The Asian Films to Catch at TIFF 2026
From a Michelle Yeoh thriller to a tender tale of diasporic lovers, there’s something for everyone at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival.
A still from Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty! (Image courtesy of TIFF).
Film-lovers rejoice: the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) is back! The annual showcase of movies from across the world is starting in September and there are so many great films to catch — including lots from Asian filmmakers that we’re excited to see.
Here are just some of the Asian movies at TIFF we’re adding to our watchlist this year.
A Girl Unknown (Directed by Zou Jing)
(Image courtesy of TIFF)
Director Zou Jing was inspired by her grandmother’s story of resilience to make her debut feature film, lovingly dedicated to the family matriarch. The movie follows Wang Juan, who is uprooted from her rural home and sent to different families after her father dies and her mother finds a new partner—a consequence of China’s one-child policy. From age six to 18, Wang Juan moves through three different families, identities and names, looking for a home to call her own.
Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty! (Directed by Josef Kubota Wladyka)
(Image courtesy of TIFF)
Starring Oscar-nominated Rinko Kikuchi, Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!features Kikuchi as Japanese ballroom dancer Haru, who’s mourning her husband and dance partner who has suddenly passed away. In the midst of her grief, Haru meets a new dance instructor who gives her a new sense of purpose and new dreams.
Inherit (Directed by Banjong Pisanthanakun)
(Image courtesy of TIFF)
This Thai horror is based on the novel The Demon’s Heir and tells the story of a centipede spirit hoping to possess and steal people’s youth and beauty. Inherit follows the beautiful, powerful and wealthy Manasvanich family. Grandma Woranart, the matriarch of the family, is also suspiciously youthful. Not just that, but death follows her wherever she goes. This sleek scary movie from box office darling Banjong Pisanthanakun is a fun take on the horrors of the pursuit of beauty.
The Surgeon (Directed by Roshan Sethi)
(Image courtesy of TIFF)
Michelle Yeoh returns to the big screen with this thriller, playing a gifted surgeon who is abducted by a gang that forces her to operate on a member with a life-threatening condition. Instead of giving up, the surgeon decides to fight back with her knowledge of human anatomy and years of experience with a scalpel. There are sure to be many epic Yeoh action sequences that we are absolutely sat for.
Thirteen in Gaza (Directed by Hosam Abu Dan)
(Image courtesy of TIFF)
This tender portrait of a father and his teenage daughter living in a refugee camp in Gaza is Palestinian director Hosam Abu Dan’s narrative feature debut. Thirteen in Gaza explores how parents can keep their children safe in conflict and what it’s like to grow up without safety and care. This coming-of-age story celebrates the humanity of all the people living in unacceptable conditions and condemns those who allow these conditions to continue.
Bedford Park (Directed by Stephanie Ahn)
(Image courtesy of TIFF)
Writer/director Stephanie Ahn’s debut feature follows two thirty-something second generation Korean Americans whose meet-cute forces them into a familial relationship with one another. Eli and Audrey meet after Eli gets into a car accident with Audrey’s mother. As Audrey and Eli get to know each other more, the characters reckon with their pasts and make peace with their current selves. Bedford Park is a touching exploration of generational trauma and cultural displacement that asks how folks living in the diaspora can break cycles.
Strong Son (Directed by Ian Bawa)
(Image courtesy of TIFF)
Directed by Winnipeg’s Ian Bawa, Strong Sonfollows Harvinder “Harvy” Singh (Mandeep Sodhi), a caregiver for his father. In an effort to assuage his anxieties and his father’s judgement, Harvey starts pumping iron and pursues pro wrestling, his dad’s favourite sport. Strong Son looks at masculinity, identity and Sikh family dynamics and centres on a fascinating protagonist and his new way of expressing himself.
The Age of Goodbyes (Directed by Edward Yeo)
(Image courtesy of TIFF)
Based on the novel by Li Zi Shu, this story was previously considered unfilmable because of its non-linear timeline. Directed by Malaysian filmmaker Edward Yeo, The Age of Goodbyesstarts with a young boy who stumbles across a book of the same name. The boy reads about the ravishing Du Li An, who in 1969, in the wake of Malaysia’s deadliest race riots, meets and falls for Lin Sang, who confides in her about a dark family curse. He soon disappears without a trace and Du Li An moves on… until she meets Mong Sang, the spitting image of her past love. As the boy reads, he learns more and more about the connections between him and the story he’s reading.
Whatcha Want (Directed by Mina Sum)
(Image courtesy of TIFF)
From writer/director Mina Shum (who also helmed 1994’s Double Happiness), Whatcha Want centres Yin (Bridgerton’s Isabella Wei) a trophy wife navigating her new hometown of Vancouver after being shipped to Canada from Hong Kong. While her chauffeur (Tzi Ma) and friend (Ming-Na Wen) tell her to enjoy her life of privilege, Yin’s longing for a bigger life leads her to join a dance group.
Ba's Book (Directed by Ashley Duong)
(Image courtesy of TIFF)
When documentarian Ashley Duong’s father gifts her a book of letters describing his life story—from growing up in Vietnam during the Vietnam War to briefly living in Iran—Duong decides to adapt his book for the screen. As a family, the Duongs travel to Vietnam together for the first time and rope family members in to bring the memoir to life in this artful and heart-warming documentary inside a documentary.
The Remotes (Directed by John Torres)
(Image courtesy of TIFF)
This Filipino film revolves around a voice-guided system designed to re-train reckless drivers, but ends up being more sinister than it seems. Taking place largely at night and featuring hypnotic nighttime drives in and around Manila, The Remotes is a welcome mash-up of sci-fi, noir, police procedural and slick filmmaking.
HALF (Directed by Samjad)
(Image courtesy of TIFF)
The story of twin vampires Ethan (Ranjith Sajeev) and Ivy (Aiswarya Raj) pick up as the siblings are traversing through the desolate Rajasthan desert. When the vampires are suddenly ambushed and assaulted by locals, the siblings vow to seek revenge on anyone who was involved in the attack.