# 2024 Vancouver International Film Festival

The 2024 Vancouver International Film Festival, the 43rd event in the history of the Vancouver International Film Festival, was held from September 26 to October 6, 2024. The first five films in the program were announced on August 8, 2024, with the full program released on August 28.
The festival opened with the documentary film Ari's Theme, and closed with the film Emilia Pérez. Overall, the festival screened 150 feature films and 81 shorts.

## Awards

Juried award winners were announced on October 3, 2024, with audience award winners announced on October 17.
| Award | Film | Filmmaker |
| Audience Award, Galas & Special Presentations | I'm Still Here (Ainda Estou Aqui) | Walter Salles |
| Audience Award, Showcase | No Other Land | Yuval Abraham, Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Rachel Szor |
| Audience Award, Panorama | Angela's Shadow | Jules Arita Koostachin |
| Audience Award, Vanguard | Red Path (Les Enfants rouges) | Lotfi Achour |
| Audience Award, Northern Lights | The Stand | Christopher Auchter |
| Audience Award, Insights | The Chef and the Daruma | Mads K. Baekkevold |
| Audience Award, Spectrum | Grand Theft Hamlet | Pinny Grylls, Sam Crane |
| Audience Award, Portraits | Luther: Never Too Much | Dawn Porter |
| Audience Award, Altered States | 40 Acres | R. T. Thorne |
| Best Canadian Film | Universal Language | Matthew Rankin |
| Best Canadian Documentary | Ninan Auassat: We, the Children | Kim O'Bomsawin |
| Best Canadian Documentary, Honorable Mention | Mama (Inay) | Thea Loo |
| Best Short Film | Strawberry Shortcake | Deborah Devyn Chuang |
| Best Short Film, Honorable Mention | Judas Icarus Twists His Wrist | Kerr Holden |
| Emerging Canadian Director | Mongrels | Jerome Yoo |
| Emerging Canadian Director, Honorable Mention | Cat's Cry (Mačji krik) | Sanja Živković |
| Best BC Film | Mama (Inay) | Thea Loo |
| Best BC Film, Honorable Mention | The Stand | Christopher Auchter |
| Vanguard Award | 78 Days (78 dana) | Emilija Gašić |
| Vanguard Award, Honorable Mention | Hanami | Denise Fernandes |

## Films
### Galas and special presentations

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| All We Imagine as Light | All We Imagine as Light | Payal Kapadia | France, India, Netherlands, Luxembourg |
| Anora | Anora | Sean Baker | United States |
| Ari's Theme | Ari's Theme | Nathan Drillot, Jeff Lee Petry | Canada |
| Bird | Bird | Andrea Arnold | United Kingdom |
| Can I Get a Witness? | Can I Get a Witness? | Ann Marie Fleming | Canada |
| Conclave | Conclave | Edward Berger | United States, United Kingdom |
| Emilia Pérez | Emilia Pérez | Jacques Audiard | France |
| The End | The End | Joshua Oppenheimer | Denmark, United Kingdom |
| The Girl with the Needle | Pigen med nålen | Magnus von Horn | Denmark, Poland, Sweden |
| I'm Still Here | Ainda Estou Aqui | Walter Salles | Brazil, France |
| My Favourite Cake | Keyk-e mahboob-e man | Maryam Moqadam, Behtash Sanaeeha | Iran, France, Sweden, Germany |
| Nightbitch | Nightbitch | Marielle Heller | United States |
| The Piano Lesson | The Piano Lesson | Malcolm Washington | United States |
| Rumours | Rumours | Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson | Canada, Germany |
| The Seed of the Sacred Fig | The Seed of the Sacred Fig | Mohammad Rasoulof | Iran, France, Germany |
| The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal | The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal | Mike Downie | Canada |

