August 26, 2026 – Vancouver – National Film Board of Canada (NFB)

The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) returns to the Calgary International Film Festival (CIFF) with a powerful mix of documentary and animation.

Running September 24 to October 4, the festival will host the world premiere of LOUF, the debut feature documentary by Montreal-based Canadian-Egyptian filmmaker Aziz Zoromba, presented in CIFF’s Canadian Documentary Competition. Best known for his multi-award-winning short film Simo, Zoromba follows celebrated chef Fadi Kattan and his Canadian partner Nicole Mankinen as they race to open a Palestinian restaurant in Toronto.

The festival’s Shorts Competition will present four new NFB animated shorts: Bisou sauvage by Bahij Jaroudi, The Flames of Me by Daniel Léger, I Don’t Love You Anymore by Diane Obomsawin and Ultra Strong by Catherine Lepage, recipient of the People’s Choice Award at Montreal’s Sommets du cinéma d’animation. 

Quick facts 

LOUF by Aziz Zoromba (109 min) | World Premiere | Canadian Documentary Competition
Press Kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/louf

• Follow acclaimed chef Fadi Kattan and Canadian co-venturer Nicole Mankinen as they race to open a Palestinian restaurant in Toronto. While their dream takes shape, escalating attacks devastate Gaza and the West Bank. Part immersive food film and part urgent record, LOUF is a powerful meditation on diaspora, resistance and the politics of preservation.
• Aziz Zoromba is a Canadian-Egyptian filmmaker from Montreal. He is best known for his film Simo, which won the IMDbPro Short Cuts Award for Best Canadian Short Film at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival and Best Live Action Short Drama at the 11th Canadian Screen Awards, in addition to premiering at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and the 73rd Berlinale. 

NFB animation in the Shorts Competition 

Bisou sauvage by Bahij Jaroudi (2 min 50 s) | Western Canadian premiere
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/bisou-sauvage

• As world tragedies pile up, a bored couple is looking for their next distraction. This explosive dark comedy is a blunt take on the privilege of boredom and the dissonance that is needed to pretend everything is okay.
• Born in 1981 in Lebanon and recently relocated to Toronto, Bahij Jaroudi has collaborated with major clients like Netflix, Cartoon Network Arabia and The New York Times. After earning an MA in Animation from Kingston University (UK), he built a prolific career spanning animated ads, short films and children’s books, and has taught animation at the Lebanese American University. 

The Flames of Me by Daniel Léger (10 min 2 s) | Western Canadian Premiere
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/the-flames-of-me

• How do you rebuild your sense of self after being diagnosed with bipolar disorder? Through striking images created with fire and soot by visual artist Steven Spazuk, and music by Daniel Lanois, director Daniel Léger recounts his journey through shadow and light since his diagnosis, in a courageous self-portrait that reminds us that no one is defined solely by their dark side.
• New Brunswick native Daniel Léger is a multidisciplinary artist who describes himself as a poet of the everyday. A filmmaker and singer-songwriter, he has made four films with the NFB and recorded six albums with Productions Koonacky, which earned him a place on the “New Brunswick Francophone Music Wall of Fame” in 2022.

I Don’t Love You Anymore by Diane Obomsawin (9 min 53 s) | Western Canadian Premiere
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/i-dont-love-you-anymore

• In a Niagara Falls motel, an unremarkable couple attempts a romantic getaway. But as the days go by, the trip threatens to turn into a cold shower. I Don’t Love You Anymore is a humorous exploration of the red flags we choose to ignore to keep a relationship alive.
• Diane Obomsawin is a Montreal-based graphic artist and animator of Abenaki descent. Her acclaimed short films are known for their wry humour and engaging visual economy. I Like Girls, the film adaptation of her graphic novel about sexual identity, has screened at more than 40 international festivals, winning top honours at the Ottawa International Animation Festival. Her most recent animated short, I Don’t Love You Anymore (2026), is her eighth collaboration with the National Film Board of Canada. Obomsawin publishes graphic novels under the pseudonym Obom. 

Ultra Strong by Catherine Lepage (9 min 35 s) | Calgary Premiere
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/ultra-strong

• Catherine tries to toughen herself to impress the “princes” in her circle, who turn out to be more off-putting than charming. When all her dubious strategies fail, she must face the ultimate test: learning how to embrace her true nature. This candid and self-deprecating autofictional story features the special participation of Bruce Dickinson (Iron Maiden) and narration and original music by Régine (Arcade Fire).
• Montreal-based animation filmmaker, graphic novel writer and illustrator Catherine Lepage is known for her distinctive visual style and the self-deprecating humour she uses to broach sensitive topics, such as mental health, social pressure and self-affirmation. Ultra Strong is her second film with the NFB, following The Great Malaise (2019), which was screened at over 50 festivals and won 7 awards, in addition to being named a Vimeo Staff Pick.

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Press release – PDF here.

Version française ici.