TIFF 50 - Documentary Programme My top picks.

TIFF 50 Docs Programme-2025

Tiff Docs by the numbers

23 titles from 18 countries  

16 World Premieres

TIFF has announced their Documentary Film Programme, and these films highlighted in yellow are my picks for the films I think will get the most buzz, and also the films I want to see.

The one I am most excited about seeing is Canceled: The Paula Deen Story, because she was so popular for years, and then she disappeared.  Cancelled by her Network after using the racist N word in her past.  I think she tried to apologize, but that was it for her.  She was just gone. This doc will be interesting to see her point of view and what has happened since then.  

Orwell: 2+2=5 also looks interesting to me about George Orwell's book 1984.  I have been thinking about this book for a while lately, as our world has shifted into something you wonder was destined to happen.

2025 TIFF Docs programme (in alphabetical order):

A Life Illuminated | Tasha Van Zandt | USA
World Premiere

A Simple Soldier | Juan Camilo Cruz, Artem Ryzhykov | Ukraine
North American Premiere

Aki | Darlene Naponse | Canada
World Premiere

Below the Clouds | Gianfranco Rosi | Italy
International Premiere

Canceled: The Paula Deen Story | Billy Corben | USA
World Premiere

Cover-Up | Laura Poitras, Mark Obenhaus | USA
Canadian Premiere

Flana | Zahraa Ghandour | Iraq/France/Qatar
World Premiere

LOVE+WAR | Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin | USA
World Premiere

Modern Whore | Nicole Bazuin | Canada
World Premiere

Ni-Naadamaadiz: Red Power Rising | Shane Belcourt | Canada
World Premiere

Nuestra Tierra | Lucrecia Martel | Argentina/USA/Mexico/France/Denmark/Netherlands
North American Premiere

Nuns vs. The Vatican | Lorena Luciano | USA
World Premiere

Orwell: 2+2=5 | Raoul Peck | USA/France
North American Premiere

Powwow People | Sky Hopinka | USA
World Premiere

Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk | Sepideh Farsi | France/Palestine/Iran
North American Premiere

Still Single | Jamal Burger, Jukan Tateisi | Canada
World Premiere

The Balloonists | John Dower | USA/United Kingdom/Austria
World Premiere

The Eyes of Ghana | Ben Proudfoot | USA | Opening Film
World Premiere

The Tale of Silyan | Tamara Kotevska | North Macedonia
North American Premiere

There Are No Words | Min Sook Lee | Canada
World Premiere

True North | Michèle Stephenson | USA/Canada
World Premiere

While the Green Grass Grows: A Diary in Seven Parts | Peter Mettler | Canada/Switzerland
World Premiere

Whistle | Christopher Nelius | Australia
World Premiere

The 50th edition of the Toronto International Film Festival, presented by Rogers, runs September 4–14, 2025.

*Source from the TIFF 2025 Press Release.