Programming

Screenwriters Circle – December 13 Wednesday 13 December 2023, 19:00 to 19:00 The LIFT Screenwriters Circle meets online on the third Wednesday of each month*** to facilitate skill sharing, supportive critique and moving member scripts from the page to the screen. You must be a current LIFT member to attend this group. *** To try and avoid conflict with the holidays, we’ll be meeting the second Wednesday of December. In the”… more

Josephine Massarella Artist Award – 2022 Announcement Thursday 30 November 2023 – THE LIAISON OF INDEPENDENT FILMMAKERS OF TORONTO ANNOUNCES THE 2022 JOSEPHINE MASSARELLA ARTIST AWARD RECIPIENT Toronto, November 30, 2023—The Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto (LIFT) is pleased to announce that Marnie Parrell is the 2022 Josephine Massarella Artist Award Recipient. After some unexpected delays, we are thrilled to welcom”… more

LIFT announces Round-Up 2023 Screening, presented by MUBI Monday 11 December 2023, 19:00 to 21:00 LIFT announces Round-Up 2023 Screening, presented by MUBI November 23, 2023—The Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto (LIFT) announces the return of the LIFT Round-Up on December 11, 2023 at the Paradise Theatre, 1006c Bloor Street West. For the first time since 2018, we will be hosting an evening of recent works by LIFT’s talented community”… more

LIFT co-presents AD HOC #48’s “Josephine Massarella: Green Dreams” Wednesday 22 November 2023, 19:00 to 21:00 LIFT co-presents “Josephine Massarella: Green Dreams” as part of AD HOC #48 The films of Josephine Massarella cover a vast territory, from durational, performance-focused films that bridge everyday experiences with ritual and symbol, to aesthetic transformations of landscape and wilderness through the eye of the camera. This program focuses on her”… more

LIFT co-presents “Shorts 3: Stuck” at Regent Park Sunday 26 November 2023, 13:30 to 15:00 “Bawang Merah Bawang Putih (Shallots and Garlic)” by Andrea Nirmala Widjajanto LIFT co-presents “Shorts 3: Stuck” at the 2023 Regent Park Film Festival This shorts program introduces us to characters feeling stuck; unable to move forward due to policies, mental health or the pull of familial bonds. Whether they’re navigating the immigration system”… more

Performance with Visiting Artist Natalia Kozieł-Kalliomäki Friday 24 November 2023, 19:00 to 21:00 November 16, 2023 The Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto (LIFT) present WARM DATA: PERFORMANCE WITH VISITING ARTIST NATALIA KOZIEŁ-KALLIOMÄKI Based in Finland, Polish filmmaker Natalia Kozieł-Kalliomäki joins us on Friday, November 24, 2023 to present a 16mm expanded cinema performance. This performance complements her residency as the fo”… more

LIFT co-presents “The Last Temptations of the Belgians” at the European Union Film Festival Thursday 23 November 2023, 18:00 to 20:00 LIFT co-presents “The Last Temptations of the Belgians” at the 2023 European Union Film Festival “The Last Temptations of the Belgians” (La dernière tentation des Belges) Directed by Jan Bucquoy In-Person: Thursday, November 23, 2023 Starts at 6:00pm Spadina Theatre, 24 Spadina Road (inside Alliance Française Toronto) Note: The film will NOT be a p”… more

LIFT Co-Presents, “Kiss Me Deadly and Lost Highway Double Bill” at Innis Town Hall Friday 17 November 2023, 19:00 to 23:00 LIFT co-presents “Kiss Me Deadly and Lost Highway Double Bill” as part of CINSSU’s Free Friday Films at Innis Town Hall We are delighted to be co-presenting a DOUBLE FEATURE of Kiss Me Deadly (1955) and Lost Highway (1997) with the UofT Cinema Studies Student Union at this week’s Free Friday Films at Innis Town Hall. “Kiss Me Deadly” is a 1955 film”… more

LIFT co-presents “Reel Ideas 2023 – Building Forces: The Director Producer Relationship” at Reel Asian Tuesday 14 November 2023, 16:00 to 18:00 LIFT co-presents “Reel Ideas 2023 – Building Forces: The Director Producer Relationship” at the 2023 Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival LIFT is proud to be a Community Supporter of Reel Ideas 2023’s “Building Forces: The Director Producer Relationship” panel Last fall, the DOC Institute invited creative producers to reimagine a document”… more

Recipients of the LIFT 2023 Production and Post-Production Support Grant Top Row (L-R): Francisca Duran and Ant Horasanli Bottom Row (L-R): Felipe López Gómez, Justine McCloskey, Sonya Mwambu, Tara Natalia and Roy Zheng   Monday, November 13, 2023 Recipients of the LIFT 2023 Production and Post-Production Support Grant The Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto (LIFT) is excited to announce the recipients of the 2″… more

