The future of Canadian film comes in all lengths.
14 short films from Canadian storytellers.
Presented across two programmes, each followed by a filmmaker Q&A.
From emerging voices to established filmmakers, Canadian Shorts brings together different approaches to storytelling and a chance to discover what Canadian filmmakers are creating right now.
Saturday, October 3, 2026, starting at 2:00 pm
Living Arts Centre
| Short Film | Filmmaker | Description |
|---|---|---|
| SORRY, IT'S A GIRL | Jaskaran Gill Director | When a woman discovers she is pregnant with a baby girl, family and societal pressures force her to consider an abortion. |
| ROOTS | Jasleen Kaur Director | In 1940s Vancouver, a South Asian woman defies public backlash and confronts a city council meeting to fight for her right to purchase a home in a white neighbourhood. |
| CITY OF BYSTANDERS WORLD PREMIERE | Anubhav Singh Director | A Canadian neo-noir thriller short film that follows a character named Sakshi as she travels from India to Toronto to find her missing brother, Sai, who came to Canada as an international student. |
| A GOOD DAY WILL COME | Amir Zargara Director | A 2024 award-winning, Oscar-qualified Persian-language dramatic short film that follows a talented professional wrestler while his country undergoes severe political turmoil. |
| NOVEMBER | Gaganpreet Singh Director | A personal documentary in which a filmmaker explores love and the meaning of home through the lives and memories of their family. |
| BEHEN | Curry Bradshaw Director | The story of sisters navigating life and grief in the aftermath of the tragic death of their glamorous, bipolar mother. It explores themes of family, mental health, and shared sisterly bonds. |
| SONIA HONEY | Ameesha Joshi Director | On a single, transformative day, a middle-aged actress navigates the blurred lines between reel and reality, unearthing buried truths about identity, ageing, and the silent labour of care in a world that constantly rewrites her relevance. |
All seven films screen together as one 94-minute program, followed by a Q&A with filmmakers.
Sunday, October 4, 2026, starting at 3:30 pm
Living Arts Centre
| Short Film | Filmmaker | Description |
|---|---|---|
| AM I THE SKINNIEST PERSON YOU'VE EVER SEEN? | Eisha Marjara Director |
WARNING: This film contains imagery of anorexia and eating disorders that may be disturbing to some viewers. Viewer discretion is advised.
Eisha and Seema, soulmate sisters whose shared dietary goal becomes a harrowing descent for Eisha. |
| LOCALLY SOURCED | Zaarin Bushra Director | When a couple's "locally sourced" dinner turns into an unexpected TED Talk about their divided community, sinking their teeth into common ground proves to be a challenge. |
| AFTER PRAYER | Usman Qazi Director | A young 10-year-old Ahmad tries to get a girl’s attention without raising suspicion from his Muslim mother. |
| FINDING SHELTER | Mehrtash Mohit Director | A poignant narrative that explores the resilience and innocence of a young girl, Hanna, amidst the chaos of a war-torn environment. |
| KYA POEM | Marium Nur Vahed Director | After losing her mom, a grieving Pakistani-Canadian teenager discovers a magical VHS tape. |
| Black & White | Navjot Singh Narula Director | The world is Black & White — but the truth lives somewhere in between. An action thriller that intrigues to find that truth as one soul walks an unrelenting path of revenge. |
All six films screen as a single 82-minute program, followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers.