### Showcase

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Black Dog | 狗阵 | Guan Hu | China |
| Blue Sun Palace | Blue Sun Palace | Constance Tsang | United States |
| Caught by the Tides | 风流一代 | Jia Zhangke | China |
| Dahomey | Dahomey | Mati Diop | France, Senegal, Benin |
| A Different Man | A Different Man | Aaron Schimberg | United States |
| Dying | Sterben | Matthias Glasner | Germany |
| Flow | Straume | Gints Zilbalodis | Latvia, France, Belgium |
| Gloria! | Gloria! | Margherita Vicario | Italy, Switzerland |
| Grand Tour | Grand Tour | Miguel Gomes | Portugal, Italy, France, Germany, Japan, China |
| Happyend | Happyend | Neo Sora | Japan, United States |
| Matt and Mara | Matt and Mara | Kazik Radwanski | Canada |
| No Other Land | No Other Land | Yuval Abraham, Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Rachel Szor | Palestine, Norway |
| Paying for It | Paying for It | Sook-Yin Lee | Canada |
| Secret Mall Apartment | Secret Mall Apartment | Jeremy Workman | United States |
| Sharp Corner | Sharp Corner | Jason Buxton | Canada, Ireland |
| Shepherds | Berger | Sophie Deraspe | Canada |
| Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat | Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat | Johan Grimonprez | Belgium, France, Netherlands |
| A Traveler's Needs | Yeohaengjaui pilyo | Hong Sang-soo | South Korea |
| Universal Language | Une langue universelle | Matthew Rankin | Canada |

### Panorama

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Angela's Shadow | Angela's Shadow | Jules Arita Koostachin | Canada |
| Armand | Armand | Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel | Norway, Netherlands, Germany, Sweden |
| Black Tea | Black Tea | Abderrahmane Sissako | France, Mauritania, Luxembourg, Taiwan, Ivory Coast |
| Brief History of a Family | 家庭简史 | Lin Jianjie | China, France, Denmark, Qatar |
| Carnival Is Over | Os Enforcados | Fernando Coimbra | Brazil, Portugal |
| Christmas Eve in Miller's Point | Christmas Eve in Miller's Point | Tyler Taormina | United States |
| Eephus | Eephus | Carson Lund | France, United States |
| Fly Me to the Moon | Fly Me to the Moon | Greg Berlanti | United States |
| Ghost Trail | Les Fantômes | Jonathan Millet | France, Germany, Belgium |
| Hakki | Hakki | Hikmet Kerem Özcan | Turkey |
| Holy Cow | Vingt dieux! | Louise Courvoisier | France |
| House of the Seasons | Jangson | Oh Jung-min | South Korea |
| Julie Keeps Quiet | Julie Keeps Quiet | Leonardo van Dijl | Belgium, Sweden |
| Living in Two Worlds | Bokuga Ikiteru, Futatsu no Sekai | Mipo O | Japan |
| Love Lies | 我談的那場戀愛 | Ho Miu Ki | Hong Kong |
| Marco, the Invented Truth | Marco, la verdad inventada | Aitor Arregi, Jon Garaño | Spain |
| Measures for a Funeral | Measures for a Funeral | Sofia Bohdanowicz | Canada |
| Misericordia | Miséricorde | Alain Guiraudie | France, Spain, Portugal |
| Most People Die on Sundays | Los domingos mueren más personas | Iair Said | Argentina, Italy, Spain |
| The Mother and the Bear | The Mother and the Bear | Johnny Ma | Canada, Chile |
| My Late Summer | Nakon ljeta | Danis Tanović | Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania, Slovenia, Serbia |
| The New Year That Never Came | Anul Nou care n-a fost | Bogdan Mureşanu | Romania |
| On Becoming a Guinea Fowl | On Becoming a Guinea Fowl | Rungano Nyoni | Zambia, United Kingdom, Ireland |
| Pierce | Cì xīn qiè gŭ | Nelicia Low | Singapore, Taiwan, Poland |
| Reinas | Reinas | Klaudia Reynicke | Switzerland, Peru |
| Rosinante | Rosinante | Baran Gündüzalp | Turkey |
| Samia | Samia | Yasemin Şamdereli | Italy, Germany, Belgium |
| Sex | Sex | Dag Johan Haugerud | Norway |
| Sleeping with a Tiger | Mit einem Tiger schlafen | Anja Salomonowitz | Austria |
| Solids by the Seashore | ทะเลของฉัน มีคลื่นเล็กน้อยถึงปานกลาง | Patiparn Boontarig | Thailand |
| Souleymane's Story | L'histoire de Souleymane | Boris Lojkine | France |
| The Sparrow in the Chimney | Der Spatz im Kamin | Ramon Zürcher | Switzerland |
| Super Happy Forever | Super Happy Forever | Kohei Igarashi | Japan, France |
| To a Land Unknown | To a Land Unknown | Mahdi Fleifel | United Kingdom, France, Germany, Netherlands, Greece, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Palestine |
| Under the Volcano | Pod wulkanem | Damian Kocur | Poland |
| When We Lost to the Germans | Toen we van de Duitsers verloren | Guido van Driel | Netherlands |
| Who by Fire | Comme le feu | Philippe Lesage | Canada |

