# 2023 Vancouver International Film Festival

The 2023 Vancouver International Film Festival, the 42nd event in the history of the Vancouver International Film Festival, was held from September 28 to October 8, 2023.

## Awards

Winners of the juried Canadian film awards were announced on October 5. The Vanguard award winner was announced on October 8, and Audience Award winners were announced on October 12.
| Award | Film | Filmmaker |
| Audience Award, Galas & Special Presentations | Monster | Hirokazu Kore-eda |
| Audience Award, Showcase | The Monk and the Gun | Pawo Choyning Dorji |
| Audience Award, Panorama | Irena's Vow | Louise Archambault |
| Audience Award, Vanguard | Let Me Go (Laissez-moi) | Maxime Rappaz |
| Audience Award, Northern Lights | Aitamaako'tamisskapi Natosi: Before the Sun | Banchi Hanuse |
| Audience Award, Insights | Physician, Heal Thyself | Asher Penn |
| Audience Award, Spectrum | Asog | Seán Devlin |
| Audience Award, Portraits | Call Me Dancer | Leslie Shampaine, Pip Gilmour |
| Audience Award, Altered States | Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person (Vampire humaniste cherche suicidaire consentant) | Ariane Louis-Seize |
| Best Canadian Film | Fitting In | Molly McGlynn |
| Best Canadian Film, Honorable Mention | Gamodi | Felix Kalmenson |
| Best Canadian Documentary | Someone Lives Here | Zack Russell |
| Best Canadian Documentary, Honorable Mention | Asog | Seán Devlin |
| Best Canadian Short Film | Katshinau | Julien G. Marcotte, Jani Bellefleur-Kaltush |
| Best Canadian Short Film, Honorable Mention | Our Grandmother the Inlet | Jaime Leigh Gianopoulos, Kayah George |
| Emerging Canadian Director | Valley of Exile | Anna Fahr |
| Emerging Canadian Director, Honorable Mention | Richelieu | Pier-Philippe Chevigny |
| Best BC Film | WaaPaKe | Jules Arita Koostachin |
| Best BC Film, Honorable Mention | Asog | Seán Devlin |
| Vanguard Award | Animal | Sofia Exarchou |
| Vanguard Award, Honorable Mention | Octopus Skin (La Piel Pulpo) | Ana Cristina Barragán |

## Films

The full schedule was announced on September 6.

### Galas and special presentations

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Anatomy of a Fall | Anatomie d'une chute | Justine Triet | France |
| The Boy and the Heron | 君たちはどう生きるか | Hayao Miyazaki | Japan |
| La Chimera | La Chimera | Alice Rohrwacher | Italy, France, Switzerland |
| Fallen Leaves | Kuolleet lehdet | Aki Kaurismäki | Finland, Germany |
| I'm Just Here for the Riot | I'm Just Here for the Riot | Kathleen Jayme, Asia Youngman | Canada |
| Last Summer | L'Été dernier | Catherine Breillat |
| Monster | 怪物 | Hirokazu Kore-eda | Japan |
| Mr. Dressup: The Magic of Make-Believe | Mr. Dressup: The Magic of Make-Believe | Robert McCallum | Canada |
| A Normal Family | 보통의 가족 | Hur Jin-ho | South Korea |
| The Old Oak | The Old Oak | Ken Loach | United Kingdom, France, Belgium |
| The Pot-au-Feu | La Passion de Dodin Bouffant | Tran Anh Hung | France |
| Priscilla | Priscilla | Sofia Coppola | United States |
| The Promised Land | Bastarden | Nikolaj Arcel | Denmark, Germany, Sweden |
| Seven Veils | Seven Veils | Atom Egoyan | Canada |
| Swan Song | Swan Song | Chelsea McMullan | Canada |
| The Zone of Interest | The Zone of Interest | Jonathan Glazer | United Kingdom, Poland, United States |

