VIFF’s world premieres take in the highly anticipated three-part mini-series ‘Reclaim My Skin,’ by Marie Clements The 45th edition of Canada’s Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) opens Oct. 1 with “The Debut,” Jesse Eisenberg’s offbeat comedy about community theater starring Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti. VIFF closing night film is Martin McDonagh’s “Wild Horse Nine,” a black comedy set in the run-up to the 1973 Chilean coup and following CIA operatives played by John Malkovich and Sam Rockwell. One of Canada’s key film events now in the process of vigorous growth, VIFF has also unveiled its full slate of 162 features, including 12 world premieres, six international debuts, 15 North American bows and 49 Canada first screenings — alongside 91 short films and two episodic series, representing titles in all from 76 countries.
Cristian Mungiu‘s Cannes Palme d’Or winner “Fjord,” Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “All of a Sudden,” Kore-eda Hirokazu’s “Look Back” and Lee Chang-dong’s “Possible Love” feature Tony Gilroy’s “Behemoth!” and Alex Huston Fischer and Eleanor Wilson’s “Wicker” will receive their Canadian premieres, alongside Markus Schleinzer‘s “Rose.” Other notable titles include Pedro Almodóvar’s “Bitter Christmas,” Peter Farrelly’s underdog story “I Play Rocky,” and Jordan Firstman’s Cannes breakout “Club Kid,” about an underground party promoter who discovers he has a kid—a role Firstman also plays. This year’s selections, according to VIFF Director of Programming Curtis Woloschuk, lean into the anxiety of the moment. That reverberates in both the narratives and the documentaries in the program.” The theme, he says, arose organically while combing through submissions.
He points to a cluster of films dealing with housing and economic uncertainty as well as gentrification: Clio Barnard’s “I See Buildings Fall Like Lightning,” John Wilson’s “The History of Concrete,” Noah Segan’s “The Only Living Pickpocket in New York,” and the Austrian entry “The Loneliest Man in Town.” Several films are told from the perspective of the labor class, such as Radu Jude’s “Diary of a Chambermaid” and Xu Zao’s “Light Pillar,” a Chinese animated film about a custodian at a largely abandoned movie studio who escapes into (live action) VR. Meanwhile, “I Understand Your Displeasure,” part of the festival’s New German Cinema section, follows immigrants working as janitors in Berlin. That undercurrent is also felt, explains Woloschuk, when it comes to a trio of documentaries he refers to as the ‘unofficial triptych of Canadian icons’: “Run Terry Run,” on Terry Fox’s legacy, Adrian Buitenhuis’s “Man in Motion: The Rick Hansen Story,” and Matthew Rankin’s “Ladies and Gentlemen, Brian Mulroney.” Woloschuk points to present-day tariff disputes and debates over Canadian identity: “Sometimes another wrinkle in the headlines can suddenly take on greater significance.” With more than 50 nonfiction features, including world premieres from B.C. filmmakers Joella Cabalu (“First Comes Love: Nakabingwit”) and David Ehrenreich (“Relax, Open Your Eyes”), VIFF is positioning itself as Canada’s second-largest documentary festival.
Woloschuk links the documentary push to the broader media landscape. I do think nonfiction films have this urgency embedded in them… they speak to the world that we inhabit, but also speak with a great sense of purpose.” The festival’s Institute for the Moving Image, established earlier this year, will run its VIFF Industry and Amp Music in Media Summit programs Oct. 3-8 under the theme “Uncertainty as a Creative Force” – a title its director Ana Belén Asfura says was chosen to capture not just political uncertainty but “profound” technological upheaval across the industry. This year, Asfura adds, the goal is deepening those international ties: “We’re creating a space where local talent can develop their craft while becoming part of a global network of artists, industry leaders and opportunities, ensuring that VIFF is not only celebrating cinema, but also helping shape its future.” Woloschuk sees the idea of community as an answer to uncertainty as something that runs through the festival at large.
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