TORONTO INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL -- SEPT 9 - 14, 2025

A Celebration of Indie Filmmaking at the Paradise Cinema in Downtown Toronto

FESTIVAL 2025

NORTH AMERICA’S TOP FESTIVAL FOR MICRO AND NO-BUDGET FILMS

The Toronto Indie is Toronto’s own film festival for truly independent films, and a headline event for micro-budget and no-budget films in North America. The Toronto Indie offers a fantastic opportunity for undiscovered filmmakers to showcase their achievements, in a space where all the key players of the film industry have gathered.

SCREENINGS AT THE PARADISE CINEMA

We’ll screen over dozens of features and shorts over 4 days at the Paradise Cinema, one of Toronto’s favorite indie film venues .
Toronto Indie uses the strength of Toronto’s sizable independent filmmaking community to put on a fantastic festival. It’s an indie film festival by and for indie filmmakers.

SELL YOUR FILM AT NORTH AMERICA’S BIGGEST FILM INDUSTRY GATHERING

The entire film industry in gathered in Toronto in September, which makes the Toronto Independent Film Festival the perfect place to screen your project to sales agents, distributors, and investors. Numerous To Indie projects have been picked up for distribution on the back of their screening at our festival, and our festival team will work with you to help with any deals.
Note that Toronto Indie, aka the Toronto Independent Film Festival, is a separate festival from the Toronto International Film Festival, which runs at the same time.

SUBMISSIONS

Toronto Indie presents the best of low-budget filmmaking from around the world, and mixes it up with relevant industry discussions and targeted social networking events.

Submit your film to the Toronto Independent Film Festival

Submit your film to the 2025 Toronto Independent Film Festival Film Freeway.

The Toronto Independent Film Festival accepts Submissions from any country.

Early Submissions Period — Aug 21, 2024 to April 8, 2025
Early Submissions Deadline — April 8
Regular Submissions Period — April 9 to May 13, 2025
Regular Submissions Deadline — May 13
Late Submissions Period — May 14 to June 10, 2025
Late Submissions Deadline — June 10
All filmmakers will be notified before August 1, 2025

The Toronto Independent Film Festival is open to international films in one of the following categories:
Feature Film (budget over $250k USD)
Micro-budget Feature (budget under $250k USD)
No-Budget Feature (budget under $25k USD)
Documentary Feature
Female Director Feature
LGBT film
Short Film
Short Documentary
Animated Short
Experimental Short
Horror / Sci-Fi Short
Short Short (under 5 minutes)
Music Video

Feature Screenplay
Sci-Fi / Horror Screenplay

Fees for feature films are $75 early, $85 regular, $95 late.

Fees for short films are $45 early, $55 regular, $65 late.
Music videos & short shorts are $30 early, $35 regular, $40 late

Fees for feature scripts are $45 early, $55 regular, $65 late.

Please send any related press materials, including electronic press kit, and photos info@film-fest.ca

All submissions must be received electronically, we do not accept DVD’s in the post.

OUR TEAM

The Toronto Independent Film Festival has been running since 2010

Steve

Festival Director

Steve has been the To Indie festival director since its inception. Steve is a journalist and a member of the Toronto Film Festivals Association.

George

Artistic Director

George is our artistic director and responsible for those amazing festivals posters you’ve seen all over town.

Penny

Festival Admin

Penny handles the website and online communications.

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T.O. Indie Volunteers

Volunteer team

Steve has been the To Indie festival director since its inception. Steve is a journalist and a member of the Toronto Film Festivals Association.

T.O. Indie filmmakers

Here's some snaps from our previous festivals.

The team from Sideboob
Canadian actor/filmmaker Nick Mancuso being interviewed by Katie Ullmann of “Katie Chats” at the T.O. indie premiere of his U.S. film “The Last Gamble”
The T.O. indie wants to congratulate Filmmakers Laura Lee Bahr and Angela Landis of “Boned” for their recent distribution deal with Gravitas Ventures and iTunes. The dynamic duo are pictured here at the Carlton before the premier of their film at the 2015 T.O. Indie.
You never know who will drop into the T.O. indie Film Festival – such as director/writer Guillermo del Toro, seen here with Festival Director Steve Veale
Vancouver-based actress Katharine Isabelle (who could forget “Ginger Snaps”?) at the opening of her film “Victims” during the 2014 T.O. indie.
The filmmakers of Belushi’s Toilet celebrating their sold out screening