Genre Gems Film Festival

The inaugural Genre Gems Festival will bring five days of adventurous forms of genre cinema to Ottawa, running October 1 to 5, 2025. From horror to comedies and beyond, the festival will spotlight a carefully curated programme of acclaimed titles from Sundance, Berlin, Cannes, Fantasia, Locarno, and TIFF, many making their Ottawa premieres.

Due to the recent success of Hollywood genre films at the box office, the festival aims to provide a counter-cultural slate of standout discoveries from the festival circuit. Adjacent to its curatorial spirit, the programming team is composed of experienced Gen-Z and millennial industry professionals. They have previously worked at festivals such as TIFF, Hot Docs, Fantasia, Blood in the Snow, the Ottawa International Animation Festival, the European Union Film Festival, and the International Film Festival of Ottawa.

With a focus on quality over quantity, Genre Gems aims to connect Ottawa’s vibrant film community with daring new voices in cinema and to engage younger audiences eager for innovative storytelling.

Genre Gems is designed for cinephiles who crave discovery, curating a lean but powerful lineup of the world’s most talked-about genre films, bringing global cinema to Ottawa in an intimate, community-driven setting.

The first edition of the Genre Gems Film Festival will take place at the Mayfair Theatre and ByTowne Cinema from October 1 - 5, 2025. General Admission tickets are $15 CAD. Festival passes are $150 CAD ($120 early-bird). Early Bird passes go on-sale August 22nd at 6:00 PM. The special rate ends on September 18th.

For more information, visit www.genregems.ca or follow @GenreGems on X, Facebook and Instagram.

Running from October 1 to 5, 2025, the inaugural edition of Genre Gems aims to deconstruct, destigmatize, and promote adventurous storytelling within the context of genre cinema. From horror films to westerns, the carefully curated programme will spotlight hot festival titles from Sundance, Berlin, Cannes, Fantasia, Locarno, and TIFF for prestigious Ottawa premieres.