).
11 Nov, 2025 3:00 pm
CineCycle129 Spadina Avenue (coach-house down the lane behind), Toronto, ON M5A 1J7
This venue is not accessible to people using wheelchairs, and would present significant challenges to people with moderate to severe mobility difficulties. This venue is not suitable for those with low vision.
Join us for the closing event of the 29th Reel Asian, "So You Think You Can Pitch" Live Finale. Five emerging filmmaking teams will compete for a prize package to help realize their short films.
Reel Asian and the Writers Guild of Canada present a candid conversation on the pathways and pitfalls of building a sustainable career in screenwriting.
In collaboration with the Independent Media Arts Alliance, Reel Ideas will co-host a three-day mini-conference focused on artist advocacy, fair pay, and building an equitable arts ecosystem.
Join us for a special presentation of 18 to 35, a bold new workplace comedy created by Rahul Chaturvedi and executive produced by Andrew Phung. Key collaborators will pull back the curtain on this homegrown production, crafted on a small budget but with big ambitions. They’ll share how the series moved from idea to pitch to screen, highlighting lessons in building a writers’ room, navigating production and post-production, giving attendees an end-to-end crash course on making a series.
Rahul Chaturvedi
Writer-Director
Rahul Chaturvedi is a Toronto based writer-director working across scripted, unscripted, and kids’ television. A graduate of the CFC Writers’ Lab, his writing and story editing credits include Late Bloomer (Crave), Run the Burbs (CBC), Don’t Even (Crave), Potluck Ladies (Yes TV), and the preschool series Skillsville (PBS Kids).
12 Nov, 2025 6:30 pm
CineCycle129 Spadina Avenue (coach-house down the lane behind), Toronto, ON M5A 1J7
This venue is not accessible to people using wheelchairs, and would present significant challenges to people with moderate to severe mobility difficulties. This venue is not suitable for those with low vision.
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.
Join us for an in-depth conversation about SPACE CADET, a moving animated film that speaks volumes without a single word of dialogue. Director Kid Koala will share how a memory of watching Charlie Chaplin films with his grandmother became the north star that guided this deeply personal story.
Reel Ideas presents a rich programme of conversations, panels, and networking sessions for filmmakers and artists at every stage of their careers.
Join us for an in-depth conversation about Space Cadet, a moving animated film that speaks volumes without a single word of dialogue. Director Kid Koala will share how a memory of watching Charlie Chaplin films with his grandmother became the north star that guided this deeply personal story. That early connection to silent cinema — bridging cultural and language barriers — inspired the creation of Space Cadet as a work of solace, imagination, and reflection.
Kid Koala and Lillian Chan, Space Cadet’s head of story and production designer, will discuss the journey from book to film, exploring how to translate vulnerability into craft — through storytelling, visual design, and music — and how to make authenticity come through in every frame. Together, they’ll reflect on how Space Cadet found its voice without dialogue, and how its journey reveals the power of art in connecting past, present, and future.
Kid Koala
Director
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.
Lillian Chan
Head of Story and Production Designer
Lillian Chan is an experienced animation filmmaker known for her work on various projects, including the award-winning children’s film Jaime Lo, Small and Shy (NFB, 2007), an educational short for TEDed, and a VR prototype for the CFC Medialab. Her commercial clients include DisneyXD, Nelvana, Guru Studios, and Mozilla. Lillian serves as professor of animation at Seneca Polytechnic in Toronto.
Richard Koo
Vice President, Analytics & Strategic Insights
Richard Koo has over 20 years of experience in audience research and leads the analytics, strategic reporting, and foresight teams at the Canada Media Fund (CMF). At the CMF, his work focuses on leveraging data to address equity challenges and promote growth and economic opportunities in the media industry.
Richard began his career at CBC Sports, contributing to programs like Hockey Night in Canada and the Olympic Games. He is also a 3-time Boston Marathon finisher, an international umpire with World Rowing, a member of the Canadian Olympic Committee, and a former president of the International Olympic Academy Participants Association. Originally from Canada’s west coast, Richard holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of British Columbia and a Master of Science in Planning from the University of Toronto.
6 Nov, 2025 2:00 pm
CineCycle129 Spadina Avenue (coach-house down the lane behind), Toronto, ON M5A 1J7
This venue is not accessible to people using wheelchairs, and would present significant challenges to people with moderate to severe mobility difficulties. This venue is not suitable for those with low vision.
In collaboration with the Independent Media Arts Alliance, Reel Ideas will co-host a three-day mini-conference focused on artist advocacy, fair pay, and building an equitable arts ecosystem.
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!
Reel Ideas presents a rich programme of conversations, panels, and networking sessions for filmmakers and artists at every stage of their careers.
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
