2026 Program
2026 Program
2026 Conference Schedule
Day 1 (September 29)
Pass Pickup / On-Site Registration
(11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.)
Skip the line and ensure you get to your screenings and panels on time by picking up your pass during this dedicated pickup window. Passes can be picked up at any time during festival operating hours, but wait times may be longer.
Keynote Presentation with Julie Nolke
(12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.)
Join CSA-winning creator Julie Nolke and partner Sam Larson in kicking off the 13th edition of T.O. Webfest with an intimate fireside chat.
Delegates Lounge (sponsored by Ontario Creates)
(1:00 – 4:00 p.m.)
A place to have a meeting, break, and/or refreshment!
Speed Intros & Networking Mixer
(1:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.)
Join a highly curated selection of industry guests as they each introduce themselves and what they do in one minute or less, then stay to mingle over a cup of coffee (or tea!).
Funders Unfiltered: Cracking Canada’s Web Series Funds
(3:00 – 4:00 p.m.)
Hear directly from key Canadian funders about how their funding works, which funds can be combined, what’s required to apply, what’s changed for the 2026/2027 period, and more!
Panelists: Jon Taylor (IPF), Marcia Douglas (Bell Fund), Julie Venerus (CMF), & Danielle Hebert (Ontario Creates). Moderator: Andra Sheffer (WSC).
1-on-1 Networking (sponsored by Bell Fund)
(3:00 – 5:00 p.m.)
Complete our application form to request 1-on-1 speed meetings with top decision makers, including broadcasters, streamers, funders, distributors, and more.
Applications open soon.
IPF Trailer Showcase
(4:00 – 5:30 p.m.)
Join the 2026 cohort of IPF Development Funding recipients and a team of representatives from the IPF in viewing and celebrating this year’s proof-of-concept trailers.
Networking Reception (sponsored by IPF)
(5:30 – 7:00 p.m.)
Cap off the first day of the festival with a networking mixer where you can mingle with key industry figures, fellow creators, and film professionals at all stages of their careers.
Day 2 (September 30)
Breakfast Networking (sponsored by CMPA)
(9:00 – 10:00 a.m.)
Join top funders, broadcasters, and streamers over an intimate networking breakfast.
Guests include: Donna Cagnoli (Bell Fibe TV1), Danielle Hebert (Ontario Creates), Stephanie Wilson Chapin (YouTube), Greg Rubidge (Syndicado), Sarah Quan (CBC), Jon Taylor (IPF), and more to be announced soon…
The Streamer Shift: Where Digital Stories Fit in Canadian Broadcasting
(10:00 – 11:00 a.m.)
Hear straight from streamers and broadcasters what they’re looking for right now, how to get on their radar, and how the digital distribution landscape is shifting.
Guests include: Donna Cagnoli (Bell Fibe TV1), Stephanie Wilson Chapin (YouTube), and more to be announced soon…
Delegates Lounge (sponsored by Ontario Creates)
(10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.)
A place to have a meeting, break, and/or refreshment!
The Visual Voice: Building, Pitching, and Financing Visual Podcasts (sponsored by CMF)
(11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.)
Turning a podcast into a visual brand requires more than just pointing a camera at a microphone. Join leading producers and a key Canadian funder as they pull back the curtain on financing, producing, and monetizing modern video podcasts.
Panelists: Jill Samson (CMF), Kattie Laur (Pod the North), Shereen Simon (Perspective Studio Productions ), & Eve Krogman.
1-on-1 Networking (sponsored by Bell Fund)
(11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.)
Complete our application form to request 1-on-1 speed meetings with top decision makers, including broadcasters, streamers, funders, distributors, and more.
Applications open soon.
Lunch Break
(12:00 – 1:00 p.m.)
Greenlit & Green-Minded: Crafting Funder-Ready Sustainability Strategies (sponsored by IPF)
(1:00 – 2:00 p.m.)
Sustainable production isn’t just an ethical choice—for Canadian web series creators, it’s a key requirement on funder scoring grids. This panel demystifies funder Sustainability Plan requirements, showing creators how to turn compliance into an operational advantage on micro-budgets.
Panelists: Charlie David (Border2Border), Peter Schneider (CBC), Mark Shapland (IPF), & Jane Loughman (producer).
Tall Tales: The New Frontier of Vertical Storytelling
(2:00 – 3:00 p.m.)
Industry insiders demystify how to navigate the vertical landscape, examining how producers can structure, fund, and distribute vertical series while touching on industry shifts in terms of genre and content.
Guests to be announced soon.
DIY & Discoverable: The Indie Creator’s Marketing Guide
(3:00 – 4:00 p.m.)
