The OAKVILLE FESTIVALS OF FILM & ART (OFFA), Oakville’s independent film and arts festival, is proud to announce the 12th annual festival set for June 18th - June 25th in Oakville and Mississauga, Ontario.
OFFA is also celebrating being a recipient of an Ontario government’s Ontario Trillium Foundation grant in the amount of $112,000.00.
Yes, you heard it correctly, the Oakville Festivals of Film and Art (OFFA) is expanding the Oakville Film Festival for 2025 and 2026 into the communities of Mississauga (2025) and Burlington (2026). This will allow OFFA to access bigger, more diverse audiences, new filmmaking communities, and new venues. Neither of these communities has an existing community film festival. Through this expansion, OFFA will be able to offer more GALA events, screenings, and Q&As for residents.
This expansion will allow the Oakville Film Festival to highlight a new and diverse array of films, as well as offer industry networking and professional development opportunities for local filmmakers, while also increasing our opportunities for sponsorship, community partnerships, and collaboration with the film community. The additional locations will also make the festival more accessible to patrons, as it will give them more options for screening locations, reducing travel time and cost. Oakville has a much smaller population than either Mississauga or Burlington, so it is essential for the organization to tap into these larger communities to create sustainability in the coming years.
OFFA’S Executive Director, Wendy Donnan, is ecstatic about the Ontario Trillium Foundation grant - “The news of OFFA being a successful applicant in our Ontario Trillium Foundation Grow Grant application is fantastic for the 2025 Oakville Film Festival, and we have four screenings at the Mississauga Cineplex on Sunday, June 22nd.”
“The Oakville Festivals of Film & Art has become a dynamic platform for storytelling, culture, and community connection. I’m proud to celebrate this Ontario Trillium Foundation grant of $112,000, which will help OFFA expand its reach, elevate local voices, and continue building a festival that reflects the heart and diversity of our community. This investment speaks to the power of the arts in bringing people together and strengthening our community.” Says Effie J. Triantafilopoulos, MPP for Oakville North–Burlington and Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Gaming.
For 2025, OFFA is expanding to Mississauga and will be at the Square One Cineplex on Sunday, 22nd June, presenting a full day of screenings highlighting filmmakers and stories from Mississauga, as well as a selection of Canadian films from across Canada. This day is part of the Oakville Film Festival, which runs from 18th to 25th June.
On Sunday, 22 June, from 11 am to 11 pm, at Cineplex Mississauga Square One, you can screen stories from talented Mississauga filmmakers and enjoy award-winning films from across Canada! Screenings include:
Sunday, June 22nd, 11:00 AM - SHORTS FOR ALL SORTS (Mississauga Creators + Stories)
This year, as The Oakville Film Festival expands into Mississauga, we are pleased to feature a selection of shorts that highlight Mississauga talent and stories, as well as other Canadian environs.
Kanakiyost: Art, Identity and Belonging - Cathleen MacDonald (and Lynn Taylor subject of film)
Terry’s Little Village - Dir: Jack Kukolic
With Love, Alice - Alice Brisbin
A Ticket Home - Magil Moyes
Shadow Boxing - Arwen Mercado
Watch What You Have - Hassain Dawas
Scratch- Dir. Taye Alvis
You Left Me Today - Michael Lam
Dolly - Maya Rikhi
Obscura - Arnold Lim
Two Humans and a Duck- Dir. Cameron Woo
Ewa’s Letter - Dir. Keaton James Browning
Host: Cynthia Crofoot
Sunday, June 22nd, 2:00 PM - CAT’S CRY
Canada/Serbia/Croatia | Drama | 1hr 35m | Trailer
Eastern Canadian Premiere
Sponsor: PSW to the Rescue
SYNOPSIS: In a small Serbian town, Milena dreams of fame and independence amidst the allure of a Serbian music channel. Her aspirations and plans for the future are challenged when she gives birth to a baby with a rare genetic condition called “Cat’s Cry”. While her partner Igor and his family refuse to take responsibility for the baby, her father, Stamen, a retired factory worker, urges Milena to leave Igor and return home, offering to raise the child together. Overwhelmed and fearful of her future, Milena disappears. Now Stamen and his new wife, Vera, must fight a flawed Serbian social system for custody of their granddaughter, while Milena struggles to find her own way forward.
Q&A: will include Actor Jasmin Geljo, plays Stamin (Grandfather).
