The YVR Screen Scene Podcast

The wildly talented multi-hyphenate Mayumi Yoshida returns to the YVR Screen Scene Podcast to discuss her long-awaited feature film directorial debut, Akashi, which is inspired by Mayumi’s own experience of living in the space between cultures. Ten years after moving to Vancouver, struggling visual artist Kana (that’s Mayumi) returns to Tokyo to attend the funeral of her beloved grandmother. Arriving in Japan, she rekindles a tentative flame with her bashful ex-boyfriend, Hiro, an aspiring thespian who vanished from her life a decade prior. As Kana digs deeper into her grandmother’s past, she uncovers a family secret that prompts her to reconsider everything she thought she knew about love, duty, and belonging.Akashi – which Mayumi wrote, directed, and starred in – has its world premiere this week at the 2025 Vancouver International Film Festival. The feature began its life as a Fringe Festival play in 2016, before evolving into a Storyhive-funded short film in 2017 (the latter for which she earned a slew of awards, including the award for Best Female Director at the 2018 Vancouver Short Film Festival, and the Outstanding Writer Award at the NBCUniversal Short Film Festival). Although it’s been a long road to bring Akashi to the screen in its current feature-length incarnation, Mayumi hasn’t been idle in the intervening years: between directing short films – including the music video for Different Than Before, which won the SXSW Music Video Jury Award in 2023 – and working as a dialect coach and cultural consultant and advocating for diversity and inclusion in our challenging industry, Mayumi has been fighting to get this film made. This included, in 2021, taking on Telefilm, Canada’s major funding provider, for their outdated language requirements that didn’t take Canada’s purported commitment to diversity and inclusion into consideration. In this riveting conversation with Sabrina Rani Furminger, Mayumi reflects on her journey to this moment, how Akashi changed over the years, and how Akashi changed her as an artist. Episode sponsor: UBCP / ACTRA

What has the Taliban’s shocking return to power meant for Afghan women? Brishkay Ahmed’s new documentary In The Room hands the mic to Afghan women who’ve stepped onto the world stage and reclaimed their homeland and identity. This includes Brishkay herself, who literally steps through the looking glass and confronts and contextualises her own identity. At times dreamlike and always impactful, In The Room is at once a celebration of Afghan resistance, and a reminder that – in age where women’s rights are being gleefully eroded all over the world, including most notably south of our border – our autonomy as women must be actively protected. In The Room was produced through the National Film Board of Canada and has its world premiere at the 2025 Vancouver International Film Festival. In this wildly fascinating conversation with Sabrina Rani Furminger, Brishkay reflects on her own journey with her Afghan identity, the power of anger in activism and resistance, and the parallels she sees between what’s happened in Afghanistan and what’s currently occurring all over the world. Episode sponsor: Fish Flight Entertainment

Today’s episode of the YVR Screen Scene Podcast is both another instalment in our ongoing #IndustryBFFs series AND our season opener! Sabrina is joined in the podcast studio by two powerhouse actresses who are uplifting women in film via their new project, the Liberated Actresses Playground: Aliyah O’Brien and Priscilla Faia. Returning guest Aliyah O’Brien is beloved for her work on Rookie Blue, Legends of Tomorrow, and You Me Her, for her beautiful smile, and her equally beautiful personality. Priscilla Faia is a new friend-of-the-pod but a veteran actress around town. You know her from You Me Her – for which she won a Leo Award for Best Performance in a Music, Comedy or Variety Program or Series – and for Rookie Blue, for which she was nominated for a Canadian Screen Award. In this rambunctious and at times emotional conversation (facilitated by vodka soda and the “airport drinking” paradigm), Aliyah and Priscilla discuss what it means to be a liberated actress, how their friendship has helped them navigate this sometimes unfriendly industry, and why women are stronger when we stand together. Episode sponsor: UBCP / ACTRA

