The 2026 Toronto International Film Festival is right around the corner, the festival runs from September 10–20, and once again it is bringing together filmmakers, performers, and cinephiles from around the world for one of the most anticipated events on the movie calendar.
Among this year’s expansive slate are a number of films highlighting stories, talent, and perspectives from across the Black diaspora. From emerging filmmakers introducing audiences to distinctive new voices to established directors and performers arriving with some of the season’s most anticipated projects, TIFF 2026 offers plenty for Black moviegoers to have on their radar.
For this list, we’re spotlighting feature-length films that feature Black filmmakers, predominantly Black or Black-led casts, and stories centered on Black experiences and communities throughout the diaspora. Not every film included is exclusively about the Black or African American experience. Instead, each selection has a meaningful connection to Black storytelling, whether that comes through its director, principal cast, subject matter, cultural perspective, or a combination of those elements.
For audiences looking to discover what could become some of the year’s breakout performances, awards-season contenders, and most talked-about independent films, these are the Black titles worth adding to your TIFF 2026 watchlist.
All film synopses featured below are credited directly to the official TIFF website unless otherwise noted.
Ben’Imana
Director: Marie-Clémentine Dusabejambo
In her powerful, feminist debut feature, which won the Caméra d’Or at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, Rwandan filmmaker Marie-Clémentine Dusabejambo examines forgiveness, justice, and generational trauma in the aftermath of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsis. Drawing from the experiences of Rwandan women, the film centers on the gacaca courts, community-based tribunals created to pursue justice and reconciliation, while confronting difficult questions about whether forgiveness is possible for survivors of unimaginable violence. Featuring an almost entirely female cast, including Clémentine U. Nyirinkindi and Isabelle Kabano, the film gives voice to survivors while exploring how younger generations navigate and reclaim a history that continues to shape Rwanda.
For more information on the film go here.
Clarissa
Directors: Arie Esiri and Chuko Esiri
Filmmaking brothers Arie and Chuko Esiri reimagine Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway in contemporary Lagos, following wealthy socialite Clarissa Dalloway (Sophie Okonedo) as she prepares for a major reception while reflecting on the relationships and choices that shaped her life. Memories of her younger years, when she was torn between her future husband Richard and aspiring writer Peter, resurface when Peter (David Oyelowo) unexpectedly returns. The adaptation also transforms the novel’s post–World War I trauma through the experiences of Septimus, a soldier struggling with PTSD after fighting Boko Haram. Shot on 35mm, Clarissa uses its Nigerian setting to explore memory, regret, trauma, and the paths not taken.
For more information on the film go here.
Congo Boy
Director: Rafiki Fariala
Drawing from director Rafiki Fariala’s own experience as a displaced Congolese artist, Congo Boy follows teenager Robert (Bradley Fiomona Dembeasset), whose family fled the Democratic Republic of Congo for the Central African Republic because of civil war. While caring for his four siblings, attending school, and working to support his family, Robert dreams of following his father into medicine but increasingly finds purpose through poetry and rap. Encouraged to conceal his Congolese identity, he instead begins to see embracing his heritage as central to his artistic voice. Set against the realities of displacement and survival in Bangui, the film blends youthful ambition, cultural identity, and resilience into an intimate coming-of-age story.
For more information on the film go here.
Darlene Love: I Know Where I’ve Been
Director: Barry Avrich
Barry Avrich’s warm-hearted documentary celebrates the life and legacy of Darlene Love, the influential singer whose voice helped define some of the biggest hits of the 1960s despite often going uncredited. Now in her eighties, Love reflects on her beginnings in a Los Angeles church choir, her turbulent years working with producer Phil Spector, and the professional and personal obstacles she overcame to finally receive the recognition she deserved. Featuring appearances from admirers including Cher, Dionne Warwick, Bruce Springsteen, and David Letterman, along with archival footage and new performances, the film honors Love’s extraordinary resilience, enduring talent, and lasting impact on popular music.
For more information on the film go here.
Marie Madeleine
Director: Géssica Généus
Géssica Généus directs and stars in Marie Madeleine, a vibrant contemporary reimagining of the biblical story of Mary Magdalene set in Jacmel, Haiti. Généus plays Marie, a fiercely independent sex worker whose life intersects with Joseph (Béonard Monteau), the sexually repressed son of an evangelical preacher, after he comes to her aid during a medical emergency. As their relationship deepens, Marie encourages Joseph to explore a life beyond his father’s strict religious expectations, creating greater conflict when the preacher opens a church directly across from her brothel. Blending surrealism with the sights and sounds of Haiti, the film explores spirituality, sexuality, freedom, and self-expression through dance, poetry, music, and the characters’ search for their authentic selves.
