Dating-app impersonation, a mother’s video from the grave and and a goth-metal sister who seems possessed were among the subjects of the films at NewFilmmakers Los Angeles’ recent festival as NFMLA hosted a special InFocus: Canadian Cinema program.
The July festival spotlighted independent Canadian storytellers with support from Telefilm Canada, the Québec Government Office in Los Angeles, ACTRA Toronto, with community partnership with longstanding partner, the Consulate General of Canada in Los Angeles. The day also featured July Shorts, a selection of highlights from NFMLA’s ongoing programming, and the Los Angeles premiere of director Noree Victoria’s debut feature, An Arrangement.
The day’s programming began with July Shorts, a selection of short comedy, drama and horror films that delight, challenge, provoke thought, and portray complicated human connections.
The afternoon continued with InFocus: Canadian Cinema, a collection of works by emerging Canadian filmmakers, which explored fighting inner battles, summoning romantic courage, going through loss, confronting harm, and finding one’s voice.
The evening concluded with the Los Angeles premiere of director An Arrangement, a multi-layered and modern psychological thriller. It had its world premiere at Santa Barbara Film Festival and offers its audience ample room for self-examination and reflection. “An Arrangement is a story about what happens when we flatten our lives to fit into metaphorical boxes with moral and physical boundaries defined by others,” Victoria explained.
NFMLA showcases films by filmmakers of all backgrounds throughout the year, across both general and InFocus programming. All filmmakers are welcome and encouraged to submit their projects for consideration for upcoming NFMLA Festivals, regardless of the schedule for InFocus programming, which celebrates representation by spotlighting various communities of filmmakers as part of the NFMLA Monthly Film Festival. The project is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.
“The Colour of My Room” directed by Jake Alden Falconer
About Jake: As an independent film producer, Jake has worked with filmmakers and writers including Julian Fellowes, Isabel Allende and Brady Corbet and actors like Harvey Keitel, Sonia Braga, and Haley Lu Richardson. He also produced the horror film 1 BR (2020), which premiered at Fantasia Festival, and went on to hold the No. 1 position on Netflix USA. Before then, he was assistant to the producer on Paul Schrader’s Oscar-nominated First Reformed (2017), in which he also acted. After directing music videos and shorts featured in Vice magazine, Dazed & Confused, i-D and Clash, Jake in 2023 won The Pitch Film Fund national competition to make his first funded short film, “Alice” (2024), which he followed up with “The Colour of My Room” (2024) which played at BAFTA and BIFA qualifying festivals. He has written on film and music for The Independent newspaper. He studied at the University of Cambridge and Harvard University, under the tutelage of Canadian auteur Guy Maddin.
About “The Colour of My Room”: When Sylvie’s best friend comes to visit her on the coast, it exposes just how far the gulf between their lives has grown.
Watch the NFMLA interview with Jake Alden Falconer, director and writer of “The Colour of My Room”:
“Something’s Phishy” directed by Chase Lo
About Chase: Chase Lo (they/them) is a queer nonbinary actor, writer, and director working across Toronto, Montreal, and Taipei. Their directorial debut, “Something’s Phishy,” which they co-wrote and starred in, won outACTRAto’s Queer Your Stories Pitch and premiered at the 2024 InsideOut 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival. They are currently in the Reelworld Screen Institute’s Emerging 20 Program, developing their first feature film, Glimmer — a neo-noir dark comedy about a people-pleasing banker who enters the world of sex work and becomes a vigilante when a friend disappears. As an actor, Chase voices Okul in Ubisoft’s Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora.
About “Something’s Phishy”: Bex impersonates her heartbroken bestie, Danny, on a dating app to prove their irresistibility but this backfires, causing chaos.
Watch the NFMLA interview with Chase Lo, director and writer of “Something’s Phishy”:
“Strangers” directed by Leah Doz
About Leah: Leah Doz is an emerging Canadian filmmaker. “Strangers” is her first auteur short and won the Grand Jury Prize and Future of Film is Female Prize at Brooklyn’s Nitehawk Shorts Festival. Her short “Tips” was licensed for broadcast in Canada. She is a graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada, and has worked internationally as an award-winning stage and screen actor, including in the Sundance and SXSW 2025 Official Selection Dead Lover. She is a fellow of Canada’s Black Screen Office, Reelworld Screen Institute, and Women in the Director’s Chair, and is developing her first feature with support from the Canada Council for the Arts.
About “Strangers”: After missing their bus on a cold winter night, a young girl confronts the limits of her mother’s love.
Watch the NFMLA interview with Leah Doz, the director, writer, and producer of “Strangers”:
“Clementine” directed by Beth Evans
About Beth: Beth Evans is a filmmaker from just north of Toronto, Canada. She launched her production company, Windrun Media, mid-pandemic, with her award-winning short film “The Bubble.” She followed that with 2022’s “Going Away Party,” which is currently streaming on CBC Gem. That same year, Beth produced her first feature film, Banned, for director Reem Morsi, through the Telefilm Talent to Watch Program. In 2024, Beth directed and co-produced her third short, “Clementine,” which had its L.A. premiere at NewFilmmakers. Beth’s “Unit 303” premiered in June at Dances with Films.
About “Clementine”: In the wake of a shocking discovery, Clementine and her Fairy God Person, Donnie, set out to confront her lifelong battle with bulimia.
Watch the NFMLA interview with Beth Evans, director and producer of “Clementine”:
“One Day” directed by Yazmeen Kanji
About Yazmeen: Yazmeen Kanji is a Muslim Indo-Caribbean filmmaker, the former Advocacy and Outreach Lead at BIPOC TV & Film, as well as the founder of Films With A Cause — a consultancy for authentic storytelling practices.
