Since 2016, the Chilliwack Independent Film Festival (CIFF) has been championing independent filmmakers and connecting audiences with outstanding storytelling from British Columbia and beyond. Returning this year from October 21-25, 2026, the festival marks its milestone 10th anniversary with a lineup that reflects its roots and evolution, bringing together 110 films from B.C. and around the world.
The five-day festival will showcase an international lineup of feature films, documentaries, and shorts, alongside filmmaker Q&As, industry programming, networking events, and opportunities for audiences to connect directly with the people behind the films. Filmmakers can gain insights into funding, marketing, and festival strategy from industry experts, participate in talks and mixers, connect with fellow creators, and be inspired by a diverse selection of films. CIFF’s flagship Pitch Competition will return this year, providing filmmakers the opportunity to participate in a pitch-development cohort before presenting their projects live during the festival.
This year’s festival closing ceremony will also mark the beginning of something new for Canadian independent filmmaking, with the announcement of the inaugural recipients of the New Wave Collective. This new feature film grant and mentorship initiative is designed to support Canadian filmmakers in bringing true micro-budget feature films to life.
CIFF is at the forefront of creating opportunities for local filmmakers at every stage of their careers and celebrating the people and stories in their community. In addition to four features from the province, the lineup features shorts programs showcasing emerging creators’ first projects, celebrating new work from CIFF alumni, as well as Fraser Valley and B.C.-dedicated programs. Local talent has centre stage at CIFF, with festival lineup packed with B.C.-connected films that showcase the creativity in our province. Read on to discover them.
Feature films
IN ALASKA (dir. Jaap van Heusden, Vinnie Karetak)
IN ALASKA (dir. Jaap van Heusden, Vinnie Karetak)
Depressed and out of answers, Woody, a 17-year-old Inuk boy, leaves a note for his mother and sets out with his rifle to end his own life. When his attempt fails, he inadvertently fires a bullet into the nearby Trans-Alaska Pipeline, setting off a federal manhunt through the wilderness and over the border into Northern Canada. There, he finds a community and reconnects with the land and his mother’s Inuit roots. As FBI agent Tarheel closes in on Woody’s trail, she begins to understand the pain behind his actions.
ONE MORE SONG: A TRACTORGREASE DOCUMENTARY (dir. Chris Fassbender, Jeff Bonner)
A story about the passion of music and bringing community together for “One More Song.” The project grew out of the sold-out success of The Tractorgrease Revival, filmed in February 2024. The film traces the full arc of Tractorgrease — from its early days as a music collective, recording studio, café, and live venue. Along the way, Tractorgrease became a destination for some of Canada’s finest musicians, many of whom recorded and performed there. Through archival footage, new interviews, and live performances the film documents over 20 years of musical adventures and the struggle to keep it all together.
SEND THE RAIN (dir. Hayley Gray, Kaayla Whachell)
SEND THE RAIN (dir. Hayley Gray, Kaayla Whachell)
Erika, a young Okinawan-Canadian animator living in Vancouver, makes an unexpected road trip to rural B.C. when her stubborn Oba refuses to evacuate the family farm as wildfires close in. As Erika tries to convince her grandmother to leave, vignettes of vivid memories reveal Oba’s past — from her departure from Japan during the war, to the tumultuous childhood of Erika’s mother and the bittersweet reality of strawberry picking. Fielding urgent calls to evacuate from her sister Hanna, Erika must reckon with the complicated ties that bind her to the farm.
THE PROFESSIONAL (dir. Daniel Bruce Crabb)
In the days leading up to being forced to torture the owner of an independent movie theatre, childhood friends Matt and Sam “The Professional” are haunted by their individual demons as their worlds slowly crumble around them.
Short Film Programs
Opening Night: Fraser Valley Films
RAISED BY THE CANOE (dir. Cathrine Paul)
CIFF opens with a celebration of local talent in the Fraser Valley, with six locally connected films including LOST PROJECTION, a look back at the legacy of Chilliwack’s beloved Cottonwood 4 Cinemas; RAISED BY THE CANOE, which follows the Terry Lee Canoe Club of Sts’ailes First Nation and its role in cultural continuity; and ONE HUNDRED MILES FROM HERE, a moving story that bridges generations through the discovery of a child’s toy buried by a forcibly displaced Japanese Canadian family decades earlier. Rounding out the lineup are THE SINCEREST FORM OF FLATTERY, YOUNGER THAN I WAS BEFORE, and PARA.
Alumni Spotlight: 10 Years of CIFF
RED LIGHT REBEL (dir. Hannah Yang)
To celebrate its tenth anniversary, CIFF is shining a spotlight on the filmmakers and artists who have been part of the festival’s journey, Featuring nine new short films connected to alumni from each of the festival’s previous nine editions, the showcase highlights the talent that has returned to CIFF over the years and the diverse careers that have grown alongside the festival. These films celebrate both CIFF’s history and the exciting new work being created by members of the CIFF community.
