The Canadian Film Festival, formerly known as the Canadian Filmmakers Festival, is an annual

film festival A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theater, cinemas or screening venues, usually annually and in a single city or region. Some film festivals show films outdoors or online. Films may be of recent ...

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. Showcasing a program of

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

independent films, it is held in March of each year and usually runs for five days. The festival was launched in 2004, and ran annually until 2008 at the

Royal Cinema The Royal Cinema is an Art Moderne event venue and cinema in Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Pro ...

. Although not staged between 2009 and 2011, it was relaunched in 2012 and has run annually since. The festival has been staged at the

Scotiabank Theatre Scotiabank Theatre (French: Cinémas Banque Scotia) is a Canadian banner of Multiplex (movie theater), multiplex cinemas owned by Cineplex Entertainment. The brand was established in 2007 as part of a wider partnership between Cineplex and Sco ...

since 2017. The festival was formed in association with the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...

Group, but operates independently of TIFF. It serves commonly, but not exclusively, as the Toronto premiere venue for films which premiered elsewhere on the Canadian or international film festival circuits in the previous year but have not yet screened in Toronto, although it also serves as the premiere venue for some films. The 2020 festival was cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic in Canada The COVID-19 pandemic in Canada is part of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (). It is caused by SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Most cases over the course o ...

; instead, the organizers partnered with the pay TV service Super Channel to provide television and streaming broadcasts of the films that had been slated to screen at the festival. With the pandemic continuing into 2021, festival organizers again partnered with Super Channel to present the 2021 edition of the festival under the same model.Norman Wilner
"Canadian Film Fest announces 2021 lineup, will stream on Super Channel"
''

Now Now most commonly refers to the present time. Now, NOW, or The Now may also refer to: Organizations * Natal Organisation of Women, a South African women's organization * National Organization for Women, an American feminist organization * Na ...

'', March 9, 2021.

Award for Best Feature Film

Films

2014

Features

*''Afterparty'' — Michelle Ouellet *''The Birder'' — Ted Bezaire *''H & G'' — Danishka Esterhazy *'' Patch Town'' — Craig Goodwill *''Play the Film'' — Alec Toller *''The Privileged'' — Leah Walker

Shorts

2015

Features

*''Barn Wedding'' —

Shaun Benson Shaun Benson (born January 16, 1976) is a Canadian actor and director. He acted in several theatre productions in the 1990s before embarking on his film and television career. In 2002, Benson appeared alongside Harrison Ford in the American sub ...

*'' Ben's at Home'' —

Mars Horodyski Mars Horodyski is a Canadian film and television director and screenwriter based in Toronto, Ontario. She is most noted as director and co-writer of the 2014 film '' Ben's at Home'', for which she won the Canadian Comedy Award for Best Direction in ...

*''The Cocksure Lads Movie'' — Murray Foster *'' Late Night Double Feature'' — Navin Ramaswaran, Zach Ramelan, Torin Langen *''Nocturne'' — Saul Pincus *''

Pretend We're Kissing ''Pretend We're Kissing'' is a 2014 Canadian romantic comedy drama film written and directed by Matt Sadowski and starring Dov Tiefenbach, Tommie-Amber Pirie and Zoë Kravitz. Cast * Dov Tiefenbach as Benny * Tommie-Amber Pirie as Jordan *Z ...

'' —

Matt Sadowski Matt Austin (born Matthew Sadowski; 20 April 1978) is a Canadian actor, best known for his role as List of Power Rangers S.P.D. characters#Bridge Carson, Bridge Carson, the Green Ranger (later Blue Ranger then Red) from the children's televisio ...

*''Relative Happiness'' — Deanne Foley *''Shooting the Musical'' — Joel Ashton McCarthy

2016

Features

*''20 Moves'' — Harv Glazer *'' Across the Line'' —

Director X Julien Christian Lutz (born October 31, 1975), known professionally as Director X, is a Canadian music video director. Having trained under Hype Williams, Lutz has been credited for directing over a hundred music videos spanning various genres si ...

*'' Borealis'' — Sean Garrity *''Dead Rush'' — Zach Ramelan *'' How to Plan an Orgy in a Small Town'' — Jeremy LaLonde *''Jackie Boy'' — Cody Campanale *''The Sabbatical'' — Brian Stockton

Shorts

2017

Features

*'' An American Dream: The Education of William Bowman'' —

Ken Finkleman Ken Finkleman (born 1946) is a Canadian television and film writer, producer, director, actor, and novelist. Biography Finkleman was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba. In Canada, Finkleman is best known as the writer, creator and producer of the CBC ...

*'' Badsville'' —

April Mullen April Mullen () is a Canadian director, actress, and producer. Career In 2012, Mullen became the first woman to direct a live action, fully stereoscopic 3D film, 3D feature film, ''Dead Before Dawn'' (2012)''.'' In 2015, she directed the neo-n ...

*''Broken'' — Lynne Spencer *''Broken Mile'' — Justin McConnell *''Edging'' — Natty Zavitz *'' Filth City'' — Andy King *''

Great Great Great ''Great Great Great'' is a Canadian drama film, written and directed by Adam Garnet Jones and released in 2017. The film stars Sarah Kolasky as Lauren, a woman who begins having an affair when she decides that her five-year relationship with Tom ...