SHORT FILM: Baby (dir. Andrea Ramolo), Music in the Pocket (Dir. Dir. Veronika Kostyuk)
Sunday, June 22nd, 5:00 PM - SAINTS AND WARRIORS
Canada | Documentary | 1hr 37m | Trailer
SYNOPSIS: Throughout the course of the Haida basketball season, Saints And Warriors, tells an intimate and sweeping story of how basketball has become the heartbeat of contemporary culture on the remote Indigenous nation of Haida Gwaii.
FILM FACT: For Delta Dawn, Producer Mike Johnston is originally from Oakville and brought last year’s award-winning Curl Power documentary to the festival. Delta Dawn just won the 2025 Hot Docs Betty Youson Award for Best Canadian Short Documentary.
Q&A: Q&A with Director/Writer Patrick Shannon and Dir. Delta Dawn, Asia Youngman
SHORT FILM: Delta Dawn (dir. Asia Youngman), Imam (Ant Horasanli)
Sunday, June 22nd, 8:00 PM - UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE
Canada | Satire/Comedy/Drama | 1hr 29m | Trailer
SYNOPSIS: Somewhere between Tehran and Winnipeg. Negin and Nazgol find a sum of money frozen in the winter ice and try to get it out. Massoud leads a group of increasingly confused tourists through monuments and historic sites of Winnipeg. Matthew quits his job at the Québec government and embarks upon a mysterious journey to visit his mother. Time, geography and personal identities crossfade, interweave and collide into a surreal comedy of disorientation.
DIRECTOR: Matthew Rankin
STARRING: Matthew Rankin, Pirouz Nemati, Amir Amiri
FILM FACT: Canada's entry for Academy Awards. Canadian Screen award winner screened at Cannes.
Q&A: Virtual Q&A with Director Matthew Rankin
SHORT FILMS: A Pleasure (dir. Sonia Estevez) Orbit (dir. Conrad Ciupak)
You can get your tickets here.
Photo attached includes the following people:
Shane Cullis - OFFA Director, Wendy Donnan - OFFA Executive Director, Effie J. Triantafilopoulos, MPP for Oakville North–Burlington and Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Gaming, Miriam Lea-Clarke - OFFA Treasurer, Suzy Godefroy - OFFA Festival Community Development, PR & Communications Manager and Mark Horowitz - OFFA Director.
The OAKVILLE FESTIVALS OF FILM & ART (OFFA), Oakville’s independent film and arts festival, is proud to announce the 12th annual festival set for June 18th - June 25th in Oakville and Mississauga, Ontario.
OFFA is also celebrating being a recipient of an Ontario government’s Ontario Trillium Foundation grant in the amount of $112,000.00.
Yes, you heard it correctly, the Oakville Festivals of Film and Art (OFFA) is expanding the Oakville Film Festival for 2025 and 2026 into the communities of Mississauga (2025) and Burlington (2026). This will allow OFFA to access bigger, more diverse audiences, new filmmaking communities, and new venues. Neither of these communities has an existing community film festival. Through this expansion, OFFA will be able to offer more GALA events, screenings, and Q&As for residents.
This expansion will allow the Oakville Film Festival to highlight a new and diverse array of films, as well as offer industry networking and professional development opportunities for local filmmakers, while also increasing our opportunities for sponsorship, community partnerships, and collaboration with the film community. The additional locations will also make the festival more accessible to patrons, as it will give them more options for screening locations, reducing travel time and cost. Oakville has a much smaller population than either Mississauga or Burlington, so it is essential for the organization to tap into these larger communities to create sustainability in the coming years.
OFFA’S Executive Director, Wendy Donnan, is ecstatic about the Ontario Trillium Foundation grant - “The news of OFFA being a successful applicant in our Ontario Trillium Foundation Grow Grant application is fantastic for the 2025 Oakville Film Festival, and we have four screenings at the Mississauga Cineplex on Sunday, June 22nd.”
“The Oakville Festivals of Film & Art has become a dynamic platform for storytelling, culture, and community connection. I’m proud to celebrate this Ontario Trillium Foundation grant of $112,000, which will help OFFA expand its reach, elevate local voices, and continue building a festival that reflects the heart and diversity of our community. This investment speaks to the power of the arts in bringing people together and strengthening our community.” Says Effie J. Triantafilopoulos, MPP for Oakville North–Burlington and Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Gaming.
For 2025, OFFA is expanding to Mississauga and will be at the Square One Cineplex on Sunday, 22nd June, presenting a full day of screenings highlighting filmmakers and stories from Mississauga, as well as a selection of Canadian films from across Canada. This day is part of the Oakville Film Festival, which runs from 18th to 25th June.
