2025 AIFF Special Guests
Director Andy Hines, musician Adam Baldwin, Auden Thornton join ‘The Stormy Haul’ panel.
The team behind ‘Little Lorraine’ join panel discussion, from L to R; musician Adam Bladwin; lead actor Auden Thornton; filmmaker Andy Hines.
Halifax, NS (September 8, 2025) – The Atlantic International Film Festival (AIFF) welcomes filmmaker Andy Hines, musician Adam Baldwin, and rising star Auden Thornton of Little Lorraine to the 2025 festival for a special ticketed event, ‘The Stormy Haul: Panel with Little Lorraine’. The special event is free, open to the public, and takes place on September 14 at 11:30 a.m. AST ahead of the film’s encore screening at Cineplex Cinemas, Park Lane.
Hines, Baldwin, and Thornton will be joined by Justine Williamson and Greg Vardy as they discuss the film’s journey from conception to premiere following two sold out screenings at this year’s AIFF. The film is inspired by the true story that inspired Baldwin’s hit song ‘Lighthouse in Little Lorraine’ that sees a small Cape Breton town rocked by a drug-fuelled scandal. The highly-anticipated debut from Grammy-nominated director Andy Hines, Little Lorraine will have its Atlantic Canadian premiere on September 13, followed by an encore screening on September 14 at Cineplex Cinemas, Park Lane.
Filmmaker Stephen Dunn joins Amy Trefry in ‘Artist to Artist.’
Stephen Dunn joins AIFF in an ‘Artist to Artist: Stephen Dunn and Amy Trefry’ panel following a retrospective screening of Dunn’s pivotal work and award-winning film, Closet Monster. A seminal film that defined queer Canadian cinema, Dunn and Trefry will discuss their creative processes in telling queer stories, and the importance of representation on screen. AIFF programmer and writer Kevin Chabot moderates ‘Artist to Artist: Stephen Dunn and Amy Trefry’ on September 13, at 1:30 p.m. AST. Along with ‘The Stormy Haul’, ‘Artist to Artist: Stephen Dunn and Amy Trefry’ and all AIFF Industry panels are free and non-ticketed public events.
“This year, our industry team has sought a balance between audience appeal and highly regarded producers, filmmakers and on-screen talent, both by the public and industry professionals,” says Industry Programs Director, Chrissy King. “We are delighted to welcome our delegates and talent for what we are sure will be a landmark year.”
AIFF’s Partners Program has also added ‘The Partners Pitch Competition’ presented by Sunbelt. The competition takes place on September 12 and will feature the following projects and presenters:
“ECHINO” presented by Julie Strifler and Natalie Urquhart
“TRANSPARENTHOOD” presented by Weiye Su
“INCIDENT” presented by Shane Mountain
“ SOUND & FURY” presented by Charles Wahl
“THE UNIT” presented by Natalie & Rebecca Davey
‘The Sunbelt Presents: The Partners Pitch Competition’ jury is comprised of jurors Blue Fox Entertainment’s Kalani Dreimanis; Melanie Hadley of the Indigenous Screen Office; Michael Da Silva, Raven Banner; and Natalie Igelfeld of Bell Media’s Crave. Meghan Brander of Innovation P.E.I. acts as host.
Other notable guests to this year’s festival include actors Mary Walsh and Sheila McCarthy for the World Premiere of Dancing on the Elephant; filmmaker Bretten Hannam and lead actor Blake Alec Miranda for the Atlantic Canadian Premiere of Sk+te'kmujue'katik (At the Place of Ghosts) which opens the festival on September 10; two-time Oscar-winner and East Coast filmmaker Ben Proudfoot with his latest doc, The Eyes of Ghana; filmmaker Justin Oakey for the World Premiere of his latest feature, Hangashore; writer-director of Blueberry Grunt, Sherry White and the lead, Joel thomas Hynes attends for the films World Premiere; soccer players, Olympains, and subjects of The Pitch Erin McLeod and Diana Matheson along with filmmaker Michèle Hozer for the films World Premiere; and Quebec filmmaker Yan Giroux with My Son Came Back to Disappear for the films World Premiere at AIFF.
Tickets for screenings and special events along with festival passes are available for purchase here: atlanticfilmfestival.ca.
The festival’s physical box office will be open in the upper lobby of Cineplex Cinemas Park Lane from September 8-9, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and September 10-17 from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
About AIFF
The Atlantic International Film Festival (AIFF) is an eight-day celebration of cinema from all over the world featuring screenings of over 100 films, Q&As, receptions, panels and industry events. The festival celebrates new and established filmmaking voices from Atlantic Canada and around the globe, helping audiences discover new artists, uncover new perspectives and better understand the world through the medium of cinema. Founded as a small grassroots organization in St. John’s, Newfoundland in 1981, AIFF moved to Halifax the following year. For over four decades, AIFF has grown into one of Canada’s premier film festivals and continues to be a strong advocate for Atlantic Canadian filmmakers. AIFF is a registered charity and offers year-round programming including AIFF Kids and other partnered screenings and events.
The 45th annual Atlantic International Film Festival will take place from September 10 to 17, 2025, inviting film enthusiasts, industry professionals, and curious onlookers to connect and engage through a shared love of cinema.