Finishing your series is only half the battle; getting an audience to find it in a crowded digital landscape is the real work. This panel strips away high-budget agency tactics to deliver practical, DIY marketing workflows built specifically for indie creators. From cultivating grassroots fan communities to crafting press kits that actually get opened, learn how to get your series seen.
Guests include: Greg Rubidge (Syndicado), Sue Baldaro (publicist), and more to be announced soon…
UP NEXT! Pitch Competition (sponsored by CMF)
(4:00 – 5:00 p.m.)
Join our 2026 finalists as they deliver their web series pitches live in front of a panel of industry pros. The grand prize winner will take home an award of $10,000 in in-kind support courtesy of Sunbelt Rentals.
Judges to be announced soon.
Dinner Break
(5:00 – 7:00 p.m.)
Awards Gala Red Carpet and Cocktail Reception
(7:00 – 8:00 p.m.)
Get your photo taken on the red carpet, then mix and mingle while enjoying drinks and a selection of hors d’oeuvres.
Awards Gala Ceremony
(8:00 – 10:00 p.m.)
Join us as we honor our 2026 nominees and winners, featuring a star-studded lineup of speakers and presenters. You won’t want to miss this one!
Screening Schedule
Day 1 (September 29)
Block 1: Children’s & Youth
(11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.)
Tempo trailer (Canada, ON)
Bumpadoo! (Canada, ON)
Run the Marbles (Canada, ON)
Bestest Day Ever with My Best Friend (Canada, ON)
Phone: The Musical Series (Canada, ON)
Te NGz (New Zealand)
Denis Danger 2 (Canada, QC)
Block 2: Documentary & Lifestyle I
(1:30 – 2:30 p.m.)
Hitting Her Mark trailer (Canada, ON)
Voetry S5 (2026) (Canada, ON)
Root Awakening (Canada, ON)
Hope Unleashed (Canada, ON)
Rogue Psychology (Canada, ON)
Block 3: Comedy I
(2:30 – 3:30 p.m.)
Anticrastination trailer (USA)
The Ropes (Canada, ON)
The Struggle for Existence – Season 2 (Denmark)
Wine Boys (Canada, ON)
Grimelle (Canada, QC)
Block 4: Drama 1
(3:30 – 4:30 p.m.)
peopleWatching III (Canada, ON)
Mukbang (Canada, QC)
Roots – Vertical Series (Singapore)
Devenir Margot (Canada, QC)
Block 5: Horror I
(4:30 – 5:30 p.m.)
One Shot: Last Train to Bremen trailer (USA)
The Fire Ghost of Caledonia Mills (Canada, NS)
Eyes In The Woods: Pilot (Canada, AB)
The Witchy Girls (Australia)
Day 2 (September 30)
Block 6: Comedy II
(10:00 – 11:00 a.m.)
The Crip Trip Disability Podcast trailer (Canada, AB)
GROUPE DE SOUTIEN (Canada, QC)
I’m Also Here (Canada, ON)
Shipwrecked (Canada, QC)
Dying Seconds (Canada, ON)
Block 7: Documentary & Lifestyle II
(11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.)
The Defendants trailer (Canada, ON)
Freedom Farm Sanctuary – Season 2 (Israel)
Fairy Trans Parent (Canada, ON)
Straight and loud (ep. 4) (Russia)
Block 8: Short Film Pilots
(12:00 – 1:45 p.m.)
The Reality Shaper: A Musical Podcast trailer (USA)
GEMMA (Canada, ON)
Hockey Mom (Canada, ON)
The Confession (Canada, ON)
The Nook (Canada, ON)
Rot Girl (Canada, BC)
Bunker Time! (Canada, ON)
County Blooms After Dark: Curses & Cures (Canada, ON)
Block 9: Horror II
(2:00 – 3:00 p.m.)
The Dragoning trailer (USA)
Ren: The Girl with the Mark – S3 (UK)
Antiutopia (Brazil)
Phantom Line (Canada, ON)
Respire Fort (France)
Block 10: Comedy III
(3:00 – 4:00 p.m.)
Citron (Canada, QC)
18 TO 35 digital series (Canada, ON)
Anachroniks (France)
Cows Come Home (Canada, ON)
AYER’S CLIFF (Canada, QC)
Block 11: Drama II
(4:00 – 5:30 p.m.)
Metra: A Climate Revolution with Songs trailer (USA)
The Method. Foundation of Identity (Argentina)
ASTRID’S MANY FAILURES (Canada, MB)
U-Hauling : Algorithmes amoureux (Canada, QC)
All screenings are followed by a brief Q&A with the filmmakers.
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