WIFF’s Prize in Canadian Film WIFF is committed to celebrating excellence in Canadian film by honouring Canadian films and filmmakers with an annual cash prize of $25,000. The list of nominees is announced by WIFF in early September, and an independent jury comprised of film industry experts selects and announces the winner during the first weekend of the Fall Festival.
The Francophone-Indigenous film Kuessipan, directed by Myriam Verreault was the recipient of the inaugural prize in 2019, the Korean-Canadian film Riceboy Sleeps, directed by Anthony Shim was the recipient in 2022, and Francophone dark comedy Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person directed by Ariane Louis-Seize was the recipient in 2023.
In 2024, jury president Don McKellar announced Who Do I Belong To directed by Meryam Joobeur as the winner.
2024 Nominees
Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story (Michael Mabbott & Lucah Rosenberg-Lee)
Hunting Daze (Annick Blanc)
Lucy Grizzli Sophie (Anne Émond)
On Earth as in Heaven (Nathalie Saint-Pierre)
Paying for It (Sook-Yin Lee)
Really Happy Someday (J Stevens)
Russians at War (Anastasia Trofimova)
Sharp Corner (Jason Buxton)
Universal Language (Matthew Rankin)
Who Do I Belong To (Meryam Joobeur)
Jury Panel
DON MCKELLAR
JURY PRESIDENT
Don McKellar has had a multifaceted career as a writer, director and actor.
Most recently he wrote the pilot and was co-showrunner on the limited series The Sympathizer for HBO, A24 and Rhombus Media for which Robert Downey Jr. has received an Outstanding Supporting Actor Emmy nomination.
He was the screenwriter of Roadkill and Highway 61, and co-writer of Dance Me
Outside, the Genie Award-winning Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould and The Red Violin (he also appeared in the latter two). He received a Genie Award as Best Supporting Actor for his role in Atom Egoyan’s Exotica and the Prix de la Jeunesse at Cannes for his directorial debut, Last Night, which he also wrote and starred in. He also wrote, directed and played the lead in his second film, Childstar.
His stage writing credits include the five plays he co-created with the Augusta Company and the book for the musical The Drowsy Chaperone, for which he won a Tony Award. He also wrote and starred in the CBC television series Twitch City. Other film and television appearances include David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ, Atom Egoyan’s Where the Truth Lies and the series Slings and Arrows for the Sundance Channel.
He collaborated on the film adaptation of Jose Saramago’s Nobel Prize-winning novel Blindness. Directed by Fernando Mereilles, he also starred with Julianne Moore, Gael Garcia Bernal and Mark Ruffalo. He also directed the Max Films feature The Grand Seduction, for which he won a DGC Award for Best Direction in 2014.
Other recent work includes the Serendipity Point Films feature Through Black Spruce, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. He has also directed and executive produced the CSA nominated series Michael: Tuesday & Thursdays for CBC and Sensitive Skin, starring Kim Cattrall, for TMN.
AISLING CHIN-YEE
JURY MEMBER
Aisling Chin-Yee is an award-winning producer, writer, and director based in Montreal, Canada, and Los Angeles, California. She won The Directors Guild of Canada award for directorial achievement in a mini-series for the CBC series Plan B, starring Patrick J Adams in 2023. In 2021, Aisling was celebrated as one of DOC NYC and HBO Documentary’s 40 Under 40. New Yorker Magazine hailed Aisling’s latest film, No Ordinary Man, as “a genre unto itself” and one of the magazine’s Best Movies of 2021. She also won the DGC Award for Best Editing in Documentary in 2021. She was named one of Canada’s Rising Film Stars by Now Magazine in 2019 and by The Montreal Gazette in 2020, after her debut feature film, The Rest of Us, premiered at TIFF 2019. Aisling also produced critically acclaimed films such as, Rhymes for Young Ghouls, The Saver, and Last Woman Standing.
JOEY KLEIN
JURY MEMBER
Joey’s first film, The Other Half starred Tatiana Maslany (CSA Best Lead Female Performance 2017) and Tom Cullen, and premiered at SXSW In Official Competition in 2016. His second feature, Castle In The Ground starred Alex Wolff, Imogen Poots and Neve Campbell, and premiered at TIFF 2019 before becoming an Official Selection of SXSW 2020. Most recently he directed an episode of In The Dark Season 4 (CW/CBS Television). In all, his work focuses on aspects of mental illness and prolonged grief, exploring stories of modern day disenfranchisement through the prism of conflated, elevated genre.
As an actor some notable credits include; Atom Egoyan’s Seven Veils, Don McKellar’s Through Black Spruce, a recurring guest star on the CW’s In The Dark, American Gangster, On The Road, Girl In The White Coat (Jutra Nomination Best Supporting Actor 2013), We’re Still Together (Actra Award Best Male Performance 2017, Prix Iris nomination Best Lead Male Performance 2018) and The Animal Project (TIFF 2013). He is represented by WME in the US, ART and GLAM in Canada, and is a graduate of Circle In The Square Theatre School and Concordia University.
ANDREW MURPHY
JURY MEMBER
Andrew Murphy (he/him) is the Co-Head and Artistic Director for the Inside Out Toronto 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival. Andrew brings over two decades of festival, industry, and curatorial experience to the organization, having joined initially as Director of Programming in 2012.
While currently leading the artistic direction for the organization, Andrew initiated its Industry programs, including the world’s first and only LGBTQ+ film financing forum, now in its 9th year.
Prior to Inside Out, Andrew served as Programming Manager for 12 years at the Atlantic International Film Festival in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he co-created its youth film festival and school programs, as well as secured galas, special presentations, genre and queer content.
Andrew has served on numerous panels and juries over the course of his career including the Berlin Film Festival’s Teddy Jury, Palm Springs Short Film Festival, Cardiff’s Iris Prize Festival, and the Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) Indiescreen Awards Juries.
Inside Out will celebrate its 35th anniversary in May 2025.
SRIMATI SEN
JURY MEMBER
Srimati began her early career in Entertainment on the music side first, and then transitioned into the Film Distribution industry by starting as an intern in the PR department of MGM. From there she moved on to Sony Pictures, moving up the ladder over time to her current position of Executive Director of Exhibitor Promotions for North America.
In this role – she works with movie theatre companies throughout the US and Canada to find innovative ways to promote Sony’s movies to their consumers, resulting in breaking records at the box office and spreading the magic of Hollywood to all corners of the continent. This career track has allowed her the privilege of working on many incredible movies & franchises such as James Bond, Jumanji and Sony’s Marvel titles like Spider-Man.
Her ever-changing roles in film distribution marketing has also given her the opportunity to learn from, and be mentored by some amazingly accomplished executives both in Canada & the US. Being born in India, growing up in Australia, and then living in Toronto has helped to fuel and inspire her three biggest passions in life: Travel, Film and Food & Wine.
As an aside, Srimati is so used to people mispronouncing her name (Chardonnay, Yosemite & Basmati are among a few), that she has become accustomed to answering to just about anything!
