It’s a big year for documentaries at the Windsor International Film Festival (WIFF). The festival has a whopping tally of over 60 documentaries within its feature film slate, which marks one of the heftier servings for non-fiction on the fall festival circuit. The festival kicks off on Thursday, October 29 with the opening night premiere of James Gray’s Paper Tiger and closes on November 8 with Jesse Eisenberg’s The Debut – this critic’s personal favourite drama at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this year. Between those headliners, though, expect docs to steal the spotlight. For one, the festival boasts a notable coup by landing the Canadian premiere of the Goodfellas documentary As Far Back as I Can Remember with star Lorraine Bracco on hand at the festival where she’ll accept the 2026 Spotlight Award and discuss her Oscar-nominated performance in Martin Scorsese’s enduring classic.
There are also key historical figures in the festival’s national competition. There are four docs in contention for the $25,000 WIFF Prize in Canadian Film with Brian Mulroney going head to head with Terry Fox among the contenders. That number helps the festival solidify its presence for both documentaries and Canadian films overall on the circuit, especially at a moment when the number of non-fiction features screening in theatres is way down. We’ll cross our fingers that the recent success of certain docs at the box office will change.
In the meantime, though, here are some many documentary highlights at this year’s Windsor International Film Festival. Bookmark this page as your handy guide to WIFF docs!
Docs in Competition
Ba’s Book
Fri, Oct. 29 and Sat, Oct. 30
After scoring strong reviews following its world premiere at TIFF, Ashley Duong’s innovative exercise in family filmmaking jumps into competition. The film sees Duong creatively adapt her father’s memoir by tracing his return to Vietnam in vérité and interviews and contrasting those elements with dramatic interpretations of his life’s story. It’s an engaged and participatory approach to biography, especially as her father has his own opinions about getting the story right—as dads are prone to do! “Working with family intimately, like my dad, who is very strong-willed and opinionated is so hard,” Duong tells Alice Shih in our current issue. “I do want to include his opinions but not all. There’s a huge linguistic and cultural barrier between me and my family in Vietnam; but since we spent a lot of time together, we have gotten a lot closer throughout the process.”
Nekai Walks
Fri, Oct. 30 and Sat, Oct. 30
Winner of the Rogers Audience Award for Best Canadian Feature at Hot Docs this year, Rico King’s documentary offers an inspiring story about Toronto teen Nekai Foster, who set himself on a determined path to recovery. The film tells how Foster caught a stray when a random drive-by shooting sprayed 127 bullets into the street. It’s a miracle that he survived, but that’s not enough: He vows to make his recovery a message for his community to stay strong and united by standing up to gun violence. “Nekai Walks reminds audiences that even those holding the gun can be victims of a system that fails generations of youth,” Courtney Small wrote in our review of the film. “Challenging audiences to rethink gun violence and those impacted by it, Nekai Walks is a moving and thought-provoking exploration into the empathy, community and resilience.”
Run Terry Run
Fri, Oct. 29 and Sat, Oct. 30
Every festival season needs a sentimental favourite inspiring audiences on the circuit and look no further than the story of Canadian hero Terry Fox for motivation. This all-archival record from director Sean Menard offers a defining portrait of Fox’s courageous Marathon of Hope as he began running across Canada to raise awareness for cancer research. Meticulously crafted and lovingly and honestly detailed through perspectives from participants who remember both the highs and the lows of the run, this doc will have legs in Canadian history. “The film wears its heart on its sleeve, but appropriately so. Even though one knows the outcome of Fox’s run, there’s a point in Run Terry Run where one almost forgets and assumes he makes it,” I noted in our review from TIFF. “There couldn’t be a more fitting portrait of this hero who inspires Canadians to keep running decades later.”
