Oscar-winning CODA director Sian Heder believes that her latest film, Being Heumann, which debuted at the 51st Toronto International Film Festival, is relevant today because “collective action matters.”
“We are living in a time when a lot of groups of people are getting left behind,” Heder told festival attendees at Roy Thomson Hall on Thursday night. “The rights that many people fought for in the 1970s are under threat, and it is easy to feel helpless,” she added to a local audience showing strong feelings amid Donald Trump’s ongoing trade and tariffs conflict with Canada.
“I have been out on street with a cardboard sign many times this year, and thought does this even matter, does this protest matter. There’s so many battles on so many battles, it’s hard to know where to fight,” Heder said. She spoke to introduce Being Heumann, her drama starring Ruth Madeley about Judy Heumann, who led a landmark campaign in 1977 that sparked the disability-rights movement in the U. S., ultimately resulting in the Americans With Disabilities Act.
“This film is what happens when people refuse to be invisible,” Heder added before participating in a post-premiere Q& A where she brought her cast of actors with disabilities who portrayed disabled characters in her widely acclaimed movie for Apple Original Films.
Madeley expressed her excitement about portraying Judy Heumann’s strength and humor on screen. “Thank you for so much for trusting me with something so huge,” Madeley also told Heder after landing her dream role.
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow was present as well to help kick off the 2026 edition of TIFF. Chow didn’t mention Trump directly but referenced his recent decision to rename one of the Great Lakes bordering Canada as “Lake America” while negotiations for a new trade deal remain stalled.
“I am pleased to say our magnificent waterfront will always be Lake Ontario,” Chow declared, receiving loud applause. Trump’s trade disputes with Canada are likely to overshadow TIFF since around two-thirds of Canadian film and TV series exports go to the U. S. market, even though Canadians enjoy plenty of Hollywood films and shows north of their border.
The Toronto Film Festival will continue until Sept. 20.
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