September 1, 2026 – Montreal – National Film Board of Canada (NFB)

The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) returns to the Ottawa International Animation Festival (OIAF) for the festival’s 50th anniversary with a wide-ranging slate of screenings, exhibitions and events, highlighted by the world premiere of past OIAF award winner Diane Obomsawin’s new animated short, I Don’t Love You Anymore.

As part of OIAF’s landmark anniversary celebrations, Canada’s public producer and distributor is contributing artwork, photos, films and archival excerpts to the exhibition Frame by Frame: Animation in Ottawa, presented in collaboration with the NFB. More than two dozen NFB classics will also feature prominently in the retrospective program 50 in 50: OIAF’s Favourite Canadian Animation Shorts.

Five new NFB animated shorts have been selected for the festival’s Canadian Panorama section, while the NFB’s participation in industry programming includes a conversation with Cordell Barker.

One year after OIAF audiences had the chance to discover Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski’s Oscar-winning animated short The Girl Who Cried Pearls, the NFB is back in the nation’s capital with a stellar lineup. OIAF runs from September 23 to 27, 2026.

WORLD PREMIERE – OFFICIAL COMPETITION 

I Don’t Love You Anymore (Je ne t’aime plus) by Diane Obomsawin (9 min 53 s)
Wednesday, September 23, 7 p.m. (Gala) and Saturday, September 26, 1 p.m., Bytowne Cinema
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. This humorous exploration of the red flags we choose to ignore is the latest from Obomsawin, whose previous NFB short I Like Girls won the Nelvana Grand Prize for Independent Short Animation at OIAF 2016. 

Special screenings and exhibition

The NFB is contributing artwork, photos, films and archival excerpts from the early years of its Ottawa animation studio to Frame by Frame: Animation in Ottawa, an exhibition at the Ottawa Art Gallery from September 19, 2026, to March 14, 2027, presented in collaboration with the NFB. 

Veteran NFB filmmaker and past OIAF honorary president Don McWilliams will present the special screening The National Film Board and Ottawa Animation, 1939–1956 on Wednesday, September 23, 5:00 p.m., at the Arts Court Theatre. Attendees can also engage with three other unique presentations that will screen as part of Frame by Frame.

During the Second World War, Philadelphia-based animator Philip Ragan was contracted by the NFB to create a series of animated shorts. Philip Ragan and Pictographic Animation will screen on Thursday, September 24, 5 p.m., at the Arts Court Theatre.

NFB films in Canadian Panorama

Thursday, September 24, 1 p.m., Bytowne Cinema; Friday, September 25, 9 p.m., Ottawa Art Gallery, Alma Duncan Salon

Bisou sauvage by Bahij Jaroudi (2 min 50 s)
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. 

Knowing Gaze by Dylan Glynn (9 min 40 s)
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/knowing-gaze

• A maximalist narrative quilt of contemporary gay life—every text left on read, every thrifted designer boot, every cancelled eyeshadow palette, every night out, every nightmare, every knowing gaze.  

Matrescence by Elizabeth Laferrière (3 min 18 s)
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/matrescence

• A captivating short film about the neurological, identity and cellular upheavals of motherhood. A visual and aural dive into the science of becoming a mother. 

To Our Future Ancestors by Bogdan Anifrani-Fedach and Ian Keteku (6 min 4 s)
Press kit: mediaspace.nfb.ca/epk/to-our-future-ancestors

• A woman journeys through time and terrain, guided by ancestral memory, to find a mysterious egg that holds the key to her future. 

Ultra Strong by Catherine Lepage (9 min 35 s)
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. Featuring Bruce Dickinson, legendary singer of Iron Maiden, as an idealized version of himself in both the English and French versions, with narration and original music by Régine (Arcade Fire).

More programming and events featuring the NFB 

50 in 50: OIAF’s Favourite Canadian Animation Shorts
Six programs presented September 24 through 27

• The festival’s 50 in 50 retrospective draws extensively from decades of NFB animation leadership, with more than two dozen landmark works. Highlights include Oscar-winning films such as Chris Landreth’s Ryan and Alison Snowden and David Fine’s Bob’s Birthday, alongside beloved classics including Caroline Leaf’s The Street, Cordell Barker’s The Cat Came Back and Wendy Tilby and Amanda Forbis’s When the Day Breaks.
• To celebrate this honour, the NFB programming team has curated a special streaming channel, The Best of Canadian Animation (according to OIAF). 

50 Films. 50 Years. Too Many Animators on One Stage.
Saturday, September 26, 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., NAC: O’Born Room (Terrace Level)

• NFB animators including Cordell Barker (The Cat Came Back), Terril Calder (Meneath: The Hidden Island of Ethics) and Janet Perlman (Why Me?) join an unprecedented gathering of the artists behind Canada’s Top 50 Animated Films.

Animated Materials: Pastel Dreams
Friday, September 25, 9 p.m. and Saturday, September 26, 1 p.m., Arts Court Theatre

• NFB animation legend Norman McLaren is represented in Animated Materials: Pastel Dreams, celebrating the luminous world of pastel animation, with his 1947 short La poulette grise. 

In Conversation with Cordell Barker
Saturday, September 26, 12:30 p.m. to 1:15 p.m., NAC: Le Salon (Canal Level)

• Acclaimed animator Cordell Barker will participate in a Breakout Session presented jointly by the NFB and ASIFA Hollywood. 

Industry Connect: Community Roundtables
Friday, September 25, 10:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., NAC: O’Born Room (Terrace Level) 

• Members of the NFB delegation will join animation professionals in discussions focused on collaboration, networking and industry development. The NFB will also take part in activities associated with The Animation Conference (TAC) throughout the festival.

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Press release – PDF here.

Version française ici.