Films & Events

This programme features one short film, A PLACE TO HOPE, and one feature film, MONARCA DE NORTE A SUR/MONARCA FROM NORTH TO SOUTH. About A PLACE TO HOPE: In southern Ontario, a newly opened shelter becomes a beacon of hope for refugee families fleeing war, persecution, and violence. Founded by Maria, a Colombian refugee who arrived over two decades ago, this home offers more than just food and accommodation — it provides guidance, dignity, and a path toward rebuilding a life. As families arrive seeking safety, the shelter faces a critical challenge: surviving on donations and fundraising events to stay open. Through intimate portraits and heart-wrenching testimonies, the film captures the courage and the strength of starting over — and the fierce compassion of one woman determined to give back what once saved her. About MONARCA DE NORTE A SUR/MONARCA FROM NORTH TO SOUTH: This documentary captures the memories, songs, and experiences of twelve Nicaraguan composers who, from San José, Costa Rica, are reconstructing the music scene that repression sought to erase. They are the ones who bring to life the album “Monarca, Memoria Sonora del Exilio”—a collaborative album of songs of resistance, memory, and regional solidarity.

This programme features one short film, CONDENA/DAMNATION, and one feature film, CUERPO CELESTE/CELESTIAL BODY. About CONDENA/DAMNATION: Aureliano, a humble peasant, haunted by guilt and remorse, is driven by his own conscience to confront those who, because of his passivity, have taken away from him not only everything he owned, but also his dignity and his self-respect. About CUERPO CELESTE/CELESTIAL BODY: Celeste is a carefree 15-year-old coming of age after the fall of Pinochet when her life changes drastically and unexpectedly. Now, the desert and oceanside she once embraced feels alien. In an uncertain nation going through a transition of its own, Celeste is thrust into an adult world where she must grow up faster than she could have ever imagined.

This programme features a Narrative text by Analía Rubbiani, and one feature film, LA INVENCIÓN DE LAS ESPECIES/THE INVENTION OF SPECIES. About LA INVENCIÓN DE LAS ESPECIES/THE INVENTION OF SPECIES: Carla arrives in the Galapagos with her father, an expert biologist in turtle conservation. As he talks about raising endangered species, she faces the risks of her own species. Like the iguanas, which to survive mutated into sea creatures, Carla will transform into an Island and learn to cling to the stone, dive and wait.

This programme features one short film, YAYA, and one feature film, MOSCAS/FILES. About Yaya: A collection of heartfelt vignettes, Yaya follows the journey of love and connection between a boy and his grandma as they navigate the challenges of staying close, transcending continents and culture. About Moscas/Files: Olga lives a strictly regulated life without attachments in a vast apartment block. When out of financial necessity she rents a room in her apartment to a man who also sneaks-in his nine-year-old son, an unlikely bond forms. Her carefully controlled world begins to shift, and their lives become intertwined against her will.

This programme features one short film, COMANDATA ROMANA, and one feature film, NI-NAADAMAADIZ: RED POWER RISING. About NI-NAADAMAADIZ: RED POWER RISING: Despite it lasting 90 days in 1974, there is only eight minutes of footage about an Indigenous youth-led armed occupation in Kenora, Ontario. The documentary Ni-Naadamaadiz: Red Power Rising tells that story of Indigenous resilience and power.

This programme features one short film, FRIED FISH AND PLANTAIN, and one feature film, SOÑÉ SU NOMBRE/I DREAMED HIS NAME. Thirty years after his forced disappearance, the filmmaker’s Afro Colombian father comes to her in a dream, asking her to find him. With her sister, she sets out on a journey of discovery across Colombia’s painful history, reconnecting with their father and his activism.