### Vanguard

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| 78 Days | 78 dana | Emilija Gašić | Serbia |
| Familiar Touch | Familiar Touch | Sarah Friedland | United States |
| Hanami | Hanami | Denise Fernandes | Switzerland, Portugal, Cape Verde |
| I Saw Three Black Lights | Yo vi tres luces negras | Santiago Lozano Álvarez | Colombia, Mexico, France, Germany |
| Me, Maryam, the Children and 26 Others | Man, Maryam, Bacheha va 26 Nafare Digar | Farshad Hashemi | Iran, Germany |
| Red Path | Les Enfants rouges | Lotfi Achour | Tunisia, France, Belgium, Poland |
| Shambhala | Shambhala | Min Bahadur Bham | Nepal, France, Norway, Turkey, Hong Kong, Taiwan, United States. Qatar |
| Toxic | Akiplėša | Saulė Bliuvaitė | Lithuania |

### Northern Lights

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| 7 Beats per Minute | 7 Beats per Minute | Yuqi Kang | Canada |
| Bonjour Tristesse | Bonjour Tristesse | Durga Chew-Bose | Canada, Germany |
| Cat's Cry | Mačji krik | Sanja Živković | Canada, Serbia, Croatia |
| Cherub | Cherub | Devin Shears | Canada |
| The Heirloom | The Heirloom | Ben Petrie | Canada |
| Inedia | Inedia | Liz Cairns | Canada |
| Living Together | Cohabiter | Halima Elkhatabi | Canada |
| Lucky Star | Lucky Star | Gillian McKercher | Canada |
| Mama | Inay | Thea Loo | Canada |
| Mongrels | Mongrels | Jerome Yoo | Canada |
| Preface to a History | Preface to a History | Devan Scott, Willa Harlow Ross | Canada |
| Seeds | Seeds | Kaniehtiio Horn | Canada |
| Shook | Shook | Amar Wala | Canada |
| The Stand | The Stand | Christopher Auchter | Canada |
| There, There | There, There | Heather Young | Canada |
| Village Keeper | Village Keeper | Karen Chapman | Canada |

### Insights

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| At Averroès & Rosa Parks | Averroès & Rosa Parks | Nicolas Philibert | France |
| Balomania | Balomania | Sissel Morell Dargis | Denmark, Spain |
| Blink | Blink | Edmund Stenson, Daniel Roher | United States, Canada |
| The Chef and the Daruma | The Chef and the Daruma | Mads K. Baekkevold | Canada |
| Curl Power | Curl Power | Josephine Anderson | Canada |
| Democracy Noir | Democracy Noir | Connie Field | United States, Denmark |
| Fish War | Fish War | Jeff Ostenson, Charles Atkinson, Skylar Wagner | United States |
| Living with Wolves | Vivre avec les loups | Jean-Michel Bertrand | France |
| Ninan Auassat: We, the Children | Ninan Auassat: Nous, les enfants | Kim O'Bomsawin | Canada |
| Searching for Amani | Searching for Amani | Nicole Gormley, Debra Aroko | United States, Kenya |
| The Thinking Game | The Thinking Game | Greg Kohs | United States |
| Unlikely Allies | Unlikely Allies | Anthony Pedone | United States |