Earlier this month, Angela’s Shadow won two awards – for best screenwriting and best production design – at the 2025 Leo Awards. It was the latest in a string of successes for the film, which won the Panorama Audience Award at the 2024 Vancouver International Film Festival, kicks off a theatrical run in Toronto this weekend, and is acclaimed Cree filmmaker Dr. Jules Arita Koostachin’s highly anticipated follow-up to the similarly lauded Broken Angel. In Angela’s Shadow, Angela (played by Sera-Lys McArthur) and Henry (Matthew Kevin Anderson), young 1930s socialites with a baby on the way, embark on a short trip north to visit Angela’s beloved childhood nanny, Mary (Renae Morriseau). When Angela is harassed by a menacing shadow figure, Mary moves to bless and protect her and her unborn child with illegal Cree ceremonies and medicine. As the truth about her ancestry and the spectral figure’s identity unfold, Angela must decide whether to delve into her newfound spiritual traditions in order to protect herself from her husband’s escalating purity-obsessed racism. Angela’s Shadow is the second film in a trilogy that follows three sets of Cree characters all connected to each other in some way, across three different time periods, who use their connections to their Cree spiritual traditions to combat and heal from settler colonialism. The first film – the aforementioned dramatic thriller entitled Broken Angel – won Sera-Lys the award for Best Actress at the 2022 American Indian Film Festival. In this compelling conversation with Sabrina Rani Furminger, Jules and Sera-Lys talk about healing from settler colonialism through art, working with family (three of Jules’ sons and her mom all appear in the film), being pregnant IRL shortly after being pregnant onscreen, and where they’re going to take us next.Episode sponsor: Directors Guild Of Canada, BC District Council

Bronwen Smith was nominated for a UBCP/ACTRA Award for her scene-stealing dramatic turn in Laura Adkin’s feature film directorial debut, Re: Uniting. Catherine Lough Haggquist (who received the Lorena Gale Woman of Distinction Award from UBCP/ACTRA in 2020) garnered a globe-spanning fanbase for her role as the ass-kicking General Bellweather on Motherland: Fort Salem. Separately, they are powerhouse performers; together, they are #IndustryBFFs whose friendship directly impacts their individual journeys through this topsy-turvy film and television industry (not to mention the work they do through The Drama Class, where they provide online education, support, and community for actors everywhere and at every level). In this contemplative, moving, and at times hilarious episode, Bronwen and Cat discuss their three decades of friendship – and why people sometimes ask if they’re actually okay. Episode sponsor: UBCP/ACTRA

Inedia is a disquieting and psychologically charged dramatic feature exploring a young woman’s descent into a dangerous online fasting movement. Filmed on Salt Spring Island, Inedia tells the story of Cora (Amy Forsyth), a desperate young woman who signs up for an alternative lifestyle community to escape her mounting food allergies. At Sun Haven, they practice “breatharianism,” subsisting on light and air. The group’s charismatic leader (Susanne Wuest) and peaceful vibes give Cora hope, but it’s not long before she realizes there are tensions beneath the surface. At its core, Inedia is an eerie study of emotional and psychological disturbance and the way it manifests outwardly. Filmmaker Liz Cairns joins Sabrina in the YVR Screen Scene studio to discuss her journey with Inedia and her experience visiting a breatharian retreat in Peru. Episode sponsor: Fish Flight Entertainment

Beloved Vancouver actor Alex Zahara swings by the YVR Screen Scene Podcast studio to discuss his wildly entertaining turn as Uncle Howard (RIP) in Final Destination: Bloodlines and his own remarkable career on stage and screen. The funny and fascinating conversation covers a lot of territory: how Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein’s critically acclaimed, blockbuster contribution to the Final Destination universe is a love letter to Vancouver; how he gets into character (a process that somehow involves primordial ooze); memorable roles from his career, including his 40 on-screen deaths; how he navigates the quiet times; and what it is about this topsy-turvy biz that keeps him coming back for more. Episode sponsor: UBCP/ACTRA

Simon Barry (Warrior Nun, Continuum) returns to the YVR Screen Scene Podcast to discuss his latest series. Bet – 10 episodes of which dropped on Netflix in May 2025 – draws its inspiration from the manga Kakegurai – Compulsive Gambler. The series tells the story of Yumeko (portrayed by Miku Martineau), a young woman who enrols in an exclusive boarding school to avenge the murder of her parents. This exclusive boarding school ain’t Hogwarts: it’s a cutthroat academy run by a powerful Student Council whose power structure is entirely based on gambling. Yumeko’s prowess at gambling and her overarching revenge quest put her in the crosshairs of the Student Council and its formidable president, Kira – leading to a showdown that is both high-octane and deeply satisfying.Bet is at once a breath of fresh air and exactly what we’ve come to expect from Simon Barry: a wildly entertaining adventure set in an unexpected world about a whip-smart woman on a seemingly impossible quest. In this fascinating interview, Simon discusses his journey with Bet, what Miku Martineau brought to the pivotal role of Yumeko, his thoughts on AI, collaborating with director Jacquie Gould (Outlander, Obi-Wan Kenobi), Dennis Heaton’s brain, and what he learned from Warrior Nun and its fans.Episode sponsor: Directors Guild Of Canada, BC District Council

