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- AFCOOP Updates - June 5, 2026
AFCOOP Updates - June 5, 2026
Screenings, events, opportunities, and more!
FORT GARRY LIONS POOL | DIR. RYAN STEEL | FLEAPIT CINEMA/AFCOOP VISITING FILMMAKER | JUNE 12TH | TICKETS BELOW
📽️ Hope everyone got to enjoy some HIFF last week! Visiting filmmakers Ryan Steel and Kalil Haddad (HIFF alums) are in town on Thurs. June 11 for a screening before our in-conversation with them on Friday evening. Details below! | 🌊 Today is your last chance to apply to AIFF & VIFF! 🪢 Upcoming residencies, giveaways, competitions, job opportunities, and community events below! |
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In Conversation with Visiting Filmmakers, Kalil Haddad and Ryan Steel
AFCOOP has partnered with Fleapit Cinema to present an in-conversation with visiting filmmakers and collaborators, Kalil Haddad and Ryan Steel. Coming from Toronto and Winnipeg respectively, these two filmmakers have been carving out a name for themselves in the independent film scene of Canada. | Haddad is an experimental filmmaker that has been drumming up excitement for his radical approach to form and depiction of queer subjectivities that have been interlaced with meditations on gender, class and race. He has made over a dozen short films, and his works appear in the collections of The Film-makers’ Cooperative, Canadian Filmmakers Distribution Centre, and Vtape. Fleapit Cinema is showcasing a double-feature of Ryan and Kalil’s mixtape featuring their early works, “You Sorta Know It’s Gonna End” and “HE NEVER DIES” a program featuring five of Haddad’s recent shorts on June 11th with Ryan and Kalil in-attendance. AFCOOP is hosting the two filmmakers for an in-conversation on DIY filmmaking on Friday, June 12th. Join us in an artist talk with these two inspiring Canadian filmmakers. |
 THE VOICES OF OUR MOTHER |
When a family matriarch falls seriously ill, relatives gather and discover their shared ancestral ties bind them in unexpected ways. Join us for a special filmmaker Q&A screening on Saturday, June 6 at 7:00 PM, featuring a post-screening discussion with writer/director Mark O'Brien. Additional screenings will take place on June 5 and June 11. Ticket Giveaway: AFCOOP is giving away two pairs of tickets to the June 6 Q&A screening. Each winner will receive two tickets so they can bring a guest! First two people to email [email protected] with the film title as the subject line will win the free tickets! |
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EXIT 8
Genki Kawamura | Japan | 2026 | 95m
A man trapped in a endless sterile subway passageway sets out to find Exit 8. The rules of his quest are simple: do not overlook anything out of the ordinary. If you discover an anomaly, turn back immediately. If you don’t, carry on. Then leave from Exit 8. But even a single oversight will send him back to the beginning. Will he ever reach his goal and escape this infinite corridor? . "The movie, which runs ninety-five minutes, is sleek and precise, but, compared with the economy of the source, it’s almost a maximalist affair." - Justin Cheng, The New Yorker . |
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 THE LOVE THAT REMAINS |
Set in the botanical garden of a medieval town in Germany. Three epochs, three personalities, three sometimes clumsy but sincere attempts to free themselves and to create links with the plants and the world of the garden. An encounter. Silent Friend is an epic, awe-inspiring exploration of the natural world. Featuring an ensemble cast that includes Tony Leung, LĂ©a Seydoux and Venice Prize-winning newcomer Luna Wedler, Enyedi crafts a funny, tender meditation on the essential question of what it means to be human. |
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A WACHOWSKIS RETROSPECTIVE:
THE MATRIX, BOUND, & SPEED RACER
In celebration of the 30th Anniversary of Bound and the brand new 4K restoration of Speed Racer, we’re running a new retrospective series featuring three of Lana and Lilly’s masterpieces on Saturday nights throughout June. BOUND • JUNE 13 THE MATRIX • JUNE 20 SPEED RACER • JUNE 27 Tickets for all three films are available on the Carbon Arc website now. Get your tickets before they sell out! |
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Looking to stay up-to-date on art house, rep, and independent film screenings in Nova Scotia? Follow the Retroscope on Instagram (@retroscopefilm) and subscribe to their Pateron for local screenings, interviews, and more! Click here to learn more.
