There was nary a dry eye in the audience as the closing credits rolled for Scarborough, Shasha Nakhai and Rich Williamson’s debut narrative feature film, at its premiere at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Based on the award-winning novel by Catherine Hernandez, depicting the lives of the predominantly immigrant neighbourhood of Scarborough, located in the east end of Toronto, the film captivated the hearts of filmgoers and critics in equal measure.
It won the Shawn Mendes Foundation Changemaker Award at the festival, was first runner up for the People’s Choice award and received 11 Canadian Screen Award nominations. It also opened up doors for the Filipina-Iranian filmmaker and her film and television production company, Compy Films, that she had co-founded with her partner Williamson.
