programming alert
September 22, 2025
TIFF Lightbox October 2025 Programming Highlights
Picture of Light (1994)
TORONTO — This October, TIFF celebrates the visionaries who have shaped Canadian film culture, welcoming a lineup of stellar guests, special events, plus TIFF Cinematheque series and Halloween programming. Hot off the TIFF 50 World Premiere of While the Green Grass Grows: A Diary in Seven Parts, a retrospective on the experimental works of Peter Mettler will be featured in Nothing But Time: The Films of Peter Mettler with guest curator José Teodoro, author of the forthcoming book Nothing But Time: Conversations with Peter Mettler on Life and Cinemaopen_in_new. A further major retrospective on multi-disciplinary artist and filmmaker Joyce Wieland (1930–1998) will be presented in Jigs and Reels: The Complete Films of Joyce Wieland.
Additional series and special events taking place at the Lightbox this season include: In Conversation With… Charlie Mackesy, a Canada-exclusive event for the launch of the British author’s Always Remember: The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, the Horse and the Storm — his highly anticipated follow-up to the global bestseller The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse; a behind-the-scenes spotlight on a trio of Wes Anderson’s films in Wes Anderson, Made in Babelsberg; a series on the rapidly changing political and social climates of the 1970s in Europe in Eurovisions: Psychedelic Fairy Tales with guest curator Alicia Fletcher; and TIFF and Undivided Productions co-present a free short film showcase by Deaf creators.
TIFF will also honour John Candy (1950–1994) on what would’ve been his 75th birthday, with a special screening of Planes, Trains and Automobiles and conversation between author Paul Myers and actor Mike Myers. TIFF’s Film Reference Library will showcase its John Candy collectionopen_in_new, on display October 3, 2025 – March 1, 2026, during library open hours in the CIBC Canadian Film Gallery. Admission is free to the public.
TIFF Lightbox is the place to be for a frightfully fun Halloween! The spooky season kicks off with the classic Bride of Frankenstein from director James Whale on October 12, as part of the TIFF Family Films series; TIFF Next Wave Presents Ti West’s X with the Final Girls Film Clubopen_in_new on October 28; plus Midnight Madness brings the scares with a showing of Umberto Lenzi's Nightmare City. On Halloween night, get ready for a different kind of bird-watching with a special presentation of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds, on October 31, followed by a discussion with local ornithologist and former Collections Specialist at the Royal Ontario Museum Mark Peck.
Look out for returning Festival favourites like Frankenstein (on 35mm!), Peak Everything, Eleanor the Great, and an exciting lineup of New Releases including The History of Sound, A House of Dynamite, Plainclothes, and more coming to the Lightbox this fall.
Secret Movie Club supported by Lavazza, returns for the 2025–2026 season starting October 14, with screenings on select Tuesday evenings. What’s showing? That’s the secret. This popular series delights audiences with a curated lineup, from Festival favourites and crowd-pleasers to small-budget indies and hidden gems. This season’s hosts are Robyn Citizen (Director of Programming, Festival & Cinematheque), Peter Kuplowsky (Lead Programmer, Midnight Madness; International Programmer, US Indies) and Keith Bennie (Vice President, Public Programming). Also back for the 2025–2026 season is International Cinema Cafe, supported by Lavazza where guests can enjoy complimentary coffee and pastries while catching the world’s best cinema. This season’s hosts are Kelly Boutsalis (International Programmer, Canadian Features) and Christoph Straub (Director of Public Programming).
Visit tiff.net for up-to-date programming details. Tickets for October programming will be available to TIFF Members on Wednesday, September 24, and to the public on Friday, September 26.
Wes Anderson, Made in Babelsberg
October 2, 15, 21
What happens when America’s most meticulous filmmaker meets Germany’s oldest film studio? Wes Anderson, Made in Babelsberg takes audiences closer to the extraordinary partnership between Wes Anderson and the legendary Studio Babelsberg — now part of Cinespace Studios. Revisit The Grand Budapest Hotel, Isle of Dogs, and The French Dispatch to discover why Anderson keeps returning to this creative powerhouse outside Berlin. With exclusive recorded introductions, an expert panel, a book club and reading room, plus behind-the-scenes footage, the series is a fitting celebration of the artists and craftspeople who realize Wes Anderson’s iconic vision.