### Showcase

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| About Dry Grasses | Kuru Otlar Üstüne | Nuri Bilge Ceylan | Turkey, France, Germany, Sweden |
| Close to You | Close to You | Dominic Savage | Canada, United Kingdom |
| Creature | Creature | Asif Kapadia | United Kingdom |
| The Delinquents | Los delincuentes | Rodrigo Moreno | Argentina, Brazil, Luxembourg, Chile |
| Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World | Nu astepta prea mult de la sfârsitul lumii | Radu Jude | Romania |
| Evil Does Not Exist | 悪は存在しない | Ryûsuke Hamaguchi | Japan |
| Four Daughters | بنات ألفة | Kaouther Ben Hania | France, Tunisia, Germany, Saudi Arabia |
| Four Little Adults | Nelja Pienta Aikuista | Selma Vilhunen | Finland, Sweden |
| Green Border | Zielona granica | Agnieszka Holland | Poland, Czech Republic, France, Belgium |
| How to Have Sex | How to Have Sex | Molly Manning Walker | United Kingdom |
| I Am Sirat | I Am Sirat | Deepa Mehta, Sirat Taneja | Canada |
| Il Boemo | Il Boemo | Petr Václav | Czech Republic, Italy, Slovakia |
| Just the Two of Us | L'Amour et les forêts | Valérie Donzelli | France |
| Kidnapped | Rapito | Marco Bellocchio | Italy, France, Germany |
| The Monk and the Gun | The Monk and the Gun | Pawo Choyning Dorji | Bhutan, France, United States, Taiwan |
| The Royal Hotel | The Royal Hotel | Kitty Green | Australia, United Kingdom |
| The Teachers' Lounge | Das Lehrerzimmer | Ilker Çatak | Germany |
| They Shot the Piano Player | Dispararon al pianista | Fernando Trueba, Javier Mariscal | Spain, France |
| Tótem | Tótem | Lila Avilés | Mexico, Denmark, France |

### Panorama

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| 19B | 19B | Ahmad Abdalla | Egypt |
| All Ears | All Ears | Liu Jiayin | China |
| Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry | Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry | Elena Naveriani | Georgia, Switzerland |
| The Braid | The Braid | Laetitia Colombani | France, Canada, Italy |
| Days of Happiness | Les Jours heureux | Chloé Robichaud | Canada |
| The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed | The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed | Joanna Arnow | United States |
| Gamodi | Gamodi | Felix Kalmenson | Canada, Georgia |
| Goodbye Julia | وداعا جوليا | Mohamed Kordofani | Sudan |
| Here | Here | Bas Devos | Belgium |
| Housekeeping for Beginners | Domakinstvo za Pocetnici | Goran Stolevski | Macedonia, Poland, Croatia, Serbia, Kosovo |
| If Only I Could Hibernate | Баавгай болохсон, Baavgai Bolohson | Zoljargal Purevdash | Mongolia |
| In Broad Daylight | 白日之下 | Lawrence Kan | Hong Kong |
| Irena's Vow | Irena's Vow | Louise Archambault | Canada, Poland |
| Let the River Flow | Ellos Eatnu | Ole Giæver | Norway, Sweden, Finland |
| Measures of Men | Der vermessene Mensch | Lars Kraume | Germany |
| Oceans Are the Real Continents | Los océanos son los verdaderos continentes | Tommaso Santambrogio | Cuba, Italy |
| One Day All This Will Be Yours | En dag kommer allt det här bli ditt | Andreas Öhman | Sweden |
| Only the River Flows | 河边的错误 | Wei Shujun | China |
| Puan | Puan | Maria Alché, Benjamín Naishtat | Argentina, Italy, France, Germany, Brazil |
| Raging Grace | Raging Grace | Paris Zarcilla | United Kingdom |
| The Rapture | Le Ravissement | Iris Kaltenbäck | France |
| Red Rooms | Les Chambres rouges | Pascal Plante | Canada |
| Robot Dreams | Robot Dreams | Pablo Berger | Spain, France |
| The Settlers | Los Colonos | Felipe Gálvez Haberle | Chile |
| Snow in Midsummer | 五月雪 | Chong Keat Aun | Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan |
| Suddenly | Suddenly | Melisa Önel | Turkey |
| There's No Place Like Home | Den, der lever stille | Puk Grasten | Denmark |
| Toll | Pedágio | Carolina Markowicz | Brazil, Portugal |
| A Tour Guide | A Tour Guide | Eun-mi Kwak | South Korea |
| Tsugaru Lacquer Girl | バカ塗りの娘 | Keiko Tsuruoka | Japan |
| Undercurrent | アンダーカレント | Rikiya Imaizumi | Japan |
| Wild Swans | Gorai Phakhri | Rajni Basumatary | India |

