A stronger (and funnier) Mighty Niagara Film Fest back for 6th year
The festival will spotlight regional filmmaking, Canadian cult classics and panel discussions in venues across the region.
Nov. 4, 2026
John Law, Niagara Falls Review
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Movie buffs and moviemakers alike will gather again for the Mighty Niagara Film Fest.
The sixth annual festival will spotlight regional filmmaking, Canadian cult classics and panel discussions Nov. 11 to 15 in venues across the region.
Presented by Niagara Artists Centre (NAC) in St. Catharines, the event will include locally made favourites such as “Beauty Day,” director Jay Cheel’s 2011 documentary on local Cable 10 legend Cap’n Video (Ralph Zavadil) and “Carry Me Home/Songs from Niagara,” a musical documentary celebrating Niagara songwriters and local venues.
NAC director Stephen Remus says the festival has, hopefully, played a part in Time Out magazine recently naming St. Catharines as having the ninth coolest downtown in the world.
“We’d like to think we’re doing our bit to make things interesting at least,” he says. “(The festival) is looking real strong this year. You can measure that many ways, but at the top of our list is that what we’re screening is unlike anything at any other film festival anywhere.
“That means films made here and about here and films that will especially interest Niagara audiences.”
Among highlights of the fest will be Kevin McMahon’s “Borealis,” his 2020 documentary that was denied a theatrical release because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
McMahon, a former investigative journalist for the St. Catharines Standard, immersed himself in Canada’s boreal forest in 2019 to explore the intimate relationships between trees, insects and the outside world. It was to premiere at the Hot Docs film festival when everything shuttered in March 2020.
“I’ve never seen it in a cinema,” he says. “This is a big deal for me.”
McMahon, the director of highly regarded Canadian documentaries, including “The Falls” and “Waterlife,” says film festivals are often when small films like his find their audience.
“Especially with documentaries, my analogy for the way we release films in this country, it’s like a party balloon escaping from a birthday party … they just float up there and maybe people see them, maybe they don’t.
“No money or effort or time is put into promotion, so you never know.”
Following the “Borealis” screening at The Film House Nov. 15, McMahon will be joined by Niagara film writer Barry Grant for a Q&A with the audience.
Among other highlights of the festival will be the Niagara short film showcase “Tidal Surges,” the return of the Drop-In Media Lab, where people can explore various filmmaking tools, and Matthew Rankin’s satirical documentary “Ladies and Gentlemen, Brian Mulroney.”
Throw in some cartoons and other humorous features, and Remus says “for whatever reason, the program seems to trend a little lighter this year.”
“We’re probably all badly in need of a laugh.”
For tickets and a full festival schedule, go to mnff.nac.org.
