The Inside Out Toronto 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival is excited to launch a new initiative under the RE:Focus umbrella: a Residency program designed to support first-time feature filmmakers, particularly those facing intersectional barriers in the film industry.
This initiative operates under the broader mandate of the RE:Focus Fund, which has distributed nearly $300,000 in travel grants, post-production grants, and professional development support since 2018. The fund aims to cultivate diversity within the next generation of 2SLGBTQ+ storytellers.
“The Residency is an exciting next step in the growth of the RE:Focus initiative, building on the impact we’ve already made through travel grants and post-production support. By centering women, trans, and non-binary storytellers, especially as they take the crucial step toward a first feature, we aim to remove barriers and expand what is possible for queer filmmakers” — Jenna Dufton, Festival Director
This six-month program supports filmmakers in the development stage, helping them move toward pitching and securing funding. By amplifying women, trans, and non-binary voices, the Residency helps ensure that Canada’s screen industries reflect the full range of lived experiences, perspectives, and identities. The program fosters both individual artistic growth and broader systemic change, continuing Inside Out’s commitment to queer storytellers at every stage of their careers.
“Being part of this cohort’s journey from the earliest stages of their projects makes the launch of the Residency particularly meaningful. Through this program, we are investing in filmmakers whose voices we believe are vital not only to Queer cinema but to Canadian and international cinema as a whole.” — Lu Linares, Programming and Industry Manager
During the Residency, participants will take part in a curated schedule of workshops, one-on-one sessions, and conversations with industry leaders. Each filmmaker is paired with a mentor who provides personalized guidance throughout the program.
Participant: Tricia Hagoriles
Writer/Director of The Reunion Tour
Tricia Hagoriles is a Toronto-based Filmmaker. An alum of the Canadian Film Centre’s Director’s Lab, their work includes the award-winning Beat and the CBC x Polaris Prize-commissioned Huwag Mataranta. With over a decade of post-production experience, a healthy addiction to film and tv, and a flair for atmosphere and rhythm, Tricia’s work is visually unique with a twist of humour and whimsy, and is often (very) queer (AF!)
About the Project
Two former friends—whose bond was ignited over music, counter-culture, and newfound queerness—reunite fifteen years after falling out. Now, as very different kinds of queer adults, the two take the chance to reconcile their intense relationship while attempting to fulfill a youthful promise: seeing their favourite band’s last show ever.
Mentor: Michelle Mama
Michelle Mama is an award-winning filmmaker and veteran producer/director with over 200 hours of television. She was Executive Producer of Summer Qamp (TIFF 2023), Canada’s Drag Race and Canada vs The World, and showrunner of CBC’s In the Making. Her work includes Shine True (FUSE/OutTV), praised by The New York Times and Vogue, and Fluid: Beyond the Binary (CBC, 2024) with host Mae Martin. Founder of GAY AGENDA, a company dedicated to queer storytelling, her latest project Queer Elders (w/t) is in production.
Participant: Stephanie Sonny Hooker
Writer/Director of Wrong End of the Rainbow
Stephanie Sonny Hooker is a Toronto filmmaker with Trini and British roots, a love of storytelling, and a big heart for community. As co-founder of Hometeam Films, she champions new voices and meaningful mentorship. She has produced award-winning films, is about to release her directorial debut Nani’s Kitchen, and is developing her first feature, Wrong End of the Rainbow.
About the project
An 80’s, coke-fueled road trip film based on the mostly true story of the director’s parents meeting in Toronto, 1983. It serves as an allegory for Indian indentureship and how we replicate systems of oppression in our most personal relationships.
Mentor: Damon D’Oliveira
Damon D’Oliveira is a veteran producer of some of Canada’s most acclaimed films and television, including Brother, Rude, The Grizzlies, The Book of Negroes and Wildhood. Brother premiered at TIFF 2022, sold to Netflix in the U.S., won 12 Canadian Screen Awards and two NAACP Image Awards. His miniseries The Book of Negroes won 12 CSAs, an NAACP Award and was a Peabody finalist. A member of the Academy, co-founder of Canada’s Black Screen Office and Chair of the CMPA, his latest film Steal Away is in post-production.
Participant: Tala Moetazedi
Writer/Director of The Hoof
Tala Motazedi is a queer Iranian screenwriter and playwright based in Toronto. Born in Tehran, she studied Dramatic Literature at the University of Tehran and later Creative Writing at Humber College. A member of PEN Canada Writers-in-Exile, she was persecuted for her queer identity and activism during the Women, Life, Freedom movement before resettling in Canada in 2023, where her work has been presented at international festivals.
About the project
When you migrate, you bring more than just clothes and memories—you carry demons too. In Toronto, a queer Iranian refugee adopts a rescue cat. But when the cat returns home with a cursed bone, she must unravel the mystery through footage from the cat’s collar camera before a jinn is unleashed.
Mentor: Zarrar Kahn
Zarrar Kahn is a Canadian-Pakistani writer, director and producer. His debut film In Flames premiered at the 76th Cannes Film Festival, where it was nominated for the Camera d’Or, and went on to screen at TIFF, Busan and Sitges. The film was Pakistan’s 2024 Oscar entry and won the CSA John Dunning Best Debut Feature Award, as well as prizes at Mannheim-Heidelberg and Red Sea. An alum of TIFF Talent Lab, Locarno Filmmakers Academy and the CFC Director’s Lab, Kahn is based in Toronto and is represented by UTA.
As part of the program, the cohort gained access to the 9th Inside Out International Finance Forum, including closed-door industry sessions, and will represent Inside Out as the official delegation to the 50th Toronto International Film Festival this September.
A huge thank you to our sponsors Netflix, RBC Royal Bank, and LCBO for their invaluable support in helping Inside Out uplift queer filmmakers through the RE:Focus initiative.