### Vanguard

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Animal | Animal | Sofia Exarchou | Greece, Austria, Romania, Cyprus, Bulgaria |
| Bitten | La Morsure | Romain de Saint-Blanquat | France |
| The Face of the Jellyfish | El Rostro de la Medusa | Melisa Liebenthal | Argentina |
| Let Me Go | Laissez-moi | Maxime Rappaz | Switzerland, France, Belgium |
| Octopus Skin | La Piel Pulpo | Ana Cristina Barragán | Ecuador |
| On the Go | On the Go | María Gisèle Royo, Julia de Castro | Spain |
| The Sea and Its Waves | La Mer et ses vagues | Liana Kassir, Renaud Pachot | Lebanon, France |
| Tomorrow Is a Long Time | Míng tian bi zuo tian chang jiu | Jow Zhi Wei | Singapore, Taiwan, France, Portugal |

### Northern Lights

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Aitamaako'tamisskapi Natosi: Before the Sun | Aitamaako'tamisskapi Natosi: Before the Sun | Banchi Hanuse | Canada |
| Les Filles du Roi | Les Filles du Roi | Corey Payette | Canada |
| Fitting In | Fitting In | Molly McGlynn | Canada |
| Float | Float | Sherren Lee | Canada |
| Hey, Viktor! | Hey, Viktor! | Cody Lightning | Canada |
| I Don't Know Who You Are | I Don't Know Who You Are | M. H. Murray | Canada |
| I Used to Be Funny | I Used to Be Funny | Ally Pankiw | Canada |
| In Flames | In Flames | Zarrar Kahn | Canada |
| Richelieu | Richelieu | Pier-Philippe Chevigny | Canada |
| Seagrass | Seagrass | Meredith Hama-Brown | Canada |
| Someone Lives Here | Someone Lives Here | Zack Russell | Canada |
| Union Street | Union Street | Jamila Pomeroy | Canada |
| When Adam Changes | Adam change lentement | Joël Vaudreuil | Canada |
| Wild Goat Surf | Wild Goat Surf | Caitlyn Sponheimer | Canada |

### Insights

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Common Ground | Common Ground | Josh Tickell, Rebecca Harrell Tickell | United States |
| Deep Rising | Deep Rising | Matthieu Rytz | United States |
| The Invention of the Other | A invenção do Outro | Bruno Jorge | Brazil |
| Lynx Man | Ilveskuiskaaja | Juha Suonpää | Finland, Estonia |
| Mareya Shot, Keetah Goal: Make the Shot | Mareya Shot, Keetah Goal: Make the Shot | Baljit Sangra, Nilesh Patel | Canada |
| The Mission | The Mission | Amanda McBaine, Jesse Moss | United States, India |
| On the Adamant | Sur l'Adamant | Nicolas Philibert | France, Japan |
| Physician, Heal Thyself | Physician, Heal Thyself | Asher Penn | Canada |
| WaaPaKe | WaaPaKe | Jules Arita Koostachin | Canada |
| Winter Chants | 冬未來 | Jessey Tsang Tsui-Shan | Hong Kong |