'' —

Adam Garnet Jones Adam Garnet Jones (born c.1982/1983) is a Canadian filmmaker and screenwriter whose works largely focuses on indigenous peoples in Canada."Young, native and gay, filmmaker champions inclusion for all". ''Edmonton Journal'', March 24, 2007. Since ...

*''

The Heretics A heretic is a person who commits heresy. Heretic or The Heretic may also refer to: Epithet Real * Jacob the Heretic, faith healer in the Talmud and Tosefta Fictional * ''Camber the Heretic'', a 1981 novel by Katherine Kurtz * ''Flavia the Here ...

'' — Chad Archibald *''Lost Solace'' — Chris Scheuerman *''Modern Classic'' — J.M.B. Hunter

Shorts

2018

Features

*''Becoming Burlesque'' — Jackie English *''The Cannon'' — Marshall Axani *'' The Drawer Boy'' — Arturo Pérez Torres,

Aviva Armour-Ostroff Aviva Armour-Ostroff is a Canadian actress, writer and filmmaker. She is most noted as the star, co-writer and co-director of the 2021 film ''Lune'', for which she received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Actress at the 10th Canadian S ...

*'' The Go-Getters'' — Jeremy LaLonde *'' Love Jacked'' —

Alfons Adetuyi Alfons Adetuyi is a Canadian film and television director and producer."Greater Sudbury's cinematic family". ''Sudbury Star'', April 25, 2009. A partner in the film and television production firm Inner City Films with his brothers Tom, Amos and R ...

*''Luba'' — Caley Wilson *'' Ordinary Days'' — Kris Booth, Renuka Jeyapalan,

Jordan Canning Jordan Canning is a Canadian director for film and television. She is known for her independent feature films '' We Were Wolves'' (2014) and '' Suck It Up'' (2017), as well as her work directing on television series '' Baroness Von Sketch Show,'' ...

*''Prodigals'' — Michelle Ouellet *'' Room for Rent'' — Matthew Atkinson *''A Swinger's Weekend'' — Jon E. Cohen

Shorts

2019

Features

*''Creep Nation'' — John Geddes *'' The Dancing Dogs of Dombrova'' — Zack Bernbaum *''Honey Bee'' — Rama Rau *''Nose to Tail'' — Jesse Zigelstein *''Nowhere'' — Thomas Michael *''Pond Life'' —

Gord Rand Gord Rand is a Canadian actor and playwright. He is most noted for his recurring role as Det. Marty Duko in the television series ''Orphan Black'', for which he was a Canadian Screen Award nominee for Best Performance in a Guest Role in a Dramatic ...

*'' Red Rover'' — Shane Belcourt *''This Is North Preston'' — Jaren Hayman *''Wolves Unleashed: Against All Odds'' — Andrew Simpson

Shorts

Awards

2020

Features

*''Alone Across the Arctic'' — Francis Luta *'' Clapboard Jungle'' — Justin McConnell *'' The Cuban'' — Sergio Navarretta *''Hazy Little Thing'' — Sam Coyle *''A Perfect Plan'' — Jesse Ikeman *'' Queen of the Morning Calm'' — Gloria Ui Young Kim *''

Shoot to Marry ''Shoot to Marry'' is a 2020 Canadian documentary film, directed by Steve Markle.Chris Salce"Shoot to Marry" ''Film Threat'', June 9, 2020. The film centres on Markle's interviews with women he has called under the pretext of making a documentary ...

'' —

Steve Markle Steve Markle is a Canadian filmmaker, actor, writer, editor and producer best known for '' Shoot To Marry'' (2020), ''Testees'' (2008), and ''Camp Hollywood'' (2004). Markle won a Gemini Award for his documentary ''Camp Hollywood'' in 2005, and w ...

*'' Volition'' — Tony Dean Smith

Shorts

Unscreened

Several films had been planned for the festival lineup, but were not able to be screened due to the shift from physical to broadcast screening. However, the films were still screened for the jury, and remained eligible for the festival awards. *''All About Who You Know'' — Jake Horowitz *''Nail in the Coffin: The Fall and Rise of Vampiro'' — Michael Paszt *''Unidentified Woman'' — Katrina Saville *''You Hired a Hitman'' — Ravi Steve

Awards

2021

Features

*'' Between Waves'' — Virginia AbramovichLiam Lacey
"The Canadian Film Festival: Films by emerging Canadian filmmakers find a second-time-around pandemic home on Super Channel"
''Original Cin'', April 1, 2021. *'' Chained'' —

Titus Heckel Titus Heckel is a Canadian film director and screenwriter from Vancouver, British Columbia. He is most noted for his 2020 film ''Chained (2020 film), Chained'', for which he received three Vancouver Film Critics Circle award nominations at the Vanc ...

