TIFF 2024: 'Shook' Tells a Different Sort of Scarborough Story

Directed by Amar Wala

Starring Saamer Usmani, Amy Forsyth, Bernard White, Pamela Sinha, Shomari Downer, Faizan Khan, Sammy Azero, Nina Kiri

Movies set in Scarborough tend to show the beauty of the area through its grit and the trauma that follows. While there's certainly a need for those stories, it's refreshing when the communities and neighbourhoods that makeup the east end of the city exist in a movie simply to exist. In his narrative feature directorial debut, Amar Wala tells the story of Ashish (Saamer Usmani), a 20-something struggling professionally and personally.

The 2024 Toronto International Film Festival runs September 5–15. Get information about tickets and screening at TIFF's website.