### Spectrum

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Asog | Asog | Seán Devlin | Canada, Philippines |
| Between Revolutions | Între revoluții | Vlad Petri | Romania, Croatia, Iran |
| Hello Dankness | Hello Dankness | Soda Jerk | Australia |
| Kim's Video | Kim's Video | David Redmon, Ashley Sabin | United States, United Kingdom, France |
| Lonely Oaks | Vergiss Meyn Nicht | Fabiana Fragale, Kilian Kuhlendahl, Jens Mühlhoff | Germany |
| Mighty Afrin: In the Time of Floods | Mighty Afrin: In the Time of Floods | Angelos Rallis | Greece, France, Germany |
| The Mother of All Lies | Kadib Abyad | Asmae El Moudir | Morocco, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar |
| Orlando, My Political Biography | Orlando, ma biographie politique | Paul B. Preciado | France |
| Smoke Sauna Sisterhood | Savvusanna sõsarad | Anna Hints | Estonia, France, Iceland |
| The Tuba Thieves | The Tuba Thieves | Alison O'Daniel | United States |

### Portraits

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Anselm | Anselm – Das Rauschen der Zeit | Wim Wenders | Germany |
| Apolonia, Apolonia | Apolonia, Apolonia | Lea Glob | Denmark, Poland |
| Caiti Blues | Caiti Blues | Justine Harbonnier | Canada, France |
| Call Me Dancer | Call Me Dancer | Leslie Shampaine, Pip Gilmour | United States, India |
| A Cooler Climate | A Cooler Climate | James Ivory, Giles Gardner | France |
| Invisible Beauty | Invisible Beauty | Bethann Hardison, Frédéric Tcheng | United States |
| It's Only Life After All | It's Only Life After All | Alexandria Bombach | United States |
| Pianoforte | Pianoforte | Jakub Piątek | Poland |
| Robert Irwin: A Desert of Pure Feeling | Robert Irwin: A Desert of Pure Feeling | Jennifer Lane | United States |
| Sculpting the Giant | Sculpting the Giant | Banu Wirandoko, Rheza Arden Wiguna | Indonesia |

### Altered States

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| The Animal Kingdom | Le Règne animal | Thomas Cailley | France |
| Animalia | Parmi nous | Sofia Alaoui | Morocco, France, Qatar |
| Chronicles of a Wandering Saint | Crónicas de una Santa Errante | Tomas Gomez Bustillo | Argentina, United States |
| Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person | Vampire humaniste cherche suicidaire consentant | Ariane Louis-Seize | Canada |
| My Animal | My Animal | Jacqueline Castel | Canada |
| Restore Point | Bod obnovy | Robert Hloz | Czech Republic, Poland, Serbia, Slovakia |
| The Sacrifice Game | The Sacrifice Game | Jenn Wexler | United States |
| Tiger Stripes | Tiger Stripes | Amanda Nell Eu | Malaysia, Taiwan, France, Germany |
| The Wait | La espera | F. Javier Gutierrez | Spain |
| White Plastic Sky | Műanyag égbolt | Tibor Bánóczki, Sarolta Szabó | Hungary, Slovakia |

### Leading Lights

A special program curated by guest programmer Anthony Shim, featuring a selection of films that had influenced his own journey as a filmmaker.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Dust in the Wind | 戀戀風塵 | Hou Hsiao-hsien | Taiwan |
| Joint Security Area | 공동경비구역 | Park Chan-wook | South Korea |
| Peppermint Candy | 박하사탕 | Lee Chang-dong | South Korea, Japan |
| A Woman Under the Influence | A Woman Under the Influence | John Cassavetes | United States |

### Focus: Women, Life and Freedom

A special program curated by guest programmer Fay Nass, screening films about misogyny and the subjugation of women.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Joonam | Joonam | Sierra Urich | United States |
| Numb | Numb | Amir Toodehroosta | Iran |
| Seven Winters in Tehran | Sieben Winter in Teheran | Steffi Niederzoll | Germany, France |
| Terrestrial Verses | Ayeh Haye Zamini | Ali Asgari, Alireza Khatami | Iran |
| Valley of Exile | Valley of Exile | Anna Fahr | Canada, Lebanon |

