Students and alumni from York University's School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design (AMPD) will be in the spotlight during this year's Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), with contributions to films, television, experimental cinema and public installations.
AMPD alumni, students and faculty have been regular contributors to TIFF for years, and the 2026 festival continues that tradition. This year's projects highlight the breadth of creative work emerging from the York creative community.
Meet the members of AMPD whose work will appear at TIFF 2026.
Nicolás Pereda (BFA '05, MFA '07)
Film: Everything Else is Noise (Todo lo demás es ruido)
Role: director
Pereda returns to TIFF for the third consecutive year with his latest film, which he also co-wrote, edited and served as cinematographer. The film's inclusion in TIFF's Wavelengths programme adds to the long list of international festivals that have screened his award-winning work.
Antoine Bourges (MFA '18)
Film: Pacific Spirit
Role: writer, director
Bourges' latest short film explores self discovery, faith and the search for meaning in everyday life, continuing his reputation for character-driven films that blend documentary and narrative approaches to examine human connection.
On returning to TIFF: "I'm always honoured to show my work at festivals, but TIFF is obviously very special. It always feels like a homecoming. Even though I'm not from Toronto, I lived there during an important part of my life, and the energy of that film scene never left me."
(Credit: Christian Cocuzzo)
Sylvia Mok (BFA '26)
Film: Restaurant Kids
Role: writer, director
Mok is an emerging filmmaker whose short documentary, part of the festival's REDEFINED short film showcase, examines the experiences of children who grew up in family-run restaurants and the communities that shaped them.
Mustafa Uzuner (PhD student, Cinema & Media Studies)
Film: The Address Book
Role: director and artist
Premiering as part of TIFF's Wavelengths programme, Uzuner's film combines experimental filmmaking with an interest in art, history and the cultural connections that shape creative communities.
Rodrigo Michelangeli (BFA '14)
Film: Neverman
Role: cinematographer
Michelangeli's work has screened at major international festivals, including Venice and Rotterdam. Known for his visually rich and immersive approach to storytelling, he has built a career spanning narrative, documentary and hybrid film projects. His latest feature film screens in TIFF's Centrepiece programme.
Michelle Szemberg (BFA '00) and Verona Choi (BFA '21)
Film: Neverman
Role: editor and first assistant editor
Szemberg is an award-winning film editor whose credits span feature films, television and documentary projects, including All My Puny Sorrows, which earned her a Canadian Screen Award for Best Editing. Choi is an emerging editor working across film and television productions.
Justin Stockman (BFA '96)
Project: YAGA
Role: vice-president, Global Content, Crave
Featured in TIFF's Primetime programme, YAGA is part of a growing slate of original Canadian productions supported by Stockman. His portfolio also includes series such as Shoresy, Sullivan's Crossing and Heated Rivalry.
Naomi Jaye (MFA '19)
Project: SLOW
Jaye's participatory multi-screen installation SLOW explores movement, memory and time. Inspired by her father's changing movements following a Parkinson disease diagnosis, the work reimagines the zoetrope as a large, human-powered cylinder activated collectively by visitors.
Rennie Taylor (MA student, Cinema & Media Studies)
Project: Little Free Cinema
Part of TIFF Festival Street, Taylor's project presents experimental films through small public screening spaces. This year's programming includes work by MFA Production alumna Christina Dovolis (MFA '23) and Professor Emeritus Philip Hoffman.
For more information and showtimes, visit the TIFF website.