### Spectrum

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Apple Cider Vinegar | Apple Cider Vinegar | Sofie Benoot | Belgium, Netherlands |
| Grand Theft Hamlet | Grand Theft Hamlet | Pinny Grylls, Sam Crane | United Kingdom |
| The In Between | The In Between | Robie Flores | United States |
| It's Not Me | C'est pas moi | Leos Carax | France |
| Listen to the Voices | Kouté Vwa | Maxime Jean-Baptiste | Guyana, Belgium, France |
| Pepe | Pepe | Nelson Carlo de los Santos Arias | Dominican Republic, Germany, France, Namibia |
| Real | Real | Adele Tulli | Italy, France |
| Realm of Satan | Realm of Satan | Scott Cummings | United States |
| smiles and kisses you | smiles and kisses you | Bryan Carberry | United States |
| The Universe in a Grain of Sand | The Universe in a Grain of Sand | Mark A. Levinson | United States |

### Portraits

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Disco's Revenge | Disco's Revenge | Omar Majeed, Peter Mishara | Canada |
| Draw Me Egypt: Doaa El-Adl, a Stroke of Freedom | Draw Me Egypt: Doaa El-Adl, a Stroke of Freedom | Nada Riyadh | Belgium, France, Luxembourg |
| Googoosh: Made of Fire | Googoosh: Made of Fire | Niloufar Taghizadeh | Germany |
| John Singer Sargent: Fashion and Swagger | John Singer Sargent: Fashion and Swagger | David Bickerstaff | United Kingdom |
| Luther: Never Too Much | Luther: Never Too Much | Dawn Porter | United States |
| Modernism, Inc. | Modernism, Inc. | Jason Cohn | United States |
| Pol Pot Dancing | Pol Pot Dancing | Enrique Sánchez Lansch | Germany, Norway |
| So Surreal: Behind the Masks | So Surreal: Behind the Masks | Neil Diamond, Joanne Robertson | Canada |
| A Stranger Quest | A Stranger Quest | Andrea Gatopoulos | Italy, United States, Canada |
| A Sudden Glimpse to Deeper Things | A Sudden Glimpse to Deeper Things | Mark Cousins | United Kingdom |
| Uncropped | Uncropped | D.W. Young | United States |
| Viva Niki: The Spirit of Niki de Saint Phalle | タロット・ガーデンへの道 | Michiko Matsumoto | Japan |

### Leading Lights

Guest curator: Zarrar Kahn.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| The Big City | Mahanagar | Satyajit Ray | India |
| Hyenas | Hyènes | Djibril Diop Mambéty | Senegal |
| Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion | Indagine su un cittadino al di sopra di ogni sospetto | Elio Petri | Italy |
| Marlina the Murderer in Four Acts | Marlina Si Pembunuh dalam Empat Babak | Mouly Surya | Indonesia |

### Focus: Once, There Is a City

Guest curators: Kika Memeh, Ogheneofegor Obuwoma.
| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Coconut Head Generation | Coconut Head Generation | Alain Kassanda | France, Nigeria |
| Eyimofe | Eyimofe | Arie Esiri, Chuko Esiri | Nigeria |
| Félicité | Félicité | Alain Gomis | Senegal |
| Ouaga Girls | Ouaga Girls | Theresa Traore Dahlberg | Sweden, Burkina Faso, France, Qatar |
| Rafiki | Rafiki | Wanuri Kahiu | Kenya |
| Tooth for Tooth | Dent pour dent | Ottis Ba | Senegal, Belgium, France, Rwanda |