Ladies and Gentlemen, Brian Mulroney
Fri, Oct. 29 and Sat, Oct. 30
Stuffy memories of high school history class fly brazenly out the window in this visionary docufantasia. Matthew Rankin mines the NFB archives and the annals of Canadian public broadcasting with creative genius as he reimagines the cutthroat ascent of our 18th Prime Minister, Brian Mulroney. The film offers a wickedly funny companion to the Terry Fox story as Mulroney appears as a great unifier for Canadians. “It’s a bit of a miracle how such a breakdown of historical storytelling norms manages to uncover a deeper truthiness of the social experiment we call Canada,” wrote Jason Gorber in our review from TIFF, “but maybe such an implausibly successful nation needs something a bit oblique and opaque to satisfactorily paint the nation’s portrait.” Pick up a copy of our new issue at the WIFF box office while quantities last to read an interview with Rankin! (And stories on many more WIFF selections!)
The Honoree
As Far Back as I Can Remember…The Story of Goodfellas
Mon, Nov. 2
As far back as I can remember, Goodfellas changed the way I look at movies. Martin Scorsese’s hugely influential mob movie about Henry Hill endures as one of the best crime films ever and a defining film of the 1990s. This entry in the Life After Movies series looks at how Scorsese and company brought a gritty jolt of life to mob movies and met a seemingly impossible bar set by Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather, as well as Scorsese’s own early works. Directors Lisa Downs and Ashley Pugh get new takes from many of the key players in the Goodfellas story, including star Lorraine Bracco, producer Irwin Winkler, actors Debi Mazar, Illeana Douglas, Welker White, production designer Kristi Zea, and figures across the cast and crew to illuminate the creation of an enduring masterpiece. Bracco will be on hand at the Canadian premiere at WIFF along with White and Zea.
Be Italian!
In Paese: The Village
Sun, Nov. 8
If all the meatballs and exclamations of “vaffanculo!” leave a WIFF-goer hungry for another taste of Italy, start with another (very different) family story. Shelley Tepperman’s documentary follows a Montreal family back to Joppolo Giancaxio, a Sicilian village that sees fluctuations in the local population following generations of migration and more recent struggles for work opportunities. The film observes as Canadian-born Francesca makes a long-overdue homecoming with her Italian mother, Angela, who hopes that her daughter’s ability to connect with her roots will put her soul at ease. The film deftly explores the ways in which divergent paths can fracture families, but also the bonds of kinship, community, and friendship that endure across distances and generations.
Tenor: My Name is Pati
Wed, Nov. 4
So it’s not Italian per se, but many onlookers called Pene Pati “the next Pavarotti” when his deep voice enthralled audiences in opera houses. This documentary by Rebecca Tansley captures the life and music of Samoan tenor Pene Pati. It’s a true underdog story about a rising star and a heartfelt hunger to make one’s mark. The film’s a hit on the festival circuit and comes to Windsor hot off a win for Best Documentary Feature in juried competition at the Naples International Film Festival (Naples, Florida) and previously scored an Audience Award at VIFF and the Grand Prix at the 63rd Golden Prague International Television Festival, among other honours. It’s a smart ticket for another looking to sit back and enjoy a movie and great music with a hearty glass of wine.
More Music Docs!
Darlene Love: I Know Where I’ve Been
Tues, Nov. 3 and Fri, Nov. 6
It opera isn’t your jam, try one of the other music docs keeping the beat at WIFF. Among them is the toe-tappingly delightful Darlene Love portrait from Barry Avrich. I Know Where I’ve Been charts the incredible life of Darlene Love, who long performed as a backup artist on hit records and landed a smash success in her own right with an iconic Christmas song. Love’s contribution to music extends far beyond that infectious holiday ditty, and this TIFF People’s Choice Award winner honours her with appropriate praise. “There’s genuine warmth as each artist bestows praise upon a gifted talent,” noted Jason Gorber in our review from TIFF. “Many of these voices recognize all that Love had gone through, from her restrictive contracts and the erasure of her fame by those controlling her career, right through to her many attempts at mainstream success.”
