DSO at TIFF 2026: Highlights from the Festival
The 51st edition of the Toronto International Film Festival was an especially meaningful one for the DSO. We launched a new accessibility resource, brought a wonderful delegation of six disabled creatives to the festival, joined CBC’s The Creative Exchange event, and connected with members of our community and industry partners from across the country.
DSO Executive Director Winnie Luk (center) with delegates Adrian Morphy, Anna Cooley, Taylor Lindsay-Noel, and Ardra Shephard.
We were also thrilled to see nine films exploring disability experiences premiere at TIFF this year, including Being Heumann, which was selected as the Opening Night Film. Congratulations as well to TIFF on the launch of its inaugural TIFF: The Market, an exciting new addition to the festival!
Here are some highlights from our time at the festival.
All-Access Pass Launch Event
From left to right: Christopher Omenye (BANFF), Prasanna Ranganathan (DSO Board Director), Elspeth Arbow (DSO Operations Manager/EA), Winnie Luk (DSO Executive Director), Emily-Jane Williams (Reelworld), Jenn Kuzmyk (BANFF), Kelly Lui (Reel Asian), and Elisa Suppa (Telefilm Canada).
On September 14, we officially launched All-Access Pass: A Roadmap for Festival & Screen Industry Event Accessibility at the Canada Pavilion at TIFF: The Market. Developed with support from Telefilm Canada, this free guide builds on the DSO's multi-year work with the Banff World Media Festival, Vancouver International Film Festival, Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival and Reelworld Film Festival through our Screen Festival Accessibility Program.
All-Access Pass offers practical guidance for integrating accessibility throughout event planning, delivery and evaluation. It also includes a five-year roadmap to help organizations build accessibility over time, starting with achievable low-cost and no-cost measures and expanding their practices based on their resources, audiences, and operational realities.
The launch event brought together representatives from the DSO, Telefilm Canada and our partner festivals to share the new resource with our community.
The Creative Exchange
On September 10, the DSO joined CBC, Accessible Media Inc. (AMI) and the National Screen Institute (NSI) for The Creative Exchange, an afternoon bringing disabled producers and storytellers together with key industry partners. Each organization got the chance to spotlight what they’re working on to support disabled creatives. Between panel conversations, presentations, and sneak-preview screenings, the event gave the community plenty to celebrate and look forward to.
Our Operations Manager/EA, Elspeth Arbow, shared an overview of the DSO's programs and initiatives and announced the upcoming launch of All-Access Pass: A Roadmap for Festival & Screen Industry Event Accessibility. It was a pleasure to see so many friends of the DSO, both old and new! We're grateful to CBC for bringing everyone together and creating this opportunity for connection.
The Stories We Celebrate
Photo de Brian (@tarsipix)
On September 13, DSO Board Director Prasanna Ranganathan co-presented “The Stories We Celebrate”, the inaugural disabled creatives reception at TIFF. Held on the festival's busiest day, the event brought the community together to recognize and celebrate the perspectives and talent of disabled creatives working in the screen industry.
We're truly grateful to everyone who spent time with us at TIFF this year. It was such a joy to reconnect with familiar faces, meet new people and celebrate the talent of disabled creatives.
A special thank you to Telefilm Canada for making the Canada Pavilion feel like home throughout the festival, for consulting with us, and for making accessibility part of their planning.
Thank you as well to everyone who came to the All-Access Pass launch, joined us at events, stopped to chat or supported the work in other ways. We're leaving TIFF with warm hearts and already looking forward to being back together again next year.