Co-presented by the Goethe-Institut, TIFF Cinematheque, and Cinespace Studios x Studio Babelsberg
Eurovisions: Psychedelic Fairy Tales with guest curator Alicia Fletcher
October 3–26
This series draws from the hallucinatory, kaleidoscopic cinematic fairy tales produced in Europe during the psychedelic ’70s and on. Eurovisions presents eight hauntingly ethereal films produced in France, Iceland, former Czechoslovakia, and beyond. Featuring Louis Malle, Jacques Demy, Stanley Donen, and leaders of the Czech New Wave among other visionary directors, the series balances surrealist favourites like Donkey Skin and The Little Prince with lesser-known gems, such as the Björk-starring The Juniper Tree and Karel Kachyňa’s stunning tragedy The Little Mermaid.
Nothing But Time: The Films of Peter Mettler with guest curator José Teodoro
October 4–26
Among auteurs to have emerged in Canada over the last half century, none has forged a body of work as genuinely sui generis as Peter Mettler. Films such as Picture of Light and The End of Time connect seemingly disparate subjects — quantum physics, religious longing, technological wonder — that speak to the labyrinthine nature of the modern world. A subject of retrospectives both locally and internationally, Mettler has also cultivated close creative collaborations with artists and filmmakers such as Atom Egoyan, Robert Lepage, Jennifer Baichwal, Fred Frith, and Jeremy Narby. Mettler’s facility with arresting juxtaposition is encapsulated in his most emblematic film, Gambling, Gods and LSD, and reaches its apotheosis with his latest work, While the Green Grass Grows: A Diary in Seven Parts, a TIFF 50 Official Selection. The retrospective features 10 films, including: Scissere, The Top of His Head, Eastern Avenue, Tectonic Plates, Petropolis: Aerial Perspectives on the Alberta Tar Sands, and Balifilm. Special guests including Egoyan will join Mettler for select Q&As.
Jigs and Reels: The Complete Films of Joyce Wieland
October 20 – November 19
The Art Gallery of Ontario, TIFF Cinematheque, and AD HOC co-present Jigs and Reels: The Complete Films of Joyce Wieland. Showcasing the work of one of Canada’s most prominent and prolific twentieth-century artists, the series includes short films, many of which are presented in 16mm: Barbara’s Blindness, Sailboat, Cat Food, 1933, Rat Life and Diet in North America, Dripping Water, Pierre Vallières, Solidarity, A & B in Ontario, Birds at Sunrise, La raison avant la passion /Reason over Passion and The Far Shore. The retrospective is curated by Jim Shedden, Curator, Special Projects & Director, Publishing, AGO and Georgiana Uhlyarik, Fredrik S. Eaton Curator of Canadian Art, AGO.
Jigs and Reels: The Complete Films of Joyce Wieland is curated by Jim Shedden and Georgiana Uhlyarik and co-presented by the Art Gallery of Ontario, TIFF Cinematheque, and AD HOC, alongside the exhibition Joyce Wieland: Heart Onopen_in_new currently on view at the AGO.
From the Collection with Cameron Bailey
TIFF Wavelengths Presents
TIFF Family Films
See the North presented by MUBI
MDFF Selects
TIFF Next Wave Presents
Midnight Madness Presents
Additional series and special events taking place at the Lightbox this season include: In Conversation With… Charlie Mackesy, a Canada-exclusive event for the launch of the British author’s Always Remember: The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, the Horse and the Storm — his highly anticipated follow-up to the global bestseller The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse; a behind-the-scenes spotlight on a trio of Wes Anderson’s films in Wes Anderson, Made in Babelsberg; a series on the rapidly changing political and social climates of the 1970s in Europe in Eurovisions: Psychedelic Fairy Tales with guest curator Alicia Fletcher; and TIFF and Undivided Productions co-present a free short film showcase by Deaf creators.
TIFF will also honour John Candy (1950–1994) on what would’ve been his 75th birthday, with a special screening of Planes, Trains and Automobiles and conversation between author Paul Myers and actor Mike Myers. TIFF’s Film Reference Library will showcase its John Candy collectionopen_in_new, on display October 3, 2025 – March 1, 2026, during library open hours in the CIBC Canadian Film Gallery. Admission is free to the public.