### Short Forum

All films in this short film program are Canadian.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Province |
| All the Days of May | Tous les jours de mai | Miryam Charles | Quebec |
| Ancestral Threads | Ancestral Threads | Sean Stiller | British Columbia |
| Between You and Me | Between You and Me | Cameron Kletke | British Columbia |
| Black Box Investigations | Black Box Investigations | Paige Smith | British Columbia |
| Cassandra | Cassandra | Bea Santos | Ontario |
| Cloud Striker | Cloud Striker | Allan W. Hopkins | British Columbia |
| Conviction | Conviction | Bruce Thomas Miller | Alberta |
| The Company We Keep | The Company We Keep | Wojtek Jakubiec | Quebec |
| Cristo Negro | Cristo Negro | Paul Stavropoulos, Brendan Mills | Ontario |
| Death Mask | Death Mask | John Greyson | Ontario |
| Defining Human | Defining Human | Daniel Code | British Columbia |
| Dickinsonia | Dickinsonia | Charline Dally | Quebec |
| Donna | Donna | Keenan MacWilliam | Ontario |
| Dream Tricks: Over a Six Stair | Dream Tricks: Over a Six Stair | Adam Seward | Ontario |
| Element | Element | Will Niava | Quebec |
| Four Mile Creek | Four Mile Creek | Ryan McKenna | Quebec |
| Gentle Hum of Spring | Gentle Hum of Spring | Simon Garez | Saskatchewan |
| The Great Kind Mystery | The Great Kind Mystery | Ella Morton | Newfoundland and Labrador |
| Hair or No Hair | Hair or No Hair | Janessa St. Pierre | British Columbia |
| Her Name Is Like a Sigh | Her Name Is Like a Sigh | Solara Thanh-Binh Dang | British Columbia |
| In the Wake of the Cedar Tree | In the Wake of the Cedar Tree | Towustasin | British Columbia |
| Katshinau | Katshinau | Julien G. Marcotte, Jani Bellefleur-Kaltush | Quebec |
| Lake Baikal | Baigal Nuur | Alisi Telengut | Quebec |
| Les Lavandières | Les Lavandières | Laura Kamugisha | Quebec |
| Making Babies | Faire un enfant | Éric K. Boulianne | Quebec |
| Master of the House | Master of the House | Dylan Maranda | British Columbia |
| Modern Goose | Modern Goose | Karsten Wall | Manitoba |
| Mothers and Monsters | Mothers and Monsters | Édith Jorisch | Quebec |
| My Tomato Heart | Mon cœur de tomate | Benoît Le Rouzès Ménard | Quebec |
| Nigiqtuq (The South Wind) | Nigiqtuq (The South Wind) | Lindsay McIntyre | Alberta |
| Our Grandmother the Inlet | Our Grandmother the Inlet | Jaime Leigh Gianopoulos, Kayah George | British Columbia |
| Outside Center | Outside Center | Eli Jean Tahchi | Quebec |
| Portrait of the Con Artist as a Young Man | Portrait of the Con Artist as a Young Man | Ryan Leedu | Alberta |
| Redlights | Redlights | Eva Thomas | Ontario |
| Return to Hairy Hill | Retour à Hairy Hill | Daniel Gies | Quebec |
| Return to Ombabika | Return to Ombabika | Ma-Nee Chacaby, Zoe Gordon, Shayne Ehman | Ontario |
| Silkworm | Silkworm | Amir Honarmand | British Columbia |
| Sisters | Sisters | Marisa Hoicka | Ontario |
| Soleil de Nuit | Soleil de Nuit | Fernando Lopez Escriva, Maria Camila Arias | Quebec |
| Something Else | Autre Chose | Étienne Lacelle | Quebec |
| Swallow Flying to the South | Swallow Flying to the South | Mochi Lin | British Columbia |
| Sub Terra | Sub Terra | Jeffrey Zablotny | Ontario |
| Sun, Moon and Four Peaks | Sun, Moon and Four Peaks | Kevin Jin Kwan Kim | British Columbia |
| Take Care | Take Care | Tony Massil | British Columbia |
| Two Apples | Two Apples | Bahram Javahery | British Columbia, Yukon |
| Two One Two | Two One Two | Shira Avni | Quebec |
| Unspeakable Heap | Unspeakable Heap | Kara Ditte Hansen | British Columbia |
| Where Rabbits Come From | D'où viennent les lapins | Colin Ludvic Racicot | Quebec |
| You Feel Soft | You Feel Soft | Cameron Kletke | British Columbia |
| Yun | Yun | Yuezhang Qin | British Columbia |