For more information on the film go here
Misty Green
Director: Chris Rock
Chris Rock returns as writer-director with Misty Green, a sharp Hollywood satire starring Rosalind Eleazar as a Black actor fighting to rebuild her career while navigating financial instability, addiction, and the responsibility of caring for her brother, played by Daniel Kaluuya. After losing a major role, Misty receives another opportunity from director Jordan (Rock) with his upcoming Dreamgirls remake, but mounting personal pressures push her toward a troubling yet potentially lucrative proposition from a former lover (Adam Driver). Featuring Anna Kendrick in a supporting role, the film takes aim at the racism, classism, misogyny, and relentless hustle embedded within the entertainment industry while exploring the extreme compromises demanded of those trying to survive it.
For more information on the film go here.
On Behalf of My Son
Director: Gabriel Martins
Gabriel Martins’ moving drama stars Rejane Faria as Vicentina, a grieving mother struggling with guilt after a public transit bus driven by her son plunges from a bridge and kills multiple people. Fearing that he may have caused the crash intentionally, Vicentina sets out to meet the victims’ families in search of forgiveness and answers, forcing her to confront the devastating consequences of the tragedy. Following his acclaimed Mars One, Martins delivers an intimate meditation on grief, responsibility, redemption, and whether forgiveness can ever provide healing after unimaginable loss.
For more information on the film go here.
Once Upon a Time in Harlem
Directors: William Greaves, David Greaves
Conceived by legendary filmmaker William Greaves in 1972 and completed 50 years later by his son David, Once Upon a Time in Harlem captures an extraordinary gathering of Harlem Renaissance luminaries at Duke Ellington’s townhouse. Featuring artists, writers, musicians, and scholars including Aaron Douglas, Arna Bontemps, Richard Bruce Nugent, James Van Der Zee, and Ida Mae Cullen, the documentary preserves candid conversations about their lives, achievements, and cultural legacy. Shot on multiple 16mm cameras, the film serves as both a vibrant living archive and a powerful exploration of how Black art, history, community, and resistance are preserved and passed from one generation to the next. BGN reviewed the film when it premiered at Sundance and you can check out our review here.
For more information on the film go here.
Prima Facie
Director: Susanna White
Susanna White’s Prima Facie stars Cynthia Erivo as Tessa, a formidable barrister who has built her career defending people accused of sexual offenses and believes deeply in the fairness of the legal system. Her perspective radically changes when she is sexually assaulted by a colleague and must navigate that same system as a survivor seeking justice. Adapted by Suzie Miller from her acclaimed one-woman play, the legal drama examines the burden placed on survivors, institutional misogyny, and the disconnect between legal principles and lived experience. Featuring Daniel Ings, Elizabeth Dulau, and Simon Russell Beale, the film centers Erivo in a complex story about power, trauma, and the limitations of a system Tessa once trusted.
For more information on the film go here.
Re/Pair
Director: Lacey Schwartz Delgado
In Re/Pair, filmmaker Lacey Schwartz Delgado explores the evolving relationship between Black and Jewish communities in America through candid conversations between prominent figures from both groups. Featuring 19 pairings, including W. Kamau Bell and Adam Mansbach, Van Jones and Batya Ungar-Sargon, Harry Lennix and David Schwimmer, as well as Patrisse Cullors and Rabbi Susan Goldberg, the documentary examines the communities’ shared history, past civil rights alliances, and contemporary tensions. Tackling subjects ranging from racism and antisemitism to debates surrounding Israel and Palestine, Re/Pair emphasizes the importance of meaningful dialogue, active listening, and finding common ground at a time of increasing division.
For more information go here.
Soumsoum, The Night of the Stars
Director: Mahamat-Saleh Haroun
In his latest feature, winner of the FIPRESCI Award at the 2026 Berlinale, Chadian filmmaker Mahamat-Saleh Haroun follows Kellou (Maïmouna Miawama), a young woman living with her father in a remote community on Chad’s Ennedi plateau who possesses the ability to see both the past and future. Ostracized by villagers and labeled a “girl of blood” because her mother died giving birth to her, Kellou finds an unlikely mentor in Aya (Achouackh Abakar Souleymane), another woman rejected by the community. Blending realism with elements of fantasy and spirituality, Haroun explores female isolation, solidarity, ancestral connections, and the relationship between the living and the dead against the striking landscape of northeastern Chad.
For more information go here.