TIFF Lightbox is the place to be for a frightfully fun Halloween! The spooky season kicks off with the classic Bride of Frankenstein from director James Whale on October 12, as part of the TIFF Family Films series; TIFF Next Wave Presents Ti West’s X with the Final Girls Film Clubopen_in_new on October 28; plus Midnight Madness brings the scares with a showing of Umberto Lenzi's Nightmare City. On Halloween night, get ready for a different kind of bird-watching with a special presentation of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds, on October 31, followed by a discussion with local ornithologist and former Collections Specialist at the Royal Ontario Museum Mark Peck.
Look out for returning Festival favourites like Frankenstein (on 35mm!), Peak Everything, Eleanor the Great, and an exciting lineup of New Releases including The History of Sound, A House of Dynamite, Plainclothes, and more coming to the Lightbox this fall.
Secret Movie Club supported by Lavazza, returns for the 2025–2026 season starting October 14, with screenings on select Tuesday evenings. What’s showing? That’s the secret. This popular series delights audiences with a curated lineup, from Festival favourites and crowd-pleasers to small-budget indies and hidden gems. This season’s hosts are Robyn Citizen (Director of Programming, Festival & Cinematheque), Peter Kuplowsky (Lead Programmer, Midnight Madness; International Programmer, US Indies) and Keith Bennie (Vice President, Public Programming). Also back for the 2025–2026 season is International Cinema Cafe, supported by Lavazza where guests can enjoy complimentary coffee and pastries while catching the world’s best cinema. This season’s hosts are Kelly Boutsalis (International Programmer, Canadian Features) and Christoph Straub (Director of Public Programming).
Visit tiff.net for up-to-date programming details. Tickets for October programming will be available to TIFF Members on Wednesday, September 24, and to the public on Friday, September 26.
OCTOBER HIGHLIGHTS
TIFF CinemathequeWes Anderson, Made in Babelsberg
October 2, 15, 21
What happens when America’s most meticulous filmmaker meets Germany’s oldest film studio? Wes Anderson, Made in Babelsberg takes audiences closer to the extraordinary partnership between Wes Anderson and the legendary Studio Babelsberg — now part of Cinespace Studios. Revisit The Grand Budapest Hotel, Isle of Dogs, and The French Dispatch to discover why Anderson keeps returning to this creative powerhouse outside Berlin. With exclusive recorded introductions, an expert panel, a book club and reading room, plus behind-the-scenes footage, the series is a fitting celebration of the artists and craftspeople who realize Wes Anderson’s iconic vision.
Co-presented by the Goethe-Institut, TIFF Cinematheque, and Cinespace Studios x Studio Babelsberg
Eurovisions: Psychedelic Fairy Tales with guest curator Alicia Fletcher
October 3–26
This series draws from the hallucinatory, kaleidoscopic cinematic fairy tales produced in Europe during the psychedelic ’70s and on. Eurovisions presents eight hauntingly ethereal films produced in France, Iceland, former Czechoslovakia, and beyond. Featuring Louis Malle, Jacques Demy, Stanley Donen, and leaders of the Czech New Wave among other visionary directors, the series balances surrealist favourites like Donkey Skin and The Little Prince with lesser-known gems, such as the Björk-starring The Juniper Tree and Karel Kachyňa’s stunning tragedy The Little Mermaid.
Nothing But Time: The Films of Peter Mettler with guest curator José Teodoro
October 4–26
Among auteurs to have emerged in Canada over the last half century, none has forged a body of work as genuinely sui generis as Peter Mettler. Films such as Picture of Light and The End of Time connect seemingly disparate subjects — quantum physics, religious longing, technological wonder — that speak to the labyrinthine nature of the modern world. A subject of retrospectives both locally and internationally, Mettler has also cultivated close creative collaborations with artists and filmmakers such as Atom Egoyan, Robert Lepage, Jennifer Baichwal, Fred Frith, and Jeremy Narby. Mettler’s facility with arresting juxtaposition is encapsulated in his most emblematic film, Gambling, Gods and LSD, and reaches its apotheosis with his latest work, While the Green Grass Grows: A Diary in Seven Parts, a TIFF 50 Official Selection. The retrospective features 10 films, including: Scissere, The Top of His Head, Eastern Avenue, Tectonic Plates, Petropolis: Aerial Perspectives on the Alberta Tar Sands, and Balifilm. Special guests including Egoyan will join Mettler for select Q&As.
