Each of these films reflect on the concept of barriers, whether they be physical, interpersonal or social. This program deals with ideas of accessibility, cultural difference and overcoming adversity. We all experience barriers in our own lives, and sometimes the barriers we face are similar to barriers others face, and sometimes they are different. By celebrating, reflecting, and overcoming barriers, the films in this program teach us how to understand others as well as ourselves.
A film created to show the complicated commute from a corner of the Kahnawake Reserve to Dawson College in Montreal.
Kanerahtens lives on Kahnawake Reserve and attends Dawson College in Montreal. He plays lacrosse and has made several videos.
A 1970s slice-of-life short film that follows a young boy and his mother as they work through the challenges they face as Portuguese Canadians.
Kayla Resendes is an award-winning filmmaker, and recent graduate from Ryerson University’s Film Studies program. With credits as a writer, director, and producer, she aims to tell stories that deeply examine human relationships at their core. These stories often embody themes of isolation, love, and innocence.
Floyd is 19 and fearless. His physical disability doesn’t stop him from being a strong leader – he’s the captain of his school’s ball hockey team. Over the course of a day, Floyd gives us his take on life, death, and what it means to live in his body.
After obtaining a bachelor’s degree in Communication (Cinema), Pierre-Yves Beaulieu began working in multimedia. He lived for several years as a curious digital nomad roaming Europe and Asia. The long journeys and the people he met along the way have inspired him to purusue his dream of making documentary films.
A man who lives alone on his island goes on an unknown journey caused by a rising ocean. After witnessing a catastrophe on the way, he finds hope again with other people.
Numan Ayaz was born in Ankara, Turkey in 1993. His creative interests led him to study art in Ankara High school of Fine Art and Industrial Design in Marmara University. Numan lives and works in fields such as art, design, animation and music.
Milk is a short comedy about communication. Vicki buys milk and finds that telling her grandmother is the hardest part.
Winnifred Jong is a Toronto-based filmmaker and is an alumna of Women in the Director’s Chair (WIDC) and Ryerson University.
Laurie is an artist who wants nothing more than to become a professional painter. She paints beautiful fish but when her paintings don’t sell, she is overwhelmed by the rejection and the feeling that she will never be successful. Losing her sense of self and artistic voice, this is when things get fishy.
Coming from a background in performing arts and dance, Maxime Beauchamp is a proud French Canadian from eastern Ottawa. Visual story telling is his passion, allowing him to direct multiple short films featuring a diversity of artists.
A young girl feels self-conscious about wearing her a hijab at her new school.
Danielle Naassana is a writer and filmmaker based in Brooklyn, New York.