### International Shorts

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Almost Fall | Presque l'automne | Margot Pouppeville | France |
| Basri & Salma in a Never-Ending Comedy | Basri & Salma Dalam Komedi Yang Terus Berputar | Khozy Rizal | Indonesia, United States |
| Beyond the Sea | Beyond the Sea | Hippolyte Leibovici | Belgium, France |
| Big Bang | Big Bang | Carlos Segundo | Brazil |
| Big Day | Big Day | Chung Chieh Chiang | Taiwan |
| Confessions | Confessions | Stephanie Kaznocha | United States |
| Cuarto de Hora | Cuarto de Hora | Nemo Arancibia | Chile, France |
| Cut | Cut | Samuel Lucas Allen | Australia |
| Fairplay | Fairplay | Zoel Aeschbacher | Switzerland, France |
| The Family Circus | The Family Circus | Andrew Fitzgerald | United States |
| Far from the Tree | Daleko od stromu | Emma Marková | Czech Republic |
| Headdress | Headdress | Taietsarón:sere ‘Tai’ Leclaire | United States |
| Hedgehog | Hedgehog | D. Mitry | United States |
| Hide Your Crazy | Hide Your Crazy | Austin Kase | United States |
| In Too Deep | In Too Deep | Chris Overton | United Kingdom |
| Jeong-Dong | Jeong-Dong | Choi Woo Gene | South Korea |
| Just a Rehearsal | Solo un Ensayo | Hugo Sanz | Spain |
| Just the Two of Us | Toutes les deux | Clara Lemaire Anspach | France |
| A Lien | A Lien | Sam Cutler-Kreutz, David Cutler-Kreutz | United States |
| Lovebugs | Lovebugs | Teddy Alvarez-Nissen | United States |
| Mira | Mira | Eva Louise Hall | United States |
| Night Shift | Turno nocturno Santiago Lago | Argentina |
| Nowhere | Nowhere | Garin Hovannisian | Armenia, United States |
| An Ordinary Day | An Ordinary Day | Ju-yeon Gim | South Korea |
| Pisko the Crab Child Is in Love | Pisko the Crab Child Is in Love | Makoto Nagahisa | Japan |
| Snif & Snüf | Snif & Snüf | Michael J. Ruocco | United States |
| Southern Afternoon | Nan fang wu hou | Tian Lan | China |
| Spasm | اسپاسم | Sahra Asadollahi | Iran |
| Sushi | Sushi | Iván Morales | Spain |
| Where the Time Goes | Where the Time Goes | Justin Tyler Close | United States, Canada |
| Youssou & Malek | Youssou et Malek | Simon Frenay | France |

### Modes

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Aqueronte | Aqueronte | Manuel Muñoz Rivas | Spain |
| A Bird Called Memory | A Bird Called Memory | Leonardo Martinelli | Brazil, United Kingdom |
| Let's Talk | Let's Talk | Simon Liu | Hong Kong |
| Loving in Between | Loving in Between | Jyoti Mistry | South Africa, Austria |
| Mast-del | Mast-del | Maryam Tafakory | Iran, United Kingdom |
| Mother Land | Mother Land | Kantarama Gahigiri | Rwanda, Switzerland |
| NYC RGB | NYC RGB | Viktoria Schmid | Austria, United States |
| Shadow Does | Shadow Does | Laure Prouvost | Belgium, France, Austria |
| Slow Shift | Slow Shift | Shambhavi Kaul | India, United States |
| Square the Circle | Square the Circle | Hanna Hovitie | Finland |
| This Is Not Here | This Is Not Here | Charlotte Mungomery | Australia, Peru, Spain |