Turtle Island Rap
Fri, Nov. 6
The next generation of hit-makers asserts itself loudly and proudly in Alexandra Lazarowich’s feature debut. Turtle Island Rap follows three Indigenous hip hop artists as they navigate a competitive industry and give their all to be heard. Travis Thompson, A$h Da Hunter, and Wiidaaseh respond to the different twists that life throws at them by channelling their experiences into music. That authenticity helps them connect with young audiences, while the artists learn all the new tools of the trade—social media, self-promotion, etc.—to harness that positive energy into good vibes that will persuade the labels to take a closer look. “Lazarowich’s camera captures the ambition and insecurities that come with putting oneself out there creatively,” said Courtney Small in our review from TIFF. “Cracking through the steely cool façade that rappers often convey, their mixture of passion and vulnerability makes the audience want to root for the artists in Lazarowich’s fascinating film.”
Feminist Flicks
The Gymnasts of Fisherman Colony
Tues, Nov. 3
This absolute winner brings audiences to a fishing community in Pakistan where three young women find strength in spirit through gymnastics. Filmmaker Habiba Nosheen focuses on Sonia, Anwara, and Kiran as they prove that girls can do far more than society tells them they can be. The girls thrive as part of a gymnastics team, and each session of honing their core strength and finding balance extends beyond the skills they develop in the gym. They vault through a glass ceiling and illustrate to their parents and elders the value in sport and education on a person’s future. The film observes, however, how currents of class, race, and social standing complicate the girls’ ability to compete and represent their community. Featuring Malala Yousafzai and actor/director Mariska Hargitay among its executive producers, this festival favourite scored prizes including Best Documentary at International South Asian Film Festival Canada, the Chicago South Asian Film Festival, and Seattle’s Tasveer Film Festival. Check back later for our interview with Nosheen!
A War on Women
Thurs, Oct. 29 and Fri, Oct. 30
Audiences at Hot Docs turned out in droves for this compelling human rights saga from director Raha Shirazi. The documentary charts the long road to change for women’s rights in Iran leading up to the Women, Life, Freedom movement that captured the world’s attention. The film develops the historical context for the protests by chronicling decades of resistance. It draws upon the voices of women who fight for change at levels both personal and institutional. The film builds to a forceful rallying cry for women’s rights as it culminates with images from contemporary protests. But in making such an inspiring and moving history, the climax proves absolutely devastating and underscores the work that still needs to be done. There’s enough courage on display to ensure that audiences will carry the women’s spirit with them outside the theatre.
Canadian Film on Film
Captain Newfoundland
Mon, Nov. 2
Take a gander at a strange Newfoundlander in this oddball doc from Mike Feehan and Jamie Miller. Captain Newfoundland salutes the eccentric life and legacy of maverick television pioneer Geoff Stirling. The film shares how Stirling put Newfoundland on the map in its own right after it joined Canada much to his disapproval. His creation of NTV remains a hallmark of you gotta see it to believe it television as the documentary revisits the reefer madness of the station’s late night programming, which served visualizations of his Zen philosophy, but also helped changed the industry with 24-hour programming in an era when broadcasters signed off for the night. His most memorable creation, however, may be the superhero that gives this doc its name. The film unpacks the enduring appeal of the masked superhero who knows where on the little rock of Newfoundland one can find a portal to the lost city of Atlantis.
This Love, These Days
Sat, Oct. 31
Not all superheroes wear masks and capes. Some simply see life through a viewfinder. That’s case with Robert Morin (Festin Boréal), who co-founded la Coop vidéo de Montréal and helped to build the city’s independent film scene. There’s a two-pronged approach to loving your work, however, as Morin’s partner, André-Line Beauparlant shows. A filmmaker herself, Beauparlant documents the filmmaker and observes the ways in which passion and labour exist in harmony. The film conveys how in capturing one person’s story through such a personal lens, one tells a tale that’s inevitably one’s own.