Sunburn
Director: Serville Poblete
Set over one sweltering summer day in Toronto’s St. James Town neighborhood, Serville Poblete’s Sunburn follows a diverse group of young people forced outside when an intense heatwave causes a power outage. As three pairs of friends roam sidewalks, rooftops, and parks, they joke, play games, talk about crushes, and form unexpected connections before their paths eventually intersect. Featuring a cast of Filipino, Jamaican, Guyanese, and Black actors, including standouts Joshua Obra and Dashawn Blackwood, the loose and vibrant coming-of-age story captures the fleeting friendships, discoveries, and romantic possibilities of youth against the backdrop of a changing Toronto.
For more information go here.
The Fortunate Isles
Directors: Helena Girón, Samuel Delgado
Set in the 16th-century Canary Islands following their conquest by the Crown of Castile, Helena Girón and Samuel Delgado’s second feature centers on Fátima (Luisa Ahl Laabiad), an enslaved and pregnant woman struggling to survive amid colonial oppression and a harsh, water-starved landscape. As her powerful master hoards dwindling resources and tensions among the island’s desperate inhabitants move toward rebellion, Fátima must decide how to protect herself, those around her, and her unborn child. Anchored by Ahl Laabiad’s powerful performance, the film examines European colonialism in Africa, resistance, survival, and the experiences of people too often erased from traditional accounts of conquest.
For more information go here.
The Julia Set
Director: Niki Byrne
Niki Byrne’s debut feature stars Chase Infiniti as Julia, a gifted university student who has spent much of her life downplaying her mathematical abilities until teaching assistant Pascal (Christopher Briney) recruits her to train for the prestigious Putnam Exam. As Julia enters an intensely competitive world of academic prodigies, she develops a relationship with Pascal while confronting the pressures, privilege, and expectations surrounding who gets recognized as a genius. Co-starring Gillian Anderson, Jason Isaacs, Nina Hoss, and Chloe Bailey, the film explores ambition, identity, family expectations, and the social barriers that can determine whose talents are nurtured and whose are overlooked.
For more information go here.
The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives
Director: Daniel Oriahi
Based on Lola Shoneyin’s acclaimed novel, Daniel Oriahi’s The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives follows a wealthy Nigerian patriarch (Odunlade Adekola) whose polygamous household begins to unravel after his youngest and university-educated wife, Bolanle (Omowunmi Dada), struggles to conceive. Her arrival disrupts the uneasy balance among Baba Segi’s three other wives, whose rivalries and carefully guarded secrets have helped them survive within the family. When medical examinations threaten to expose long-hidden truths, the household is thrown into turmoil. Blending Nollywood humor with emotional depth, the film explores infertility, sexual exploitation, gender expectations, inheritance, patriarchal power, and the difficult choices women make to secure their place within a system stacked against them.
For more information go here.
Voices
Director: Deanté Gray
Set in 1967 Detroit near Motown Records, Deantè Gray’s feature debut Voices follows Jordan (Francis Edemobi), an ambitious motel bellhop and aspiring singer desperate for his chance to break into the music industry. After an encounter with an up-and-coming musical act takes an unexpected turn, Jordan devises a risky scheme to steal their identity and secure their coveted performance opportunity, drawing his reluctant friends into the deception. Blending musical drama, suspense, and noir influences within the confines of a motel room, the film explores artistic ambition, desperation, and the corrupting pursuit of fame while capturing the soulful musical energy of 1960s Detroit.
For more information go here.
Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother
Director: Bassam Tariq
Bassam Tariq’s Texas-set action thriller Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother stars Mahershala Ali as Latif, a devout Muslim, devoted father, and contract killer who follows a strict moral code, refusing to use guns and accepting only targets he believes deserve their fate. After the death of his wife, Latif attempts to leave his violent profession behind and focus on raising his three children, but his longtime employer and an escalating feud pull him back into the criminal world. Blending intense action with an intimate story of faith, family, grief, and fatherhood, the film forces Latif to confront the contradictions between his religious convictions, personal morality, and violent past.
For more information go here.
Zjili: A Story of Sisterhood and The Burdens of Excess
Director: Christine Boateng and Hajara Musah Chambas
In their debut feature, Christine Boateng and Hajara Musah Chambas follow three Ghanaian women whose lives intersect amid the difficult realities of Accra’s massive secondhand clothing industry. Zjili: A Story of Sisterhood and the Burden of Excess centers on Zoya (Abdullah Rahana), a teenager who leaves her village hoping to earn money for her education by working as a kayayo, carrying heavy loads of clothing on her head. She forms connections with Teiya (Esinam Semordzi), a young mother dreaming of opening a hair salon, and Charpang (Zarahawu Fuseini), a landlady carrying painful memories of her own. Inspired by real experiences, the film explores female labor, economic inequality, environmental waste, and the human consequences of the global fashion industry while celebrating the resilience and intergenerational bonds of Ghanaian women.
For more information go here.
And although we do not have them on this list, be sure to check out the short films playing at the festival too!
