Festival Season Isn’t Over

TIFF is done, but Canada's festival calendar runs to December: 10 festivals from St. John's to Whistler, with dates, ticket details and what to target.

By Catherine Crowe October 10, 2026 4 min read

Illustration: The Remote

TIFF wrapped on 20 Sept, but Canada’s festival calendar keeps going until December. From genre premieres in Toronto to a documentary showcase in Montreal and a mountain festival in Whistler, here are 10 festivals still ahead this fall, with dates, ticket details and what to look for. Every date below comes from the festival’s own site.

October

Festival du nouveau cinéma, Montreal, 8 to 18 Oct. The 55th edition is under way, with nearly 200 works from more than 30 countries, according to the festival. Its International Competition, for first and second features, is the section the festival says regulars anticipate most. Canadian pick: Carol Nguyen’s debut feature Still Night, Burning House, about her family’s journey to Vietnam to understand the uncle they lost. Tickets are sold through the festival’s site.

Toronto After Dark, Toronto, 14 to 18 Oct. The genre festival’s 19th edition brings 14 feature premieres and 33 genre shorts to the Scotiabank Theatre and CineCycle. Passes have been on sale since June, in limited quantities, and single tickets went on sale on 29 Sept.

St. John’s International Women’s Film Festival, St. John’s, 20 to 24 Oct. The 37th annual edition. The festival has not yet posted venue or ticket details, so check its site closer to the date.

Windsor International Film Festival, Windsor, 29 Oct to 8 Nov. The festival has announced its full lineup: 232 feature films from 55 countries. Tickets are booked film by film on its site, and the festival asks viewers to create an account to vote for audience favourites. One overlap worth noting: Netflix says TIFF’s People’s Choice winner, La Bola Negra, opens at Windsor’s Capitol Theatre on 6 Nov.

November

Cinemania, Montreal, 4 to 15 Nov. Montreal’s festival of francophone films reaches its 32nd edition. Its Passeport cinéphile, a festival pass, is on sale now.

Silver Wave Film Festival, Fredericton, 5 to 12 Nov. The NB Film Co-op runs it. Venue and ticket details are still to come.

Vancouver Asian Film Festival, Vancouver, 5 to 15 Nov. The festival says it will run five days of in-person screenings in Vancouver plus a seven-day online festival open across Canada, the only Canada-wide online component confirmed on this list so far. The full program is due this fall.

Blood in the Snow, Toronto, 16 to 21 Nov. The festival screens at the Isabel Bader Theatre. Passes are on sale now, from $55 for a short film pass to $120 for a screening pass. The full lineup will be announced on 20 Oct, when single tickets go on sale.

RIDM, Montreal, 19 to 29 Nov. Montreal’s international documentary festival reaches its 29th edition. It opens on 19 Nov at the Salle Pierre-Mercure with To Hold a Mountain, directed by Biljana Tutorov and Petar Glomazić, and closes on 28 Nov at the Maison Théâtre with Ashley Da-Lê Duong’s Ba’s Book. The National Film Board of Canada says Matthew Rankin’s Ladies and Gentlemen, Brian Mulroney, TIFF’s Midnight Madness audience winner, is in the lineup. Ticket details are not yet posted; the festival’s box office is at Billetterie@ridm.ca.

December

Whistler Film Festival, Whistler, 2 to 6 Dec. The first wave of films includes Queens For A Day from Chris Carter, Vic Sarin’s The Lightkeeper, which is eligible for the festival’s Borsos Competition, and Banchi Hanuse’s documentary Ceremony. Ticket packs are on sale now, including a $36 pack of six Borsos films. The full lineup is announced on 3 Nov; pack holders get 24 hours of priority booking, and general sales open on 4 Nov.

One more date for awards watchers

The Academy announces its Oscar shortlists, including Best International Feature Film, on 15 Dec. Canada’s entry is Nina Roza.

Dates to save

20 Oct: Blood in the Snow single tickets go on sale, with the full lineup
20 to 24 Oct: St. John’s International Women’s Film Festival
29 Oct to 8 Nov: Windsor International Film Festival
3 Nov: Whistler Film Festival full lineup; general ticket sales open 4 Nov
4 to 15 Nov: Cinemania, Montreal
5 to 12 Nov: Silver Wave Film Festival, Fredericton
5 to 15 Nov: Vancouver Asian Film Festival, in Vancouver and online across Canada
16 to 21 Nov: Blood in the Snow, Toronto
19 to 29 Nov: RIDM, Montreal
2 to 6 Dec: Whistler Film Festival
15 Dec: Oscar shortlists announced