Family Matters
The Delivery Line
Tues, Nov. 3
The stories of five women helping expectant mothers deliver their babies fuel this important doc from Nance Ackerman. The Delivery Line jumps around the globe, sharing the perspectives of women in Afghanistan, Colombia, Nigeria, the USA, and Canada to show a connected effort to change the narrative for women’s rights and agency. “I was tired of the way global issues were being covered, especially with all the new media, when those issues are becoming the hum everybody ignores. And the story was usually told from the male perspective. You heard about a bombing, how many ships were blown up. You’d hear about children being killed, but you wouldn’t hear it from a woman’s point of view,” Ackerman told Susan G. Cole back at Hot Docs. “The way to change it was to cover something I really care about. I thought, let’s change the frame, look at it differently, so people can see we could create a seed of hope that there were those saving lives and making a difference with how a baby is born.”
The Dads
Wed, Nov. 4
After the mothers to be and the women who aid them get their due, take a moment to appreciate the dads fighting for their kids to have a safe, positive, and fair future. Filmmaker Luchina Fisher expands upon her Emmy winning short documentary of the same name and shines a spotlight on the fathers of transgender and gender-diverse children. As the culture wars scapegoat transpeople across the United States, with trans kids becoming especially vulnerable at moments in their lives when they’re most in need of support and affirmation, the film shows how American fathers unite to protect and nurture their kids. The film offers a message about guiding kids towards being their authentic selves when their very existence is under attack. It’s a reminder, too, about how differently a kid’s path can be if one simply responds to them with love.
Simba Oughta Move to Kapuskasing
Runa Sima
Fri, Nov. 6
WIFF has several noteworthy docs about Indigenous communities and their experiences, but the second Friday of the festival offers a novel double bill about what it means for people to be seen and heard in one’s own language. For starters, Runa Simi delivers a story that’s tailor-made for a festival audience as Peruvian cinephile Fernando Valencia takes the initiative to bring movies to his community in their native Quechua, which is spoken by 3.7 million people in the nation and roughly double that number worldwide. His first project, moreover, is no small task: he seeks to dub Disney’s The Lion King in Quechua and he assembles the best voices in his community to do so. “Runa Simi makes a strong argument that enjoying movies in one’s own language shouldn’t be novelty,” I wrote in POV’s review for the documentary. “The film aspires to a new normal for the democratization of media. It’s a smart case study for an age when widely available consumer technology makes accessibility possible.”
Tomson Highway: Permanent Astonishment
Fri, Nov. 6
One doc that I haven’t yet had the chance to seen, but have kept on my radar for a while is this portrait of acclaimed playwright and author Tomson Highway. Cree-Métis filmmaker Barbara Todd Hager looks at the life and work of this gifted wordsmith, best known for plays like The Rez Sisters and Dry Lips Oughta Move to Kapuskasing and the extraordinary novel Kiss of the Fur Queen. Highway’s works find a dark avenue through sites of trauma, often using dry humour to find release. The film honours his legacy and the voices he continues to inspire.
Other docs in the WIFF line-up that you can read about in POV include Aanikoobijigan; American Doctor; Antidiva: The Carol Pope Confessions; A.rtificial I.mmortality; Ceremony; Code of Misconduct; Ghost in the Machine; Gimme Truth; The History of Concrete; King Arthur’s Night; təm kʷaθ nan (Namesake); Nuisance Bear; Once Upon a Time in Harlem; Paper Man; Peter Asher: Everywhere Man; Rehearsals for a Revolution; The Sandbox; Sentient; Steal this Story, Please!; Still Night, Burning House; The Theft; There’s No Place Like This Place, Anyplace; Time and Water; Tough Old Broads; #WhileBlack; Who Is Alex Odeh?, and You Had to Be There.
WIFF runs Oct. 29 to Nov. 8.
Please check your local listings for chances to see these films at other festivals, event screenings, or broadcast runs.