STAGES Theatre Festival is on! STAGES focuses on bold, playful and innovative creations that push the boundaries of what theatre can be. From full productions to family offerings and interactive pieces, STAGES highlights new performances from Atlantic Canada and beyond. | They have a jam-packed Friday and weekend, with puppetry, experimental theatre, interactive pieces and more! |
Opening of MEGA BITCH by Libbie Farrell
What if the end of the world happens, and it leads to something better? What if the future is something sparkling, strange, beautiful and better than we could have ever imagined? Opening June 11 at the Mary E. Black Gallery, Mega Bitch by Libbie Farrell features a series of vibrant quilted tapestries inhabited by a cast of trans and queer characters. Combining quilting, embroidery, appliqué, rhinestones, and bedazzling, the exhibition celebrates extravagance, excess, queer joy, and femininity through a humorous and unapologetically queer lens. Location: Mary E. Black Gallery |  Libbie Farrell (She/They) is a white settler and Interdisciplinary artist from rural Treaty 6 Territory. She currently lives and works in Edmonton, AB. In 2023, Farrell completed their BFA in Fine Arts at Mount Allison University in Sackville NB. Libbie’s practice spans across textiles, fibres, performance, and printmaking, with the mediums often intersecting. |
Surrender as Process: An Immersive 16mm Artist Workshop — last chance to apply!
Applications are now open for Surrender as Process, a six-day immersive artist retreat taking place on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. Led by Cape Breton born filmmaker Jacquelyn Mills and hosted by VISIONS, with co-facilitator Benjamin R. Taylor. This intensive workshop offers 10 selected artists the opportunity to explore a radically embodied approach to the creative process. This retreat is a process-led immersion, rather than focusing on technical instruction, outcomes, or fixed goals. They invite participants to allow intuition and collaboration with the living natural world to guide their work. Applications Close: June 11, 2026 |  |
IATSE 849 Hiring
IATSE 849 is hiring a Membership Coordinator! Based in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, I.A.T.S.E. (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees and Moving Picture Technicians) Local 849 is hiring for the new Membership Coordinator position. This exciting and dynamic role relates to the film and television production industry and the trade union movement. Cover letters and resumes should be addressed to Jake Ivany, Operations Manager, I.A.T.S.E. Local 849. Applications can be sent by email to [email protected] with the subject line "Your Name - Membership Coordinator Application." |  The application deadline is 11:59 PM AST on June 8th, 2026. |
NSCAD Free Film School
Learn the basics of filmmaking from industry professionals this summer for free! Free Film School was created in 2020 to address the longstanding underrepresentation of African Nova Scotian and Black Nova Scotian creatives in front of and behind the camera. Oriented to Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour participants, with a particular focus on Black participants, this summer program offers accessible, skills-based training alongside a set-culture framework rooted in respect, safety, and accountability, so participants can learn and create in environments free from racism, tokenizing, harassment, or unconscious bias. This program is led in partnership with In My Own Voice (iMOVe), Black Above the Line, and the Community Mobile Media Lab (CMML). Main Program Supervisors include Sobaz Benjamin and Solomon Nagler. |  |
CBC Connecting Communities
From the Bay of Fundy to the Acadian Coast, we're connecting producers with the people, resources, and support that help stories thrive. Calling all emerging New Brunswick producers and creators: Indigenous, Acadian, and from every corner of the province working in TV, video, streaming, and digital content. From the Bay to the backroads, your stories matter and we want to hear them. Join the CBC Business & Rights team for a 90-minute virtual session rooted in connection and East Coast collaboration. We’re here to show you how to access our resources and simplify the process of partnering with us. Let’s spend some time together making your creative goals more accessible and your path to CBC clearer. |  We’re here to show you how to access our resources and simplify the process of partnering with us. Let’s spend some time together making your creative goals more accessible and your path to CBC clearer. Free | Virtual |
Atlantic International Film Festival | Vancouver International Film Festival | The Animation Conference: Pitch THIS! |
Last chance to apply to Atlantic International Film Festival! Don’t miss your chance! The Atlantic International Film Festival has grown into one of Canada’s premier celebrations of film and filmmaking, an essential platform for our regional industry alongside the best new national and international offerings. | The annual Vancouver International Film Festival is a showcase of exceptional cinema in one of the world’s most beautiful cities. In 2026, the 45th edition of VIFF will present approximately 150 features and 90 shorts and expand the frame with talks, creative development opportunities, performances, and other unique events that celebrate film and film culture. | Pitch THIS! is the OIAF’s annual pitching contest; an opportunity for Canadian creators to get noticed and kickstart their animated series concept! |
Final Deadline: June 5, 2026 | Final Deadline: June 5, 2026 | Deadline to apply: June 14, 2026 |