### Altered States

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| 40 Acres | 40 Acres | R. T. Thorne | Canada |
| Dream Team | Dream Team | Lev Kalman, Whitney Horn | United States |
| Else | Else | Thibault Emin | France, Belgium |
| Fréwaka | Fréwaka | Aislinn Clarke | Ireland |
| Presence | Presence | Steven Soderbergh | United States |
| Párvulos | Párvulos: Hijos Del Apocalipsis | Isaac Ezban | Mexico |
| Rita | Rita | Jayro Bustamante | Guatemala |
| Rock Bottom | Rock Bottom | María Trénor | Spain, Poland |
| She Loved Blossoms More | She Loved Blossoms More | Yannis Veslemes | Greece, France |
| Timestalker | Timestalker | Alice Lowe | United Kingdom |

### Short Forum

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Province |
| Almost the Dust | Casi el polvo | Léa Soler | Mexico |
| Beeps | Beeps | Kirk Johnson | United States |
| The Boys and the Donkey | 少年与驴 | Tsering Yangjyab | China |
| Bright White Light | Bright White Light | Henna Välkky, Eesu Lehtola | Finland |
| Candle | Chandelle | Jérémi Roy | Canada |
| Chuff Chuff Chuff | 轟隆轟隆轟隆 | Chao Koi Wang | Taiwan |
| Colors Under the Streetlights | Colors Under the Streetlights | Yoshimi Joya | Japan |
| Creatures of Light | Criaturas de la Luz | Sylvie Weber | Mexico |
| Culture Shock | Culture Shock | Barry Bilinsky | Canada |
| Dadá | Dependências | Luisa Arraes | Brazil |
| Dark Matter | Dark Matter | Leo Berkeley | Australia |
| Darker | Darker | Matazi Weathers | United States |
| The Death of James | The Death of James | Sam Chou | Canada |
| Dokra Keu Bojhey Na | Dokra Keu Bojhey Na | Sneha Das, Monjima Mullick | India |
| Delta Dawn | Delta Dawn | Asia Youngman | Canada |
| Discoteque | Discoteque | Masashi Yamamoto | United States |
| The Egg | Dzun | Vahan Grigoryan | Armenia |
| The Everlasting Pea | The Everlasting Pea | Su Rynard | Canada |
| Explosions Near the Museum | Vybukhy bilia muzeiu | Roman Khimei, Yarema Malashchuk | Ukraine |
| Fishmonger | Fishmonger | Neil Ferron | United States |
| Gate 3 to 14 | مدخل ٣ إلى ١٤ | Karen Abou Jaoudeh | Lebanon |
| Grizzly Bear Country | Grizzly Bear Country | Mave Ky | Canada |
| Get Thee on the Dance Floor | 님과 함께 디스코 | Hyun Hahn | South Korea |
| Hatch | Hatch | Alireza Kazemipour, Panta Mosleh | Canada |
| If the Sun Drowned Into an Ocean of Clouds | Et si le soleil plongeait dans l’océan des nues | Wissam Charaf | France, Lebanon |
| Inkwo for When the Starving Return | Inkwo à la défense des vivants | Amanda Strong | Canada |
| Jane's in the Freezer | Jane's in the Freezer | Caleb Joye | United States |
| Judas Icarus Twists His Wrist | Judas Icarus Twists His Wrist | Kerr Holden | Canada |
| Judy's Garden | Judy's Garden | Evie Metz | United States |
| Julian and the Wind | Julian and the Wind | Connor Jessup | Canada |
| Like a Spiral | Comme une spirale | Lamia Chraibi | Canada |
| Losing Your Home | Juste un toit | Emmanuel Rioux | Canada |
| Magic Candies | Amedama | Daisuke Nishio | Japan |
| Mermaids | Sirènes | Sarah Malléon | Martinique |
| Minus Plus Multiply | Minus Plus Multiply | Chu-Chieh Lee | United Kingdom |
| Morî | Morî | Yakup Tekintangaç | Turkey |
