Toronto International Film Festival announced this year’s Short Cuts lineup of 42 live action narrative, documentary, and animated shorts – boasting more than half directed or co-directed by female and female-identifying filmmakers. Stars in this year’s slate of new shorts include Riz Ahmed (DAMMI) and Kaniehtiio Horn (Redlights).
TIFF alumni directors with new films at Short Cuts include Yann Demange, Jasmin Mozaffari, Miryam Charles, Farnoosh Samadi, Halima Ouardiri, Renee Zhan, Andrea Nirmala Widjajanto, and the team of Ivete Lucas and Patrick Bresnan. Among the directors with short films at the Festival for the first time are Malia Ann and Canadian actor Mackenzie Davis.
Animated films in Short Cuts include the North American Premieres of 27, recipient of the Short Film Palme d’Or at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, and Electra, director Daria Kashcheeva’s stunning follow-up to Daughter, an Academy Award nominee for Best Animated Short and a Short Cuts selection in 2019. Three animated shorts at this year’s Festival are This is TMI by India’s Subarna Dash and Vidushi Gupta, Mboa Matanda by Cameroon’s Jules Kalla Eyango, and Aphasia by Canada’s Marielle Dalpé.
Along with remarkable new works by international filmmakers, Short Cuts includes 19 selections by Canadian filmmakers, including World Premieres of films by Marni Van Dyk (This is Not About Swimming), Eva Thomas (Redlights), Karsten Wall (Modern Goose), and Ivan D. Ossa (Express).
“We are thrilled to be able to present such a diverse array of incredible new works by emergent and established film talents from all over the world,” said Short Cuts lead programmer Jason Anderson. “We were knocked out by the level of craft and ingenuity in these films, as well as the boldness displayed by so many filmmakers as they explore subjects and themes that couldn’t be timelier or more personal. That’s especially true of the films we’re grateful to present that are by female and female-identifying filmmakers, which comprise nearly 60 percent of this year’s selection.”
The Toronto International Film Festival takes place September 7–17, 2023.
SHORT CUTS PROGRAMME 1
DAMMI
Yann Mounir Demange | France
North American Premiere
La Perra
Carla Melo Gampert | Colombia/France
North American Premiere
Been There
Corina Schwingruber Ilić | Switzerland
International Premiere
Primetime Mother
Sonny Calvento | Philippines/Singapore
World Premiere
Meteor
Atefeh Khademolreza | Canada
World Premiere
Nun or Never!
Heta Jäälinoja | Finland
North American Premiere
Gaby’s Hills
Zoé Pelchat | Canada
North American Premiere
SHORT CUTS PROGRAMME 2
Fár
Gunnur Martinsdóttir Schlüter | Iceland
North American Premiere
The Skates
Halima Ouardiri | Canada
World Premiere
Bloom
Kasey Lum | Canada
World Premiere
Nada de todo esto
Francisco Cantón, Patricio Martínez | Argentina/Spain/USA
North American Premiere
1001 Nights
Rea Rajčić | Croatia
World Premiere
Redlights
Eva Thomas | Canada
World Premiere
Electra
Daria Kashcheeva | Czech Republic/France/Slovakia
North American Premiere
SHORT CUTS PROGRAMME 3
This is TMI
Subarna Dash, Vidushi Gupta | India
International Premiere
Titanic, Suitable Version for Iranian Families
Farnoosh Samadi | Iran/France
World Premiere
All the Days of May
Miryam Charles | Canada
Canadian Premiere
Bird
Ana Cristina Barragán | Ecuador/Spain
World Premiere
Aftercare
Anubha Momin | Canada
World Premiere
Shé (Snake)
Renee Zhan | United Kingdom
World Premiere
Human Resources
Trinidad Plass Caussade, Titouan Tillier, Isaac Wenzek | France
Canadian Premiere
Making Babies
Eric K. Boulianne | Canada
North American Premiere
SHORT CUTS PROGRAMME 4
Alberto and the Beast
John Paul Lopez-Ali | USA
World Premiere
Mboa Matanda
Jules Kalla Eyango | Cameroon
World Premiere
Mothers and Monsters
Edith Jorisch | Canada
World Premiere
Express
Ivan D. Ossa | Canada
World Premiere
Baigal Nuur – Lake Baikal
Alisi Telengut | Germany/Canada
North American Premiere
The Passing
Ivete Lucas, Patrick Xavier Bresnan | USA
North American Premiere
SHORT CUTS PROGRAMME 5
WOACA
Mackenzie Davis | United Kingdom
World Premiere
A Bird Called Memory
Leonardo Martinelli | Brazil/United Kingdom
North American Premiere
Sawo Matang
Andrea Nirmala Widjajanto | Canada/Indonesia/USA
World Premiere
Aphasia
Marielle Dalpé | Canada
World Premiere
Ever Since, I Have Been Flying
Aylin Gökmen | Switzerland
International Premiere
I Used to Live There
Ryan McKenna | Canada
North American Premiere
This is Not About Swimming
Marni Van Dyk | Canada
World Premiere
SHORT CUTS PROGRAMME 6
27 Flóra
Anna Buda | France/Hungary
North American Premiere
Xie Xie, Ollie
James Michael Chiang | Canada
World Premiere
The Heart
Malia Ann | USA
International Premiere
6 Minutes Per Kilometer
Catherine Boivin | Canada
Toronto Premiere
Modern Goose
Karsten Wall | Canada
World Premiere
Sheephead
Spencer Creigh | USA
International Premiere
Motherland
Jasmin Mozaffari | Canada
World Premiere