*'' The Corruption of Divine Providence'' — Jeremy Torrie *'' Events Transpiring Before, During and After a High School Basketball Game'' — Ted Stenson *'' Mad Dog and the Butcher (Les Derniers vilains)'' — Thomas Rinfret *'' Range Roads'' — Kyle Thomas *''

Sugar Daddy Sugar dating or sugaring is an interpersonal relationship where one person receives money or gifts in exchange for intimacy or companionship. The provider (called a sugar daddy or sugar mommy) is typically older and wealthier, while the recipi ...

'' — Wendy Morgan *''White Elephant'' — Andrew Chung *'' Woman in Car'' — Vanya Rose

Shorts

Awards

2022

Features

*'' Ashgrove'' — Jeremy LaLonde *'' Beneath the Surface (Le Lac des hommes)'' — Marie-Geneviève Chabot *''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the O ...

'' — Valerie Buhagiar *'' The Last Mark'' — Reem Morsi *''The Long Rider'' —

Sean Cisterna Sean Cisterna is a Canadian film director and producer from Orillia, Ontario, most noted for his 2019 film ''From the Vine''.Barry Hertz, "From the Vine is worth sipping, if only for Joe Pantoliano's drunk-on-life performance". ''The Globe and Mail ...

*'' The Noise of Engines (Le Bruit des moteurs)'' — Philippe Grégoire *'' A Small Fortune'' — Adam Perry *'' Tehranto'' — Faran Moradi *''

Tenzin Tenzin () is a Tibetan name, Tibetan given name, meaning "the holder of Buddha Dharma". Tenzin can alternatively be spelled as Tenzing and Stanzin as well. Stanzin is generally used by the Ladakh, Ladakhi people, since Ladakhi language retains man ...

'' — Michael LeBlanc, Josh Reichmann *'' We're All in This Together'' — Katie Boland

Shorts

Awards

2023

Features

*''

Babysitter Babysitting is temporarily caring for a child. Babysitting can be a paid job for all ages; however, it is best known as a temporary activity for early teenagers who are not yet eligible for employment in the general economy. It provides auto ...

'' — Monia Chokri *'' Bloom (Jouvencelles)'' — Fanie Pelletier *''Bystanders'' — Koumbie *''

Golden Delicious Golden Delicious is a cultivar of apple. It is one of the 15 most popular apple cultivars in the United States. It is not closely related to Red Delicious. History Golden Delicious arose from a chance seedling, possibly a hybrid of Grimes ...

'' — Jason Karman *'' How to Get Your Parents to Divorce (Pas d'chicane dans ma cabane!)'' — Sandrine Brodeur-Desrosiers *'' Polarized'' —

Shamim Sarif Shamim Sarif (born 24 September 1969) is a British novelist, screenwriter, and film director of South Asian and South African heritage. Sarif is best known for her work in writing and directing films with themes that often explore issues of ide ...

*'' Retrograde'' — Adrian Murray *'' Streams Flow from a River'' — Christopher Yip *'' When Time Got Louder'' — Connie Cocchia *''Wintertide'' — John Barnard

Shorts

Awards

2024

Features

*'' The Burning Season'' — Sean Garrity *'' Daughter of the Sun'' — Ryan Ward *'' Doubles'' —

Ian Harnarine Ian Harnarine is a Canadians, Canadian film director and screenwriter.

*'' Hailey Rose'' — Sandi Somers *'' Kite Zo A: Leave the Bones'' — Kaveh Nabatian *'' Look at Me'' — Taylor Olson *''Place of Bones'' — Audrey Cummings *'' Valley of Exile'' — Anna Fahr *'' WaaPaKe'' — Jules Arita Koostachin *'' With Love and a Major Organ'' — Kim Albright *'' Wild Goat Surf'' — Caitlyn Sponheimer

Shorts

Awards

2025

Features

*''Conceiving Clara'' — Tarique Qayumi *''Crocodile Eyes'' —

Ingrid Veninger Ingrid Veninger (born August 21, 1968) is a Canadian actress, writer, director, producer, and film professor at York University. Veninger began her career in show business as a child actor in commercials and on television; as a teen, she was fea ...

*'' Darkest Miriam'' — Naomi Jaye *''Gold Bars: Who the Fuck Is Uncle Ludwig?'' — Billie Mintz *''His Father's Son'' — Meelad Moaphi *'' Home Free'' — Avi Federgreen *''The Killgrin'' — Joanna Tsanis *''Larry (They/Them)'' — Catherine Legault *''The Legacy of Cloudy Falls'' — Nick Butler *''Lunatic: The Luna Vachon Story'' — Kate Kroll *''The Players'' — Sarah Galea-Davis *''Please, After You'' — Rob Michaels *'' Skeet'' —

Nik Sexton Nicholas Carlo Herbert Sexton (born March 1980) is a Canada, Canadian film and television director from Newfoundland and Labrador.Conor McCann"Love, death and COVID-19: How a mother and son honoured their family with a new documentary" CBC News ...

*'' To the Moon'' — Kevin Hartford *''Vampire Zombies...from Space!'' — Michael Stasko *''Waiting for the Storms (Le Temps)'' — François Delisle

Shorts

Awards

Gallery

CFF Icon.png, Old logo before the name change

References

{{Reflist

External links

Canadian Film Festival
Film festivals in Toronto Film festivals established in 2004 2004 establishments in Canada