STORY films are 10-15 minute shorts from directors, producers and editors in the Norman Jewison Film Program at the Canadian Film Centre. The films are professionally produced in the fall, edited before the New Year, and submitted to the international festival circuit. Recent STORY films have premiered at TIFF, VIFF, CIFF, Fantasia and many more! This is a chance for actors to connect with Canada’s most exciting emerging talent, both on and off screen, and to collaborate with writer/directors on a piece that supports a feature film in development.

Luwam Tekeste (She/Her) is a Toronto-based filmmaker and creative producer with nearly a decade of experience across film, television, and commercial production. A graduate of York University’s Cinema and Media Studies program, Luwam is driven by a deep commitment to storytelling that explores identity, morality, and the layered experiences of intersectionality. Her body of work includes short films such as “Other”, “Illegal(ized)” and “Judas Goat”, projects that center characters often excluded from mainstream narratives. She brings an intentional, research-driven approach to her work, drawing from lived experience, historical context, and a desire to provoke meaningful dialogue. Luwam is a proud alumna of Black Women Film! Canada and is dedicated to developing bold, character-driven stories that sit at the intersection of social inquiry and emotional truth.

Selam Hagos, a 30-something Eritrean-Canadian woman, lives in a quiet suburban home with her husband, Joseph. Though her younger sister Betty has been dead for over a year, Selam remains consumed by grief. When she hears Betty’s voice calling from behind the door of the room that once belonged to her, Selam becomes convinced her sister is not at rest and that she is trapped, afraid, and reaching out for help. As Joseph gently urges Selam to let go suggesting they repurpose the room and move forward with their life, Selam withdraws deeper into obsession. She begins silencing her environment by unplugging appliances, shutting out noise, and isolating herself in the hope of hearing Betty more clearly. At the cemetery, Selam encounters Binyam, a mysterious man who spends his days speaking to graves. Binyam claims he can hear the dead and when he relays something only Betty could have said, Selam is shaken but hopeful. She believes she’s finally found a way back to her sister. But their fragile connection begins to fracture when Binyam insists that Betty only speaks through him. At home, Joseph uncovers the quiet war Selam has been waging and, desperate to salvage their future, he removes all traces of Betty from the house. Selam is devastated. Her grief explodes into guilt, revealing a lifetime of emotional repression and a crushing belief that she failed to protect her sister. Spurned again by Binyam, Selam spirals into a final act of desperation. She begins digging a grave-shaped hole in their backyard, either to reclaim her sister, or just have another chance to watch over her. Joseph watches in helpless horror as Selam disappears into a grief that defies reason, one rooted not just in loss, but in identity, duty, and the silence she was never allowed to break.