Jigs and Reels: The Complete Films of Joyce Wieland
October 20 – November 19
The Art Gallery of Ontario, TIFF Cinematheque, and AD HOC co-present Jigs and Reels: The Complete Films of Joyce Wieland. Showcasing the work of one of Canada’s most prominent and prolific twentieth-century artists, the series includes short films, many of which are presented in 16mm: Barbara’s Blindness, Sailboat, Cat Food, 1933, Rat Life and Diet in North America, Dripping Water, Pierre Vallières, Solidarity, A & B in Ontario, Birds at Sunrise, La raison avant la passion /Reason over Passion and The Far Shore. The retrospective is curated by Jim Shedden, Curator, Special Projects & Director, Publishing, AGO and Georgiana Uhlyarik, Fredrik S. Eaton Curator of Canadian Art, AGO.
Jigs and Reels: The Complete Films of Joyce Wieland is curated by Jim Shedden and Georgiana Uhlyarik and co-presented by the Art Gallery of Ontario, TIFF Cinematheque, and AD HOC, alongside the exhibition Joyce Wieland: Heart Onopen_in_new currently on view at the AGO.
From the Collection with Cameron Bailey
- October 7, 6:30pm: Magnificent Obsession (1954) dir. Douglas Sirk
TIFF Wavelengths Presents
- October 8, 7pm: Handmade Autofictions of Lesley Loksi Chan with guest curator Aaditya Aggarwal
TIFF Family Films
- October 12, 3:30pm: Bride of Frankenstein (1935) dir. James Whale
See the North presented by MUBI
- October 14, 6:30pm: Werewolf (2016) dir. Ashley McKenzie, with recorded introduction by the director
MDFF Selects
- October 23, 6pm: Videoheaven (2025) dir. Alex Ross Perry
TIFF Next Wave Presents
- October 28, 6:30pm: X (2022) dir. Ti West, with Final Girls Film Club (35mm print!)
Midnight Madness Presents
- October 30, 6:30pm: Nightmare City (1980) dir. Umberto Lenzi
TIFF Public Programming Spotlight: Special Guests & Signature Events
- October 24 (6pm): Unify Deaf Film Festival 2025: Short Films
Following the inaugural edition of the biennial Unify Deaf Film Festival in 2023, TIFF and Undivided Productions co-present a free screening of five short films by Deaf creators that showcase the richness of Deaf culture. The films include: Beyond Silence, A Love Letter to the Light, Between Signs and Tides, Lip Service: Not Me!, and My Deaf Papa. After the screening, Undivided Productions and the filmmakers join us for a conversation about accessibility, community building, and creative expression. The screening will be presented with open captions. An ASL interpreter will be present for the live onstage components. - October 31 (12pm): Silver Screenings: The Birds (1963) dir. Alfred Hitchcock, with special guest Mark Peck
Join us for a special Halloween screening of Hitchcock’s The Birds, ranked #7 on AFI’s 100 Most Thrilling Films. Prior to the screening, Mark Peckopen_in_new, local ornithologist and former Collections Specialist at the Royal Ontario Museum, will give a short presentation on bird behaviour and birding spots, coinciding with the release of ROM’s new book, A Field Guide to Birds of Ontarioopen_in_new.
This event is co-presented by our Programming Partner the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM). Copies of the book will be available for purchase via TIFF Account Manager or at TIFF Shop, with a signing by Peck after the screening. - November 9 (5:30pm): In Conversation With… Charlie Mackesy
British artist, illustrator, and bestselling author Charlie Mackesy joins us in person for a Canada-exclusive event celebrating the launch of Always Remember: The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, the Horse and the Storm — his highly anticipated follow-up to the global bestseller The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse (2019), the longest-running Sunday Times hardback non-fiction number one of all time. Charlie, who co-wrote and co-directed the BAFTA and Academy Award–winning film adaptation of The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse, will discuss his remarkable journey as an artist, the inspiration behind his illustrations and stories, and the social impact of his work across the globe.
This event is co-presented by our Programming Partner Penguin Random House Canada.