On Sunday, 22 June, from 11 am to 11 pm, at Cineplex Mississauga Square One, you can screen stories from talented Mississauga filmmakers and enjoy award-winning films from across Canada! Screenings include:
Sunday, June 22nd, 11:00 AM - SHORTS FOR ALL SORTS (Mississauga Creators + Stories)
This year, as The Oakville Film Festival expands into Mississauga, we are pleased to feature a selection of shorts that highlight Mississauga talent and stories, as well as other Canadian environs.
Kanakiyost: Art, Identity and Belonging - Cathleen MacDonald (and Lynn Taylor subject of film)
Terry’s Little Village - Dir: Jack Kukolic
With Love, Alice - Alice Brisbin
A Ticket Home - Magil Moyes
Shadow Boxing - Arwen Mercado
Watch What You Have - Hassain Dawas
Scratch- Dir. Taye Alvis
You Left Me Today - Michael Lam
Dolly - Maya Rikhi
Obscura - Arnold Lim
Two Humans and a Duck- Dir. Cameron Woo
Ewa’s Letter - Dir. Keaton James Browning
Host: Cynthia Crofoot
Sunday, June 22nd, 2:00 PM - CAT’S CRY
Canada/Serbia/Croatia | Drama | 1hr 35m | Trailer
Eastern Canadian Premiere
Sponsor: PSW to the Rescue
SYNOPSIS: In a small Serbian town, Milena dreams of fame and independence amidst the allure of a Serbian music channel. Her aspirations and plans for the future are challenged when she gives birth to a baby with a rare genetic condition called “Cat’s Cry”. While her partner Igor and his family refuse to take responsibility for the baby, her father, Stamen, a retired factory worker, urges Milena to leave Igor and return home, offering to raise the child together. Overwhelmed and fearful of her future, Milena disappears. Now Stamen and his new wife, Vera, must fight a flawed Serbian social system for custody of their granddaughter, while Milena struggles to find her own way forward.
DIRECTOR: Sanja Zivkovic
STARRING: Jasmin Geljo, Andrijana Đorđević, Sanja Mikitišin
Q&A: will include Actor Jasmin Geljo, plays Stamin (Grandfather).
SHORT FILM: Baby (dir. Andrea Ramolo), Music in the Pocket (Dir. Dir. Veronika Kostyuk)
Sunday, June 22nd, 5:00 PM - SAINTS AND WARRIORS
Canada | Documentary | 1hr 37m | Trailer
SYNOPSIS: Throughout the course of the Haida basketball season, Saints And Warriors, tells an intimate and sweeping story of how basketball has become the heartbeat of contemporary culture on the remote Indigenous nation of Haida Gwaii.
DIRECTOR: Patrick Shannon
STARRING: Desi Collinson, Nika Collinson, Jesse Barnes
FILM FACT: For Delta Dawn, Producer Mike Johnston is originally from Oakville and brought last year’s award-winning Curl Power documentary to the festival. Delta Dawn just won the 2025 Hot Docs Betty Youson Award for Best Canadian Short Documentary.
Q&A: Q&A with Director/Writer Patrick Shannon and Dir. Delta Dawn, Asia Youngman
SHORT FILM: Delta Dawn (dir. Asia Youngman), Imam (Ant Horasanli)
Sunday, June 22nd, 8:00 PM - UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE
Canada | Satire/Comedy/Drama | 1hr 29m | Trailer
SYNOPSIS: Somewhere between Tehran and Winnipeg. Negin and Nazgol find a sum of money frozen in the winter ice and try to get it out. Massoud leads a group of increasingly confused tourists through monuments and historic sites of Winnipeg. Matthew quits his job at the Québec government and embarks upon a mysterious journey to visit his mother. Time, geography and personal identities crossfade, interweave and collide into a surreal comedy of disorientation.
DIRECTOR: Matthew Rankin
STARRING: Matthew Rankin, Pirouz Nemati, Amir Amiri
FILM FACT: Canada's entry for Academy Awards. Canadian Screen award winner screened at Cannes.
Q&A: Virtual Q&A with Director Matthew Rankin
SHORT FILMS: A Pleasure (dir. Sonia Estevez) Orbit (dir. Conrad Ciupak)
You can get your tickets here.
Photo attached includes the following people:
Shane Cullis - OFFA Director, Wendy Donnan - OFFA Executive Director, Effie J. Triantafilopoulos, MPP for Oakville North–Burlington and Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Gaming, Miriam Lea-Clarke - OFFA Treasurer, Suzy Godefroy - OFFA Festival Community Development, PR & Communications Manager and Mark Horowitz - OFFA Director.