The 24th Annual Doxa Documentary Film Festival, returning May 1-11, 2025, ahead of the full program release, the festival has announced its Opening and Closing films. Both films showcase BC talent and explore the 2025 festival’s theme of resistance.
“This year, we have chosen films that exemplify resistance; beyond embracing resistance as a theme, many of our 2025 films are forces of resistance that showcase the resilience of communities that combat erasure,” says Programming and Industry Manager, Marianne Thodas.
Opening Gala: Aisha’s Story
7:00pm, Thursday, May 1 @ Vancouver Playhouse
For the Opening Gala, DOXA presents Elizabeth Vibert and Chen Wang’s Aisha’s Story (2025).
The Gala will be hosted by Margaret Gallagher, host of North by Northwest on CBC Radio, and a reception with refreshments will follow the screening. Aisha’s Story poses a vital question—how can food contribute to generational healing? The film follows Aisha, a Palestinian matriarch running her family’s grain mill in Jordan, who preserves Palestinian history by passing down traditional cuisine to generations that have been displaced from their homeland. Aisha’s Story showcases how food is not only an expression of cultural heritage; food can be a vehicle for resistance.
Elizabeth Vibert is a historian at the University of Victoria, writer, and filmmaker whose work focuses on grassroots efforts toward food justice in contexts of poverty, colonial inequities, and the climate crisis. Chen Wang is an internationally award-winning photographer and cinematographer, who grew up in Mainland China and now lives in Victoria, BC. Vibert and Wang are in competition for the Colin Low Award for Best Canadian Director and the Vancouver Film Studios Award for Best BC Director at DOXA 2025.
Closing Gala: Saints and Warriors
6:30pm, Saturday, May 10 @ SFU Cinema
The DOXA 2025 Closing Gala presents the BC Premiere of Patrick Shannon’s Saints and Warriors (2024). Saints and Warriors tells the story of how basketball is more than a game for the people of Xaaydaga Gwaay.yaay (Haida Gwaii)—it’s an arena for leadership, resistance, and cultural preservation. Under colonial rule, Indigenous peoples were banned from gathering, except for church or sports—so the Haida turned basketball into a lifeline for carrying Haida traditions through generations. Set during the 2023-24 season, the film follows the legendary Skidegate Saints as they fight to defend their dynasty at the All Native Basketball Tournament. But their battle extends beyond the scoreboard, as players navigate tensions, shifting allegiances, and the long-standing struggle for Indigenous land rights.
Patrick Shannon (Nang ?’uulas) is an Indigenous Haida film director from Skidegate, Xaaydaga Gwaay.yaay. Having been a filmmaker for 12 years and with a decade of experience in the Vancouver film industry, Saints and Warriors is his first feature-length film. Patrick Shannon is in competition for the Colin Low Award for Best Canadian Director and the Vancouver Film Studios Award for Best BC Director at DOXA 2025.
“Documentary is a bridge between life and art, reflecting our reality back to us and revealing aspects of our world that are hidden or intentionally suppressed. However, documentaries can also inspire change and resilience. Many of our 2025 films touch on the theme of resistance; in this current moment of political upheaval and unease, we hope that our films inspire hope for movie-goers, and bring some context to the complexity of our time. We can’t wait to announce our full program on April 3,” says Arnaud Menindes, Managing Director.
Tickets for the Opening and Closing Galas, as well as festival passes are on sale now at doxafestival.ca. Festival passes include the Opening and Closing Galas, the Mid-Week Film and access to all film screenings.
The 24th Annual Doxa Documentary Film Festival full program will be announced later this week, with single tickets for all other film screenings, as well as Industry passes, on sale at that time.