About “One Day”: An Indo-Caribbean Muslim teen escapes into daydreams to find her voice — until an unexpected classmate dares her to face her fears in real life.
Watch the NFMLA interview with Yazmeen Kanji, director and writer of “One Day”:
“The Pleasure Is All Mine” directed by Vanessa Sandre
About Vanessa: Vanessa Sandre is a Brazilian filmmaker based in Toronto. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Film and a Master’s degree in Literature focused on Women and Gender Studies. Vanessa has cultivated a diverse career as a screenwriter, director, producer, and performer for the last 15 years. As a Latina immigrant and artist, she finds inspiration in crafting narratives that amplify underrepresented voices through a decolonial and intersectional feminist lens. The 2023 short “The Pleasure is All Mine (O Prazer é Todo Me)” addresses the taboo subject of female sexuality in old age. Filmed in Brazil, it has been selected for over 40 film festivals worldwide and received 30 awards.
About “The Pleasure Is All Mine”: When 76-year-old Amélia realizes she has never had an orgasm in her life, she becomes determined to have one at any cost.
Watch the NFMLA interview with Vanessa Sandre, the director, writer and producer of “The Pleasure Is All Mine”:
“The Other Stuff” directed by Bernard Gray
About Bernard: For more than twelve years, Bernard Gray has been a standout figure in the agency and production industry, consistently producing exceptional work for some of the world’s biggest brands like Samsung, Nike, Roots and the NBA. Now, in his role as a writer/director, he is shaping his legacy by creating compelling stories that captivate audiences. With a portfolio that continues to grow, Bernard has proven himself as a master storyteller. His genuine curiosity and unquenchable thirst for raw authenticity drive him, and his commitment to powerful storytelling and original characters has positioned him among the future filmmakers to watch out for.
About “The Other Stuff”: After a breakthrough moment during couples therapy, Winston, a 30-year-old Black man, must confront his uncle about their abusive relationship.
Watch the NFMLA interview with Bernard Gray, director and writer of “The Other Stuff”:
“Hey Kiddo” directed by Melissa Kong
About Melissa: Melissa is a comedy writer-director who wears her heart on the page and probably a food stain on her shirt. She grew up watching The Golden Girls with her mom and WWF wrestling matches with her dad, so it’s no wonder her writing is filled with humor, heart, and showmanship. She’s a fellow in the Fox Entertainment Writers 2025 Incubator. Currently, she’s a writers’ PA on a new Netflix TV series. Directing highlights include “Don’t Worry About It” (Slamdance Film Festival) and “Hey Kiddo” (Austin Asian American Film Festival). Writing highlights include Wonderful World (CAPE List, WIF x Black List finalist, Nicholl quarterfinalist) and “Don’t Worry About It” (Disability List, Nicholl Fellowship top 15%). She earned her MFA in Writing for the Screen & Stage from Northwestern University, studied abroad in London at LAMDA, and is a graduate of iO and Second City.
About “Hey Kiddo”: When a teenage girl stumbles upon a video that her dying mother left behind for her, she discovers something truly unexpected.
Watch the NFMLA interview with Melissa Kong, the Director and Writer of “Hey Kiddo”:
“An Arrangement,” directed by Noree Victoria
About Noree: Noree Victoria is an actor, writer, and filmmaker. Upon earning BA Degrees in Writing and Biology, and an MS degree in Information Technology, she began her journey as a multi-hyphenate creator. Noree won the Best Actress award at AMTC, landing a scholarship to the New York Conservatory for the Dramatic Arts and continuing her training at the British American Drama Academy and the New York Film Academy for filmmaking. Noree has also completed a Master Certificate in Screenwriting. Her first screenplay is currently optioned. She has appeared in various award-winning television shows, including FX’s The People vs. O.J. Simpson, and is currently expanding her exploration of the human condition as a part-time PhD student, working toward her doctorate in Psychology.
About “An Arrangement”: A gubernatorial candidate, his drug-addicted wife, and their unconventional nurse make deadly arrangements with the truth.
Watch the NFMLA interview with Noree Victoria the Director of “An Arrangement”:
“Deadly Duels XII” directed by Justine Beed
About Justine: Justine Beed is a writer-director born in Washington D.C. and raised in seven cities around the world. After graduating from Stanford University with a degree in Anthropology she moved to L.A. — both the strangest and most familiar place she’s ever lived. She’s worked for filmmakers, podcasters, and 8-year-olds, and recently completed her MFA in Production at USC. Her screenplays and short films are all feminist, genre-bending coming-of-age stories about the power of cross-cultural connection. Her work has been recognized by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the Museum of the Moving Image, the Athena Film Festival, Overlook Film Festival, and TIFF.
About “Deadly Duels XII”: A deeply religious kid suspects that his metalhead sister is possessed and goes to extreme lengths to save her.
Watch the NFMLA interview with Justine Beed, the Director of “Deadly Duels XII”:
“Halfway” directed by Nick J. Browne
About Nick: Nick Browne is a New York City-based director, producer, and educator committed to new play development, elevating underserved voices, and expanding the boundaries of American theater. They were recently the SDCF Directing Observer for Swept Away on Broadway, collaborating with Michael Mayer and Johanna McKeon. Nick’s directing work is known for its dynamic use of movement and ensemble-based storytelling, often merging realism with heightened theatrical forms such as puppetry, ensemble work, dance, live music, and mask work.
About “Halfway”: Two women find themselves trapped in a world between life and death, forced to turn to each other to find a way out.
Watch the NFMLA interview with Izzy Marinucci, the Writer of “Halfway”:
Main image: “One Day.” NFMLA