Audiences can look forward to stories including INTERNET FRIEND, in which a lonely 12-year-old finds solace in an anonymous online friendship that takes a mysterious turn; HELL’S GATE, a psychological horror set against the backdrop of the Fraser River Gold Rush; RED LIGHT REBEL, in which a pastor finds himself at a crossroads with God; and LOOKING GLASS, which follows an aspiring dancer who loses the ability to see her reflection after an encounter with a mythological African being. In addition, audiences can catch TINTO, IN-BETWEENS, HUMAN NATURE, WOODEN, and BAD REVIEW.
5 Minute Short Films
JEEZ, LOUISE! (dir. Ana ‘AJ’ Jimenez)
A lot can be achieved in five minutes. This shorts program proves just how much filmmakers can accomplish in a limited runtime, packing big ideas and memorable characters a runtime that packs a punch. From THE DANCER AND THE MOUSE, a charming story about a theatre-loving mouse disrupted by phone use, to the sci-fi mystery BIG FRIENDLY KILLBOTS, where a chef robot becomes the prime suspect in a high-profile death, to RUNNING BEHIND, in which a friend group stages an intervention for someone who is perpetually late, and JEEZ, LOUISE!, about a devout catholic who makes a steamy confession, this program bursts with storytelling talent that can thrive in even the shortest format. Other B.C. films include WOMEN OF A CERTAIN RAGE, WHAT ARE YOU, CHICKEN?, SHITCUTE, CHECKED OUT, and SHEEPSKIN.
Double Exposure: B.C. Spotlight
START THE SHOW (dir. Brenna Goodwin-McCabe)
Year after year, CIFF is at the forefront of celebrating homegrown talent. These eight short films bring together a diverse range of voices from across British Columbia, showcasing deeply human stories spanning genres such as coming-of-age drama, fantasy, romance, and comedy. In START THE SHOW, a 1930s starlet is trapped in a Betty Boop-inspired nightmare, HEIRLOOM explores grief through a son’s growing obsession with his late father’s tomato sauce recipe, while in SHE’S NONBINARY, a long-awaited call for top surgery sparks an identity crisis for a couple. In addition, this program features ANIMALS, THE MACHINE SHOP, WEIRD LIL’ DICK, SPLIT ENDS, AND SUMMER FLING.
Date Night Films
W7éyle (Moon’s Wife) (dir. Amanda Wandler)
CIFF’s Date Night program blends romance, intimacy, and the unexpected. The two B.C. selections are EGG YOLK CUSTARD BUN, where food, friendship, and kink collide at a dim sum table, and W7ÉYLE (MOON’S WIFE), a thought-provoking near-future story about a Secwépemc woman faced with the choice between immortality and her ancestral path.
Documentary Films
PAPER TRAIL (dir. Vivian Cheung)
CIFF’s documentary lineup highlights powerful stories of identity, memory, and resilience. PAPER TRAIL follows a second-generation filmmaker as she retraces her mother’s refugee journey to Canada and works to preserve her family’s fading memories, while LIGHT THROUGH THE BLINDFOLD centres on Iranian-Canadian goalball athlete Maryam Salehizadeh as she considers a sight-restoring surgery and confronts questions about vision and self-discovery.
Next Wave: First Time Filmmakers
OUR MONSTERS (dir. Mia Petrovic)
Showcasing the next generation of storytellers, this program highlights four B.C. films from emerging creators. The lineup includes OUR MONSTERS, in which two children set out to defeat the monster in a closet, only to discover some fears are harder to overcome than others; CLAY LIFE, about a struggling actor whose clay figurine springs to life and achieves everything he dreams of; IN PARALLEL, a reflection on the shared experiences that connect people across different walks of life; and GRIEF GOODBYE, a sci-fi drama that imagines a world where the bereaved can speak with lost loved ones through advanced simulations. Together, the films offer a promising look at the voices shaping the future of B.C. filmmaking.
Keep the Camera Running
Exploring the power of the camera to capture who we are and who we hope to become, the Keep the Camera Running program includes B.C. short SUBLIMATION. Set in a cluttered Vancouver apartment, the film follows a struggling actress navigating career aspirations, heartbreak, and self-worth during a transformative headshot session.
Horror Short Films
CHIMERA’S GHOST (dir. Jessey Nelson)
Embrace the gross, the creepy, and the downright unsettling. This program’s B.C. selections include MOULD, in which a young woman discovers her body is slowly turning to clay; CHIMERA’S GHOST, a coming-of-age story that follows a boy grappling with his queer identity in 1980s religious America; MY MOTHER, THE ZOMBIE, where grief and adolescence collide in increasingly terrifying ways; and SVMMONED, an occult horror centred on a forbidden satanic ritual.
Canadian Made Films
THE DECISION (dir. Cory Thibert)
Celebrating stories from across the country, the Canadian Made shorts program showcases an eclectic mix of filmmaking talent from across the country. B.C. entries include THE DECISION, which follows a sharp-witted man with cerebral palsy whose independence is challenged when his mother enrolls him in a risky medical trial, and TAKE CARE, a story of love and loss that follows a Coast Salish family through the eyes of an Indigenous teenager navigating the days between a death and a funeral.
The Chilliwack Independent Film Festival runs October 21-25, 2026, at select cinemas across Chilliwack, B.C. Discover their full schedule and purchase tickets on their website, and stay tuned for announcements on their Instagram page.
Cover image: Still from MOULD (dir. Morgan Abele, Kiara Evans)
