“The Cats, the Sea, and Everything in Between” Wins Top Prize at Toronto Arab Film Festival 2026

The Toronto Arab Film Festival concluded its 2026 edition on Saturday, August 1, announcing the winners of its four main awards following a programme of feature films, short films, filmmaker discussions and professional development events that began on July 24.

The festival’s top honour, the Nakheel Jury Award for Best Feature Film, went to The Cats, the Sea, and Everything in Between, directed by Lebanese-Canadian filmmaker Karel Malkoun.

The 74-minute Canada-Lebanon documentary follows Malkoun’s return to Lebanon in 2022, during the height of the country’s economic crisis. Through spontaneous footage, personal reflections and scenes from family life, the film examines the filmmaker’s changing relationship with her homeland and the impact of prolonged instability on Lebanese society.

The Qayqub Jury Award for Best Canadian Short Film was presented to Ambush | Kameen, directed by Yassmina Karajah. The 20-minute Canada-Jordan production is set around a temporary techno club that disrupts a conservative neighbourhood in central Amman, bringing together a newly sober young woman and a man awaiting a long-delayed encounter.

Lebanese filmmaker Karim El Rahbani received the Juthour Jury Award for Most Promising Filmmaker, Short Film, for One Last Time. The film follows an elderly widower whose unexpected meeting with a woman briefly revives his desire for companionship and leads a younger friend to introduce him to a dating application.

The Yamama Audience Choice Award for Best Short Film went to Nader’s Girl, directed by Canadian writer and filmmaker Omar Mouallem. The film centres on a lonely Palestinian international student who invents an imaginary girlfriend to impress his roommates, before the fictional relationship becomes a reflection of his insecurity and isolation in a new country.

The festival also awarded honourable mentions to My Brother, My Brother, directed by Abdelrahman Dnewar and Saad Dnewar, and Bukra, directed by Alex Aljouni, as part of the audience award category.

The 2026 festival opened on Friday, July 24, with a screening of the Egyptian feature The Stories at Spadina Theatre, followed by an opening reception. Its final day, Saturday, August 1, included the closing film Calle Málaga, directed by Moroccan filmmaker Maryam Touzani, at Revue Cinema, followed by the festival’s closing reception.

Events held between the opening and closing dates included three short-film programmes, screenings of Flana, Hijra, Life After Siham, Sink and the award-winning feature The Cats, the Sea, and Everything in Between, alongside conversations with filmmakers and two professional development days.

The story behind Toronto Arab Film began in 2017, when the non-profit organization was created to address the limited representation of Arab stories and filmmakers in Toronto’s film programming. Its founders sought to bring films from and about the Arab world to local audiences while creating opportunities for cultural exchange and supporting emerging Arab artists.

The organization says its work is also rooted in reviving the tradition of audiences gathering to watch films together. Since its launch, it has developed into a broader cultural platform that promotes the diversity of Arab cultures, connects Arab and non-Arab communities and provides professional opportunities for filmmakers.

With the announcement of the 2026 winners, the festival closed another edition that placed Arab and Arab-diaspora filmmakers at the centre of Toronto’s cultural landscape, combining public screenings with industry development and opportunities for emerging cinematic voices.