Starring Tom Hiddleston (TIFF ’24’s The Life of Chuck), Oscar nominee Willem Dafoe, and Genden Phuntsok (TIFF ’18’s Jinpa), this wondrous biopic recounts the story of Himalayan Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay who, alongside Edmund Hillary, became first to top Everest in 1953.

The latest from director Jennifer Peedom (TIFF ’15’s Sherpa) recounts the story of Himalayan Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay who, alongside Edmund Hillary, became the first to reach the summit of Mount Everest in 1953. Written by Oscar-nominated screenwriter Luke Davis (TIFF ’16’s Lion), and starring Tom Hiddleston (TIFF ’24’s The Life of Chuck), Caitríona Balfe (TIFF ’21’s Belfast), Oscar nominee Willem Dafoe (TIFF ’17’s The Florida Project), and Genden Phuntsok (TIFF ’18’s Jinpa), Tenzing is the inspiring exploration of an extraordinary life fuelled by ambition, tenacity, and a true sense of wonder.

Hard work and sheer charisma found Tenzing (Phuntsok) working on British expeditions to Everest in the 1930s. Nearly two decades would pass before he joined the team that would finally complete the ascent to the world’s tallest peak, led by John Hunt (Dafoe) and Edmund Hillary (Hiddleston), whose survival would ultimately depend on Tenzing’s skills, dedication, and profound courage.

Gorgeously photographed by Stefan Duscio (The Invisible Man), Tenzing is a transporting experience, ushering us along a seemingly impossible trek to the top of the world. The film’s stellar cast make expert guides on this journey, but its single greatest asset is Phuntsok, who embodies its larger-than-life hero with grace and vulnerability — and somehow captures Tenzing’s legendarily irresistible smile.

The international hit musical comes to the big screen!

Winner of eight Tony Awards in 2019 including Best Musical and the 2020 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album, HADESTOWN: THE MUSICAL is the genre-defying musical blending modern American folk music with New Orleans-inspired jazz to reimagine a sweeping ancient tale of two intertwining love stories, that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and King Hades and his wife Persephone. Filmed live on stage in London’s West End and featuring the original Broadway stars, HADESTOWN: THE MUSICAL invites audiences on a hell-raising journey to the underworld and back.

Screening for Black History Month

Menelik Shabazz (Burning an Illusion) shines a light on the music genre often dubbed ‘romantic reggae’; a uniquely black British sound that developed in the late 70s and 80s against a backdrop of riots, racial tension and sound systems.

Lovers Rock, often dubbed ‘romantic reggae’, is a uniquely black British sound that developed in the late 70s and 80s against a backdrop of riots, racial tension and sound systems. Providing a coping mechanism for what was happening on the streets, Lovers Rock allowed young people to experience intimacy and healing through dance – known as ‘scrubbing’ – at parties and clubs and developed into a successful sound with a string national UK hits, influencing the likes of The Police, Culture Club and UB40.

Shining a light on a forgotten period in British music, social and political history, Menelik Shabazz’s debut documentary feature underlines the impact Lovers Rock made in bridging the multi-cultural gap that polarized Thatcher’s nation.