The Vancouver-shot Dil Rakh: Gloves of Kin tells the story of Sukh Sidhu, a South Asian man who spent 20 years in jail for a crime he didn't commit. Upon his release, he returns to the small predominantly white town where his life went sideways, where racism abounds and where his son Dayton is in deep with a group of petty criminals who barely conceal their contempt for his brownness. Dayton is pissed with his dad for leaving the family for 20 years, and reconciliation seems impossible – until father and son find common ground in the boxing ring. Dil Rakh: Gloves of Kin is one part drama, one part boxing, one part commentary on racism in small town North America, and 100 per cent heart; in other words (and in the opinion of YVR Screen Scene host Sabrina Rani Furminger), it’s a game-changer. The film won the Sundar Prize for Best BC Film at the 2024 Sundar Prize Film Festival and is currently available for streaming on Amazon Prime. Actors Dalj Brar (who also wrote and directed) and Umar Farook Khan join Sabrina in the YVR Screen Scene Podcast lab to talk the evolution of representation, boxing, changing the game, and keeping the faith.Episode sponsor: Fish Flight Entertainment

This special episode features four of the producers and three of the world-class athletes showcased in Beyond The Podium: Celebrating Canadian Women Champions. The juggernaut documentary – which was directed by Brenda Whitehall – hands the mic to 15 of Canada’s top women winter athletes and invites them to delve deep into the issues that are intertwined with their journey to the podiums: issues like racism, infertility, depression and anxiety, safe sport, and discrimination. We see how athletes support each other, carry the weight of a nation, and navigate all manner of challenges and successes. The film is vast in its scope but also incredibly intimate, which is also an apt description for this super-sized episode, which finds Sabrina chatting with director Brenda Whitehall, producers Sarah Dawn Pledge, Angela Galanopoulos, and Juliana Bergstrom; and champions Jennifer Heil, Viviane Forest, and Kaetlyn Osmond about what it takes to be a champion.Episode sponsor: Fish Flight Entertainment

Five years ago, actor Giles Panton swung by the YVR Screen Scene Podcast to talk about voicing Iron Man in Marvel Battleworld: Mystery of the Thanostones, the sleighful of Christmas movies in his filmography, what he learned playing the minister of propaganda for the American Reich in Amazon Prime’s critically acclaimed dystopian series The Man in the High Castle, and the Barbie commercial that broke up his band. It’s a fantastic episode (which you can find in the episode footnotes or wherever you listen to podcasts), but a lot can change in five years. For instance, you can move from being the guy that always loses the girl in the rom-com to the guy who gets her. You can win a Leo Award for Best Performance in an Animation Program for your work in animated horror anthology series Red Iron Road AND a UBCP/ACTRA Award for voicing Carnage and Norman Osborne in Absolute Carnage. You can get an ADHD diagnosis that explains so much of how you move through the world. You can become a dad. In this compelling conversation – at times poignant; at times funny; always authentic and entertaining – Giles reflects on the many changes of the last five years, what it takes to be a leading man, working with Andrea Brooks on Snowy with a Chance of Christmas, pursuing joy, constructing grilled cheese sandwiches, and how his ADHD diagnosis changed his life. Episode sponsor: UBCP/ACTRA

