Stuart Hands is the program director at the Toronto Jewish Film Festival. He shares with us the process for selecting this year’s films, as well as his picks for the Festival, and why he’d love to invite Eugene Levy for Shabbat dinner.
Kultura Collective: Hi Stuart! Can you tell us who you are and your role at the Toronto Jewish Film Festival?
Stuart Hands: I am the programme director of the Toronto Jewish Film Festival and the organization’s year-round programming. I oversee the curation of the festival films, which is put together by myself along with seven other programmers. I move the programming process along, confirm and invite the films, and define the overall shape and balance of the line-up. I also curate the archival film programming.
KC: For those who don’t know, what does the Toronto Jewish Film Festival do?
SH: The festival is an annual event of 80+ films and special events, presented both in-person and online. Within each year, we attempt to present as diverse–in terms of types of films, subject matter and countries–a programme as possible, offering a multi-faceted window of the Jewish experience. Our organization, the Toronto Jewish Film Foundation also offers year-round film programming as well as a free online platform available across Canada, offering a library of titles that we have screened over our 34-year history.
KC: What can audiences expect at TJFF 2026?
SH: A variety of stories and viewpoints–sometimes in tension with one another–that unfortunately don’t often get to intersect in the larger art world anymore.
KC: How many films do the reviewers watch? What are you considering when selecting the films?
It’s hard to say how many films each programmer watches. We receive around 500-600 submissions per year, a large portion of which is split among the 8 programmers. Then some of the unsolicited films are viewed by a separate team of volunteers and interns.
A range of factors shape our selection process. Naturally, we look for films that resonate artistically—stories we haven’t encountered before, or fresh creative perspectives on familiar subject matter. And then sometimes you just want something that’s light, which is harder to find than one would expect.
KC: For TJFF 2026 specifically, what films stood out to you, and why?
SH: After doing this for many years, there are often one or two films per year that really excite me and get me thinking. The Israeli documentary film Shooting by Netalie Braun excited me both in its artistry and also in its reflections on the connections between the military and cinema in Israeli society. Actually, Netalie Braun has two films in this year’s festival, the other one is the drama Oxygen, which is breathtaking. And it is the discovery of a filmmaker like this that is particularly rewarding. I also really enjoy doing the archival programming for the festival: for example, this year we are showing the excellent Holocaust drama, Marianna’s Room by director Emmanuel Finkiel. So I am thrilled to be getting to also share Finkiel’s first film Voyages, which is the film I first saw in my twenties that first made me excited about the idea of exploring Jewish identity through film.
KC: What film(s) should we mark on our calendars this June?
SH: Tell Me Everything, The First Lady, Brother Verses Brother, Dust Bowls and Jewish Souls, Kichka: Telling Myself, Free Country (the tribute to Rob Reiner), Looking for Yadida, Holofiction, Bye Bye Braverman (one of my favourite American Jewish films of all time), also an offbeat collection of Toronto student films from the 70s called The Boys and Other Snapshots of Jew-ish Toronto (I think it will be a fun experience).
KC: What’s your favorite movie watching snack?
SH: I can’t have popcorn anymore; so I am now buying The Old Dutch Popcorn Twists that have a similar taste but not the kernels.
KC: How did you become a film programmer? Was there a particular film that inspired you?
SH: I never thought I would go into film programming, it was never presented to me as an option. I started studying film production after high school. Then I started enjoying film studies and history, going back to do my masters in it, intending to get my degree and then teach. I took a course at York at the time on Jewish representation in film with Florence Jacobowitz, which got me very excited (that’s where I first saw the film Voyages). At around the same time, a friend of mine, Jonah Bekhor, was on the programming team at TJFF but was leaving to study film in LA, so he recommended me for the position, and that was in 2005.
KC: What else are you (or TJFF) working on right now?
SH: I am doing research on Jewish artists who worked in early Canadian television.
KC: What’s inspiring you Jewish-ly lately?
SH: The recent feature film The Floaters; it is lovely to see such a joyful Jewish film, though I personally can’t relate to a positive Jewish summer camp experience– but the film feels very genuine. Also the Netflix show, Long Story Short. I grew up at a time when Jewish humour was very self-deprecating, and I’m a product of that. But Floaters and LSS feel like fresh air.
KC: If you could have Shabbat dinner with anyone, who would it be and why?
SH: Eugene Levy–he seems really nice, and he was a hero of mine growing up. Also, he once said in an interview he is a fan of Nortown’s Gefilte Fish, so we would definitely find a connection.
KC: Lightning round question!
Applesauce vs sour cream? Sour Cream
Poppy vs sesame seed bagels? Poppy.
Latke vs sufganiyot? Latke
Raisin vs plain challah? Hard to choose. I’d do either as long as they come from Phipps.
Hummus vs baba ghanoush? Baba Ghanoush
Tel Aviv or Jerusalem? Tel Aviv, though I would love to visit the Jerusalem film archive.
Purim vs Passover? Passover
Yentyl vs Shiva Baby? Yentl
Spinning the Dreidel vs finding the afikomen? Dreidel
Shawarma vs falafel? Shwarma
Fiddler on the Roof vs Joseph? Definitely Fiddler
Larry David vs Jerry Seinfeld? Larry David
Tiffany Haddish vs Fran Drescher? Fran Drescher
New York vs Montreal bagels? Montreal
Stuart Hands is the Director of Programming of the Toronto Jewish Film Festival, where he has worked since 2006. He is also a leading expert on Jewish identity in Canadian film and television. Stuart holds a Masters degree in film studies from York University, specializing in Jewish culture and film as well as gender and ethnicity in American cinema. After completing his Masters degree, Stuart became an intern at the New York Jewish Museum, where he assisted the programmers of the 2008 New York Jewish Film Festival. He has lectured on such topics as the Hollywood Cold War blacklist and Canadian television history.
The Toronto Jewish Film Foundation produces year-round programming and projects offering the best feature films, documentaries and shorts from Canada and around the world, on themes of Jewish culture and identity. The Foundation is dedicated to using film for its contemporary popular value and accessibility, in order to reflect the diversity of the Jewish experience internationally. Through the presentation of international and Canadian films, the Festival aims to be both a window to and a mirror of Jewish culture. We aim to be a Film Festival for everybody, and not a film festival just for Jewish people. Learn more at tjff.com
The 34th Edition of the Toronto Jewish Film Festival is coming June 4th to 14th! From iconic musicians to personal family stories, this year’s eclectic festival lineup crosses continents, generations, and identities. The program includes 48 Canadian premieres from more than 20 countries, with over 30 special guests in attendance. TJFF2026 offers a range of cinematic journeys: from 1980s coming-of-age stories to a romance set during Belgium’s golden age of radio. Travel by boat through the Brazilian Amazon, share an Uber ride in Berlin, or wander through a remote mountain village in Georgia. Along the way, spend time with trailblazing activist Efrat Tilma, acclaimed cartoonist Michel Kichka, legendary actress Tovah Feldshuh, and the late Rob Reiner. TJFF2026 invites audiences to challenge assumptions, celebrate culture, and uncover unexpected connections across history, art, and community—offering a truly global cinematic experience. Learn more at https://tjff.com/festival/tjff2026/
