“A superb performance, beautifully shot and coiled with eel-like suspense” - Blake Mawson, Creator, I Hate People, People Hate Me
“A haunting reflection on man’s exploitation of nature” - Jason Buxton, Director, Sharp Corner
EEL
A young electrician risks everything by turning to illegal elver fishing in a desperate bid to stay afloat.
Run Time: 11 minutes
Writer, Director, Producer, Editor: Wayne Burns
Cinematographer: Tim Mombourquette
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Starring: Wayne Burns, Koumbie, + Kevin Kincaid
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Screenings
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World Premiere - 2025 Atlantic International Film Festival, Halifax, Nova Scotia
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Official Selection - 2025 CineEco Environmental Film Festival, Lisbon, Portugal
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Official Selection - 2025 SilverWave Film Festival, Fredricton, New Brunswick
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Grants
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Colchester Arts Council - 2025 Recipient
"Genuinely frightening" - Joshua Morgan, Founder of The Artist’s Strategy
"A raw, no-nonsense look at how people shape their own fate. Grounded and rebellious” - Haui Davis, Director of MixedUp
“A perfect example of the frustration, beauty and complexity of young gay experiences”- Ro Bright, Program Director, Melbourne Queer Film Festival
fastLOVE
On New Year’s Eve, a broke and restless young man is drawn into a risky encounter with a hustler's client at a hotel, only to find himself unravelling a web of deceit, power dynamics, and personal boundaries.
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Run Time: 16 Minutes
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Writer, Director: Wayne Burns
Producers: Malachi Ellis, Wayne Burns
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Starring: Wayne Burns, Darius Zee, Michael Ayres + Andrew Di Rosa
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Screenings
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World Premiere - 2025 Roze Filmdagen: LGBTQ+ Film Festival, Amsterdam, Netherlands
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Official Selection - 2025 Inside Out Film Festival, Toronto, Canada
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Official Selection - 2025 Out & Loud: Pune International Queer Film Festival, Pune, India
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Official Selection - 2025 Melbourne Queer Film Festival, Melbourne, Australia
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Official Selection - 2025 Mezipatra Queer Film Festival, Prague, Czech Republic
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Official Selection - 2025 Image+Nation LGBTQ2+ Film Festival, Montreal, Canada
Grants
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Canada Council for the Arts - 2025 Arts Abroad Travel Grant
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Canada Council for the Arts - 2023 Concept to Realization Grant
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Ontario Arts Council - 2022 Recommender Grant - Tarragon Theatre
"The ending is perfectly-toned devastation." - Chris Chin, Reel Asian Film Festival
"Gripping and unsettling" - James Kleinmann, The Queer Review
LIAR
What starts as an innocent hookup between two young men spirals into an exploration of insecurities, dark pasts, and the cost of vulnerability. ​
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Run Time: 18 minutes
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Writers: Brian Drader, Wayne Burns
Director, Producer: Wayne Burns
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Starring: Wayne Burns + Allister MacDonald
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Screenings & Distribution​​​
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2025 Queer Cinema Club Screening - Paradise Theatre, Toronto, ON
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World Premiere - 2020 FilmPride: Brighton & Hove LGBTQ+ Film Festival, UK
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Official Selection - 2020 Inside Out Film Festival, Toronto, Canada
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Official Selection - 2020 Image+Nation Film Festival, Montreal, Canada
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Licensed by the Canadian Broadcasting Company
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Awards
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Official Selection - 2019 Inside Out Film Festival - Pitch Please Competition
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Winner - 2021 ACTRA Maritimes Awards - Best Actor - Allister MacDonald
here comes the rain again
A young man arrives at his ex’s door in the middle of a rainstorm, driven by the hope of reconnecting.​
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Run Time: 5 Minutes
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Writer, Director, Producer: Wayne Burns
Cinematographer, Editor: J Stevens
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Starring: Wayne Burns
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Screenings​​​
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World Premiere - 2020 IdiotVision
Curtains
Using sculpture, video, and the lives of six Toronto art-makers, "Curtains" simulates refuge from the banal by creating a cyclical, intimate dance party for the viewer.
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Run Time: 7 Minutes
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Writer, Director, Designer: Wayne Burns
Cinematography: J Stevens
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Featuring: Erica Anderson, Amanda Cordner, Arlen Aguayo-Stewart, Dainty Smith + Anasimone George
Exhibitions
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2020 - The Burdock Music Hall, Toronto, ON
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2018 - cSpace King Edward, Calgary, AB​​​​​
