Movie by Métis filmmaker will have its world premiere at Toronto festival

Despite being a late applicant, Métis filmmaker Max Kornachuk was among five individuals chosen to have his movie concept produced and have its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). 

Kornachuk’s short film titled Where Our Flowers Grow will be part of the REDEFINED program, a collection of five movies that will screen at TIFF on Sept. 16.

The National Film Board of Canada (NFB), in collaboration with TIFF, announced at the 2025 Toronto festival that it was seeking submissions for this year’s REDEFINED programming. 

Emerging filmmakers under the age of 30 from across the country were encouraged to submit applications for a film concept that showcased either Canadian diversity or what it means to be Indigenous.

More than 240 submissions were sent in. And Kornachuk’s concept was one of those selected.

Kornachuk said he only found out about the REDEFINED opportunity a couple of days before the deadline. He met a rep from the NFB last September while he was at the Ottawa International Animation Festival. His student film was in competition there.

Kornachuk was told he would be a good candidate and was encouraged to apply.

“Even though it was only three days to plan, I was already sitting on this idea,” said Kornachuk of his animated documentary that features Métis people sharing their journeys of cultural reconnection. 

“It had been about two years that I'd been thinking about this idea for a bit. The ideas came and they were already pretty fully formed by the time I wrote the proposal. It was just a matter of physically putting it down on paper and elaborating on my ideas.”

Knowing there would, in all likelihood, be plenty of applicants for the program, Kornachuk really did not have high hopes of being chosen.

“I had thought for a little bit that I probably won't get picked,” he said. 

That was in part because program officials had told him they were primarily seeking out documentaries and not necessarily animated film.

“I was already kind of preparing myself to hear a no,” Kornachuk said. “That's really not the end of the world in this industry. It's like 90 per cent no and 10 per cent yes. I was kind of preparing myself for that 90 per cent. And then, what luck, I got that 10 per cent.”

Kornachuk is ecstatic he was selected.

“Honoured is almost like a word that is ineffable or the feeling is ineffable,” he said. “I feel like honoured almost doesn't even begin to describe the feelings that I have and how lucky I am and how thankful I am for the opportunity.”

The NFB allotted a maximum of $250,000 for each of the five films that it helped produce.

“The National Film Board is a producer on this, so they managed the budget and they were the ones worrying about finances and paying,” Kornachuk said. “I didn't get the money fully directly to me. I did get a portion of it as a payment for my work as a director and as an animator.”

Kornachuk, who is 24, graduated in 2024 from the multimedia program at Université de Saint-Boniface, Winnipeg’s only French-speaking university. 

He’s hoping to continue on in the industry.

“That is the dream, to continue being a filmmaker,” he said.

Kornachuk said he loves working in teams and was thrilled to join forces with the NFB for his first professional movie.

“The National Film Board was just absolutely amazing and they really offered a lot of support,” he said. “And I got to meet some really incredible people who work there. I am very fortunate and I hope to continue to foster a relationship with the National Film Board and keep this going for the next little while.”

TIFF, regarded as one of the world’s top film festivals, begins on Sept. 10 and continues until Sept. 20.

Tickets for the REDEFINED screening are sold. But the NFB will begin showing all five films on its website starting on Sept. 16.

Though a date has yet to be announced, Kornachuk said Where Our Flowers Grow will also be shown in his hometown.

“I know that there's going to be a screening here in Winnipeg, which I'm super excited about to share it with my community so people can see it,” he said.

Kornachuk is hoping the Winnipeg screening will be at Université de Saint-Boniface.