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The Regent Park Film Festival (RPFF) is welcoming audiences back for the 12th season of Under the Stars, Toronto’s largest free outdoor community film series. The weekly event runs on Wednesdays from July 8 to July 22 in Regent Park.
This year’s program brings together powerful stories from Palestine, Indigenous communities in North America, and Nigeria, exploring themes of displacement, resilience, family, memory and belonging.
Each Wednesday, visitors can enjoy family-friendly pre-show activities before settling in for a feature film at sundown. Thanks to the generous support of Friends of Canadian Media, this year’s festival will also feature three Canadian short films that complement the feature presentations.
“Under the Stars is about more than movies,” says Denise Soueidan-O’Leary, Executive Director of Regent Park Film Festival. “It’s about creating a space where neighbours gather, stories spark conversation, and people experience film together. In a time when so much happens online, there’s something powerful about sitting in a park with hundreds of people and sharing a story.”
The screenings take place at Regent Park, 620 Dundas St. E., Toronto, an accessible outdoor venue. The festival will once again run alongside Taste of Regent Park, the weekly community market hosted by CRC 40 Oak beginning at 5 p.m., giving attendees the opportunity to enjoy food and shop from local vendors before the films begin.
In the event of rain, scheduled screenings will be postponed until Wednesday, July 29, 2026.
Anyone with questions about accessibility can contact the festival at info@regentparkfilmfestival.com or call 416-599-7733.
RPFF Program Lineup
Wednesday, July 8
Pre-show begins at 7 p.m.; films begin at sundown
The Tower
Directed by Mats Grorud
France, Sweden, Norway | 2018 | Animation | 1 hour 14 minutes
Based on interviews conducted with Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, The Tower follows Wardi, an 11-year-old Palestinian girl living with her family in a refugee camp in Beirut. Through the oral histories of three generations of her family, she learns about the 1948 Nakba and how it violently displaced her family, suppressed their cultural identity and stripped them of their political rights. Inspired by her great-grandfather’s fading hope of one day returning to Galilee, Wardi explores the memories, loss and resilience of her community.
Is It War?
Directed by Timeea Mohamed Ahmed
Sudan | 2025 | Experimental | 5 minutes
When Jafar becomes separated from his soul during a surreal journey through a forest, he is forced to confront the devastating realities of war, conflict and displacement in Sudan before they consume him.
Co-presented by the Toronto Arab Film Festival.
Wednesday, July 15
Pre-show begins at 7 p.m.; films begin at sundown
Fancy Dance
Directed by Erica Tremblay
USA | 2023 | Drama | 1 hour 30 minutes
Since her sister disappeared, Jax has been raising her niece, Roki, on the Seneca-Cayuga Reservation in Oklahoma while tirelessly searching for answers. When custody of Roki is threatened, the pair set out on a journey to find Roki’s mother before an upcoming powwow. The film offers a moving exploration of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, while highlighting the resilience, resistance and collective care within Indigenous communities.
Niimi
Directed by Dana Solomon
Canada | 2025 | Drama | 15 minutes
After experiencing a traumatic incident, an Anishinaabe ballerina begins healing through an unexpected friendship in this uplifting Canadian drama about resilience and self-expression.
Co-presented by imagineNATIVE Film Festival, Inside Out Film Festival, Native Earth Performing Arts and Toronto Queer Film Festival.
Wednesday, July 22
Pre-show begins at 7 p.m.; films begin at sundown
My Father’s Shadow
Directed by Akinola Davies Jr.
United Kingdom, Nigeria | 2025 | Drama | 1 hour 35 minutes
Set during Nigeria’s historic 1993 election, My Father’s Shadow follows young brothers Remi and Akin as they unexpectedly accompany their often-absent father to Lagos to collect overdue wages. The semi-autobiographical drama explores grief, memory and fatherhood against a backdrop of political upheaval. The film received a Caméra d’Or Special Mention at the Cannes Film Festival and became the first Nigerian film ever selected for the festival’s Official Selection.
Sea Star
Directed by Tyler McKenzie Evans
Canada | 2025 | Drama | 12 minutes
An elderly Black man takes his first swimming lesson after a personal tragedy in this thoughtful Canadian short exploring grief, courage and generational trauma.
Co-presented by Black Gold, local·global, Nia Centre for the Arts and OYA Black Arts Coalition.
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