Screening with 2023 BAICC Resident Agnès Hayden Tuesday 7 November 2023, 19:00 to 21:00 November 1, 2023 The Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto (LIFT) present OUR BEST MACHINES ARE MADE WITH SUNSHINE SCREENING WITH 2023 BAICC RESIDENT AGNÈS HAYDEN Join the Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto (LIFT) this Tuesday, November 7, 2023, at 7:00pm with a screening of works from our BAICC 2023 artist Agnès Hayden, ranging fr”… more

LIFT co-presents “A World of Movement: Films of Sharon Lockhart” at Media City Saturday 11 November 2023, 18:00 to 20:00 LIFT co-presents “A World of Movement: Films of Sharon Lockhart” at the 2023 Media City Film Festival Celebrated filmmaker and photographer Sharon Lockhart joins Media City Film Festival from Los Angeles to present a special selection of her films. Programme: “NŌ,” 32 min, 2003 “EVENTIDE,” 30 min, 2022 “NŌ” (2003) and her most recent film “EVENTIDE”… more

LIFT co-presents “back home” at Rendezvous with Madness Friday 27 October 2023, 18:30 to 20:30 LIFT co-presents “back home” at the 2023 Rendezvous with Madness Festival “back home” Directed by Nisha Platzer “back home” follows the filmmaker’s pursuit to get to know her older brother, Josh, twenty years after he took his own life. As she connects with the friends who knew him best as a teen, a complex portrait emerges. Through intimate recoll”… more

LIFT Announces Call for Submissions for Members’ Round-Up 2023, presented by MUBI – Extended Friday 13 October 2023 – Monday 13 November 2023 LIFT ANNOUNCES CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS FOR MEMBERS’ ROUND-UP 2023, Presented by MUBI Toronto, October 13, 2023 (revised November 9)—The Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto (LIFT) announces the return of the LIFT Round-Up. For the first time since 2018, LIFT will be hosting an evening of recent works by our diverse and talented membership on M”… more

LIFT co-presents “Nuked” at Planet in Focus Sunday 22 October 2023, 18:30 to 21:03   LIFT co-presents “Nuked” at 2023 Planet in Focus Environmental Film Festival The fallout of the nuclear testing during the past century had severe consequences. For the people of Bikini Atoll, part of the Marshall Islands, the repercussions of detonating 67 nuclear bombs on their island during the Cold War continues today, leaving mass conta”… more

LIFT announces the 2023 BAICC Resident – Agnès Hayden Monday 11 September 2023 – Sunday 5 November 2023 THE LIAISON OF INDEPENDENT FILMMAKERS OF TORONTO (LIFT) ANNOUNCES THE 2023 BAICC RESIDENT AGNÈS HAYDEN Toronto, October 11, 2023—The Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto (LIFT) is pleased to welcome Spanish filmmaker Agnès Hayden as the current resident in the seventh edition of the BAICC Residencias Artísticas Internacionales de Creacion C”… more

LIFT co-presents “Attila” at Rendezvous With Madness Festival Tuesday 10 October 2023, 19:00 to 22:00 LIFT co-presents “Attila” at a special presentation part of Workman Arts’ 2023 Rendezvous With Madness Festival Canadian filmmaker Stephen Hosier focuses the lens of his feature debut uncomfortably close to home as he joins his childhood friend, Richard Csanyi, in investigating the life and death of the latter’s twin brother, Attila. Found dead on”… more

LIFT co-presents “Latin Canadian Program” at aluCine Friday 6 October 2023, 20:30 to 22:30 Beating Like Her Drum by Dayme Arocena and Pablo Dewin LIFT co-presents Latin Canadian Program at 2023 aluCine Latin Film + Media Arts Festival aluCine continues its yearly tradition of showcasing the best in new Latin Canadian cinema! This short film program features works from emerging filmmakers in Canada. It is a space where Latin filmmakers in”… more

LIFT announces Finnish Visiting Artist Natalia Kozieł-Kalliomäki Friday 1 September 2023 – Thursday 30 November 2023 LIFT ANNOUNCES FINNISH VISITING ARTIST NATALIA KOZIEŁ-KALLIOMÄKI Toronto, September 18, 2023—The Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto (LIFT) is pleased to announce that Natalia Kozieł-Kalliomäki has joined us from Helsinki, Finland as a visiting artist from September 1 to November 30, 2023 as the fourth resident in the residency program for”… more

LIFT announces “Transformations: A Cross Generational Commissioning Project” – In-person Screening and VOD Thursday 21 September 2023, 19:00 to 21:00 Image Credit: Luísa Cruz and Jorge Manzano, CIRCADIAN VERSES (2023) . Transformations: A Cross Generational Commissioning Project In-person Screening and VOD September 1, 2023—In 2021 the Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto’s (LIFT) celebrated its 40th anniversary as an artist-run organization. Toronto has changed wildly over the past four”… more