| The Moving Garden | O Jardim Em Movimento | Inês Lima | Portugal |
| My Dog Is Dead | 私の犬が死んだ | Tasuku Matsunaga, Takehiro Senda | Japan |
| The Mysterious Adventures of Claude Conseil | Les Mystérieuses Aventures de Claude Conseil | Marie-Lola Terver, Paul Jousselin | France |
| Nemo 1 | Nemo 1 | Albéric Aurtenèche | Canada |
| Nietzschean Suicide | Khokoushten ba Shewazi Nietzsche | Payam Kurdistani | Iran |
| On Plains of Larger River & Woodlands | On Plains of Larger River & Woodlands | Miguel de Jesus | Australia, Portugal |
| One Day This Kid | One Day This Kid | Alexander Farah | Canada |
| Organza's Revenge | Organza's Revenge | Walter Scott | Canada |
| The Painting | Le Tableau | Michèle Lemieux | Canada |
| Palestine Islands | Palestine Islands | Nour Ben Salem, Julien Menanteau | France, Jordan |
| Pena's Special Handling | Penan Erikoiskuljetus | Anssi Kasitonni | Finland |
| Retracing Their Steps | Emboîter leurs pas | Manuel Orhy Piron | Canada |
| The Return | Enchukunoto | Laissa Malih | Kenya |
| Salem on the Road | Salem sur la route | Étienne Galloy | Canada |
| Save My Soul | Save My Soul | Kam Fai Leung | Hong Kong |
| Sauna Day | Sannapäiv | Anna Hints | Estonia |
| Shadow | Shadow | Kamell Allaway | United States |
| Shoes and Hooves | Cipők és paták | Viktória Traub | Hungary |
| Soap Box | Boîte à savon | Jimmy G. Pettigrew | Canada |
| Strawberry Shortcake | 草莓蛋糕 | Deborah Devyn Chuang | Taiwan |
| Stuffed | Stuffed | Louise Labrousse | France |
| The Sweater | The Sweater | Maziyar Khatam | Canada |
| Tayal Forest Club | 男孩奇幻夜 | Laha Mebow | Taiwan |
| Three Birds | Tri ticice | Zarja Menart | Slovenia, Croatia |
| Time Space Love | Time Space Love | Marie-Louise Gariépy | Canada |
| Time to Dilate | 확장기 | Kim Nayoung | South Korea |
| Uncommon Ground | Uncommon Ground | Faith Sparrow-Crawford | Canada |
| We Deserve an Empire | Merecemos Un Imperio | Mauricio Maldonado | Colombia |
| When the Wind Rises | Xia Feng Chu | Hung Chen | Taiwan |
| The Widow's Son Turns Storyteller | Hasratein Basrat | Shiker Pal | India |
| You Can't Get What You Want But You Can Get Me | You Can't Get What You Want But You Can Get Me | Samira Elagoz, Z Walsh | Netherlands, Finland |
| Zanatany, When Soulless Shrouds Whisper | Zanatany, L’empreinte des linceuls esseulés | Hachimiya Ahamada | Belgium, France, Qatar |
| Zoe | Zoe | Rémi St-Michel | Canada |

### Modes

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| The Cavalry | The Cavalry | Alina Orlov | Canada, Israel, United States |
| The Diary of a Sky | The Diary of a Sky | Lawrence Abu Hamdan | Lebanon |
| Dreams Like Paper Boats | Dreams Like Paper Boats | Samuel Suffren | Haiti |
| Flowers | Flowers | José Cardoso | Ecuador, South Africa |
| Freak | Freak | Claire Barnett | United States |
| Grandmamauntsistercat | Grandmamauntsistercat | Zuza Banasinska | Poland |
| Man Number Four | Man Number Four | Miranda Pennell | United Kingdom |
| Razeh-del | Razeh-del | Maryam Tafakory | Iran, United Kingdom, Italy |
| She Stays | She Stays | Marinthia Gutiérrez | Mexico |
| We Were No Desert | We Were No Desert | Agustina Comedi, Chiachio & Giannone | Argentina |