Baljit Sangra’s new documentary issues its central question in its title: Have You Heard Judi Singh? If you have to think about it, the answer is no, because once you’ve heard Judi Singh sing, you’ll remember it – her clarity, her lyricism, the ease with which she scat and sang bebop and standards and original music – you’ll remember that you’ve heard Judi Singh sing for the rest of your life. Originally from Edmonton, gifted jazz singer Judi Singh defied expectations as a Punjabi-Black artist stepping onto the stage in the late 1950s. Though her ethereal voice captivated musicians and audiences, the music industry failed to give her the recognition she deserved—an all-too-familiar story for women and artists of colour. In this lively and deeply felt documentary portrait, Judi’s daughter Emily Hughes and Baljit retrace Judi’s life and music through archival recordings, intimate recollections, and the bohemian spaces she once inhabited. Weaving together moments of brilliance, struggle, and resilience, the film reintroduces a forgotten artist to the spotlight she always deserved.More people will have the opportunity to acquaint themselves with Judi’s voice and her remarkable story after Have You Heard Judi Singh? has its world premiere at the 2025 DOXA Documentary Film Festival. Filmmaker Baljit Sangra returns to the podcast to discuss Judi’s artistry and legacy. Episode sponsor: Directors Guild Of Canada, BC District Council

House of David on Amazon Prime tells the story of the shepherd boy who brought down a giant Philistine warrior with a slingshot and a stone and, ultimately, became king. But the story of David – outcast David, underdog David, King David – is more than a single parable – and the first season of House of David lays out David’s journey from childhood until moments after he felled Goliath with a single stone. Although the series – which aired its first season finale earlier this month and has already been renewed for a second season – is filmed in Greece, it boasts an impressive contingent from Vancouver. Louis Ferreira is David’s father, Jesse. Kimani Ray-Smith is stunt coordinator. Todd Giroux is post producer. Alexandra La Roche and Michael Nankin directed episodes. And Vancouver’s own Jonathan Lloyd Walker is executive producer, writer, and season one show runner. In this compelling conversation with Sabrina Rani Furminger, Jonathan discusses his journey to House of David, the joys and challenges of bringing these biblical personages to the screen, and where the show will take viewers in season two. Episode sponsor: UBCP/ACTRA

Wildfire is a phenomenal, deeply moving, and heart-pounding five-part series that airs on Knowledge Network beginning on April 29. Filmed across British Columbia in 2023, during the worst fire season on record, the series examines how an unprecedented fuel build-up, combined with a hotter, drier climate, created a volatile tinderbox situation. It also introduces us to the communities impacted by wildfires and the humans who put their lives on the line to fight fire however they can: with water, with axes, with ingenuity, and with fire itself. We see firsthand the daunting climate emergency we face and meet the people standing between British Columbians and complete devastation. Wildfire is executive produced and co-directed by friend of the pod Kevin Eastwood, and co-directed and produced by Nelson filmmakers Simon Shave and Clay Mitchell. In this fascinating episode, Kevin Eastwood reflects on what he learned about the British Columbians who are stepping up to fight these record-breaking wildfires, and how he and his team handled the logistics of filming the firefighting up close. Episode sponsor: Directors Guild Of Canada, BC District Council

In this special episode of the YVR Screen Scene Podcast, Allegiance star Supinder Wraich and executive producer Nimisha Mukerji reflect on the crime procedural’s emotionally searing second season. Season one introduced us to Sabrina Sohal (played by Supinder), a star rookie police officer in the CFPC who must grapple with the limits of the justice system as she fights to exonerate her politician father Ajeet Sohal, played by friend of the pod Stephen Lobo. Season two finds Sabrina earning a probationary spot as a detective in the Serious Crimes Unit, and with a new partner: Detective Corporal Zak Kalaini played by Samer Salem, from a CFPC branch in Alberta, who has a much different style of policing than Sabrina.Allegiance is set and produced in Surrey, British Columbia, and is very much a character in its own right. Season two brought us even deeper into the community, and also into issues that are at once specific to Surrey and also universal: issues like violence against women in the South Asian community; sexual predation of teen boys; violence against the unhoused; PTSD; and also grief: how we navigate it, and how we need to fold it into our lives somehow or risk losing ourselves altogether. In the first half of the episode, Supinder Wraich reflects on Sabrina’s journey in season two, her own journey in Sabrina’s detective shoes, and healing through representation. In the second half of the episode, executive producer and director Nimisha Mukerji reflects on the emotional resonance of Allegiance’s second season, and what Sabrina Sohal represents for her. Episode sponsor: Directors Guild Of Canada, BC District Council

