One of the world’s leading showcases of new horror, sci-fi, action and cult films, Toronto After Dark Film Festival has been thrilling audiences for over 15 years since its establishment in 2006.

Toronto After Dark is regularly featured on the Best Genre Film Festival in the World shortlists including those published by Film Freeway, Moviemaker, Filmmaker, Raindance, Dread Central and more.

Our critically acclaimed event spotlights exciting new feature films and shorts from around the world, and is annually attended by over 10,000 enthusiastic film fans and over 100 members of press and industry! 

We generate extensive coverage from the press for our feature and short film selections and a number of our titles go on each year to receive distribution deals and wider releases as a result. We hope to see you and your film at Toronto After Dark for our next festival!

The Buzz

Here’s what filmmakers and film press have to say about us:

“Toronto After Dark is a fabulous launching pad for independent genre film” - John Landis, Filmmaker (AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON, THE BLUES BROTHERS, SOME GUY WHO KILLS PEOPLE)

“An amazing atmosphere and great energy, the fans at Toronto After Dark are the best!”- Eli Roth, Producer/Actor/Writer (INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS, THE LAST EXORCISM,  HOSTEL, GRINDHOUSE)

“Well organized, friendly, and relaxed, you can’t go wrong with this festival.” - FANGORIA

“A festival with great taste, I love Toronto After Dark! It is an event close to my heart.” - Simon Pegg, Writer/Actor (SHAUN OF THE DEAD, HOT FUZZ, STAR TREK, A FANTASTIC FEAR OF EVERYTHING)

You can read plenty more testimonials from filmmakers here and the press here.

A World-Class Film Festival

Toronto After Dark is a proud member of the prestigious North American Fantastic Film Alliance (NAFFA) which recognizes only the top six world-class genre film festivals out of over 50 on the continent.

Our widely respected sister festivals in the alliance include Austin’s Fantastic Fest, Montreal’s Fantasia, Los Angeles’ ScreamFest while in Europe, via NAFFA’s counterpart organization we are affiliated with Spain’s prestigious Sitges fantastic film festival, and London, England’s premier genre cinema event FrightFest.

Programming of a film by a NAFFA festival is seen as a badge of quality. Many short and feature films which screen at Toronto After Dark are also amongst the selections of other world-class film events including the Sundance, Cannes, SXSW and Tribeca Film Festivals.

Outstanding Media Coverage

Every year Toronto After Dark Film Festival takes full advantage of being based in Canada’s largest city and biggest media centre, setting new records for the outstanding coverage we generate for the films that screen with us.

Toronto After Dark Film Festival and its screenings have received over 5,000 features, previews and reviews in more than 250 media outlets across Television, Print, Radio and the Web including Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Bloody-Disgusting, Twitch Film, Coming Soon.Net, Fangoria, Rue Morgue, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, Filmmaker Magazine, The Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, Toronto Life, SPACE Channel, City TV and dozens more, many of which are also official supporters of the festival.

What We Offer Films

If your film is selected for screening at Toronto After Dark Film Festival, here is a summary of what you can expect from us:

  • EXCELLENT PRESENTATION: Toronto After Dark takes pride in screening all films with the very best projection and sound equipment available

  • EXTENSIVE PROMOTION of your film as part of our massive two month festival marketing campaign that involves cinema, web, social media and email marketing.

  • A WELL-ATTENDED SCREENING: Our screenings take place in the heart of downtown Toronto, one of North America’s largest cities and our festival has become world-famous for its packed, enthusiastic audiences, with around 500 fans in attendance at each screening. These fans create fantastic word of mouth for the films they see.

  • MASSIVE PRESS COVERAGE: Very few festivals in the world come close to Toronto After Dark when it comes to generating publicity for independent genre films, both feature films and shorts.

  • A CHANCE TO WIN AWARDS:  All selected films are automatically eligible to win IMDB-recognized awards at our festival. And in the spirit of fairness, Toronto After Dark lets our fans be the jury: over 5,000 votes are cast annually by our attendees to determine the winners of our coveted Audience Choice Awards in a number of key categories.

  • EXPOSURE BEYOND OUR EVENT: You can rest assured, if selected that our experienced festival team will do all that it can to make sure that your film’s journey to finding the perfect audience wider than just our festival. is a successful one!

  • HELP WITH DISTRIBUTION:  Finally, Toronto After Dark has a number of high profile contacts that we can share with you if you are selected by our event and seek distribution domestically or internationally.

Ready to Submit Your Film?

If you’re interested in submitting your film, please visit our Film Submissions Page at our website for all the details on how you can enter our next festival.

If you have any questions about entering, please feel free to email us at: submissions@torontoafterdark.com.

We look forward to your participation in our Festival!

- Team After Dark

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