Among the massive concrete block towers of Toronto’s Thorncliffe Park neighborhood, a Syrian doctor struggles to hold on to his cultural identity as his family begins to grow roots in their new community. Working as an unlicensed physician for his neighbors in an attempt to cling to his old identity, tensions rise and begin to threaten his fragile marriage.
Understated cinematography and a patient camera disguise the fraught drama at the heart of Antoine Bourges’ (Fail to Appear) sophomore feature. Bressonian in its approach, employing minimalism, non-professional actors, and a deceptively simple plot, the film blends fact and fiction into a quietly gripping drama with an unshakeable sense of realism. Anchored by the lead performances and a pair of unforgettable scenes in an English as a Second Language class, Bourges crafts a tender portrait that asks if adjusting to a new culture always costs one a piece of their identity.
Q&A Oct 3 & Oct 5
Presented by
Media Partner
Hussam Douhna, Amani Ibrahim, Abdullah Nadaf, Lynn Nantume
Canada
2022
In English and Arabic with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
James McNeill Whistler
One of America’s greatest artists, James McNeill Whistler fashioned his life as a work of art in its own right. James McNeill Whistler looks beyond his famous portraits and self-styled “nocturnes” to dive into the true depths of Whistler’s legacy.
Forest High
High in the northern Alps, three women take turns caring for a mountain lodge as hikers come and go. Divided into three sections, we follow each caretaker as they settle in for their respective season and have their lives touched in different ways.
Image: © The Blue raincoat
Jaripeo
Efraín Mojica and Rebecca Zweig set their sights on Penjamillo, Michoacán, where the annual Jaripeo — a rodeo of bull riding, drinking, and dust that serves as the town’s public theatre of masculinity — becomes a stage for queer desire.
Afterpiece
This wry, twisty theatrical farce stars Stephen Fung as a playwright, actor, and director who writes a play based on his own past. His rich ex-lover wants to co-star, but our hero has found a sexy new actress, and he’s got a plan to get her the part…
Short Forum 6: Archive Lives!
Before anything becomes archival, it’s lived.
Credits
Producer
Shehrezade Mian
Screenwriter
Antoine Bourges, Teyama Alkamli
Cinematography
Nikolay Michaylov
Editor
Lindsay Allikas
Production Design
Amir Kiani
Director
Antoine Bourges
Antoine Bourges is a Paris-born filmmaker currently based between Toronto and Vancouver. He is an alumnus of Berlinale Talents, TIFF Filmmaker lab, and the New York Film Festival’s Artist Academy. His shorts, Woman Waiting (2010) and William in White Shirt (2015), along with his mid-length film East Hastings Pharmacy (2012), have screened at the Berlinale, TIFF, Viennale, Ann Arbor Film Festival, and NY Museum of Moving Images. His first feature, Fail to Appear (2017), was presented at Art of the Real, Cinéma du Réel, and BAFICI, among other festivals. It was released theatrically in Canada in 2018.
Filmography: East Hastings Pharmacy (2012); Fail to Appear (2017)