Actor-filmmaker Ben Immanuel (Down River) and actress Gabrielle Miller (Corner Gas) swung by the YVR Screen Scene Podcast to discuss Are We Done Now? The comedy-drama tells the story of therapist Pamela (played by Gabrielle) and her diverse young clients as they participate in a (fictionalised) documentary exploring the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on their mental health. Through this experience, they—and the filmmaker, played by Ben—gain unexpected self-insight, leading to a deeper understanding of their identities and roles in our transformed world. Besides Gabrielle, this comedic and emotionally resonant film stars Favour Onwuka, Eliot Ramsay, Natalie Farrow, Giacomo Baessato, Jennifer Spence, and Camille Sullivan—and on April 12 and 13, it will screen at VIFF Centre as part of National Canadian Film Week. In this thoughtful interview, Ben and Gabrielle reflect on filming a comedy-drama about COVID during the (mostly dramatic and not very funny) first year of COVID, and the impact of unprocessed pandemic grief on artists. Episode sponsor: UBCP/ACTRA

Filmmaker Carl Bessai and actor Vincent Gale are legends of the Vancouver screen scene. These two legends have worked together before – Vincent was nominated for a Leo Award for his work in Carl’s iconic comedy-drama Fathers & Sons – and their latest collaboration, Field Sketches, screens at VIFF Centre on April 12 and 14 as part of National Canadian Film Week.Carl mined his own life and family history for Field Sketches. Vincent stars as Peter, a middle-aged architect whose business and personal life are imploding. With nothing left to hold him in the city, Peter decides to move to his family farm and spend the winter in Saskatchewan. He soon discovers that pioneer life is much more than he bargained for.  And the silence and loneliness play tricks on his imagination. Field Sketches takes its characters and audiences from a gorgeous mid-century modern home in Vancouver, to Peter’s rustic family farm in Saskatchewan (played by Carl’s family farm), and into the past, to East Germany (played by Berlin). The result is a singular piece of art that is rich with surprises, fleeting and impactful beauty, and insight into what it means to age as an artist, an immigrant, and the descendent of immigrants. In this fascinating conversation, Carl and Vincent reflect on their journey with Field Sketches, and how their own experiences with art align with Peter’s journey.Episode sponsor: Directors Guild Of Canada, BC District Council

Emily Bett Rickards (Arrow's Felicity Smoak) swung by the YVR Screen Scene Podcast to discuss one of the most wildly entertaining, audacious, and empowering films of this or any year, Queen of the Ring. Emily shines as Mildred “Millie” Burke, the legendary professional wrestler and single mom who defied incredible odds to become the first million-dollar female athlete and longest reigning champion at a time when the sport was banned across most of America. Queen of the Ring was written and directed by Ash Avildsen. The cast also includes Walter Goggins, Josh Lucas, Francesca Eastwood, Tyler Posey, and Marie Avgeropoulos. Queen of the Ring opens in Canada on April 4, including at VIFF Centre and the Rio Theatre in Vancouver, and Emily joined Sabrina Rani Furminger on the pod to talk about Mildred’s commitment to intersectionality, muscularity, and femininity, what she learned about Millie by jacking up for the role, and the conversation she’d love to have with the late wrestling star. Episode sponsor: UBCP/ACTRA

It’s a short film extravaganza! This double-header features interviews with not one but two fearless filmmakers who’ve created something very special in the short film space. First, Jackie Hoffart talks about The Reveal, a comedy about nonbinary Stevie, who struggles to support their sister’s gender reveal party while harbouring some news of their own: that they have started on testosterone, that they are transitioning. The Reveal has its world premiere on March 29 at the 2025 Crazy8s Film Gala, AKA the hottest ticket in town. That conversation is followed by a stirring chat with filmmaker, actor, and dancer Juliana Bergstrom about mining her personal life and passions for Harbour. The film premiered on CBC Gem on February 6, and is at once a love letter to art and dance, and the struggles and triumphs of life as an artist. Episode sponsor: Fish Flight Entertainment

Our very own Sabrina Rani Furminger recently joined Sasha Pobochii on the Cultural_Front.UA Podcast to talk about her upcoming documentary Our Hall (about her family’s long history of activism), how the events of February 24, 2022 altered Ukrainians (in Ukraine, displaced, and diaspora), and how non-Ukrainians can hold space for Ukrainians during this tumultuous time. And before that, Sabrina gives an update on the new season of the YVR Screen Scene Podcast.