In February 2015, the Village Voice heralded the arrival of “New York’s Bravest” – Brooke Guinan, the first openly transgender firefighter in New York City. As a third-generation firefighter, Brooke has a passion for heroism that runs in her blood. Her father George is a respected lieutenant and 9/11 survivor with a 35-year legacy in the FDNY. People always asked Brooke if she would follow in her father’s footsteps. But when Brooke transitions from male to female in her father’s workplace, it poses not only a challenge to a macho profession, but also to the customs of the people she cares about the most – her traditional family. Meanwhile, Brooke’s boyfriend of two years, Jim, struggles with to come out to his family. A wise-cracking Air Force veteran, Jim still hasn’t told his mother that Brooke is a transwoman. Brooke and Jim realize that having the life they want means being vulnerable in the face of judgment. As we watch the couple buy a house together and consider marriage, we reconsider what it means to be man and woman, gay and straight, traditional and nontraditional. A heartfelt portrait of change in the American family and workplace, Woman on Fire is a testament to love, courage, and loyalty.

The years-long friendship between two pre-teen boys in a small Icelandic village is threatened when they strike up romantic relationships with a pair of local girls, in the affecting and beautifully crafted debut feature from Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson. In a small village in rural Iceland, Thor and Christian are best friends whose home lives are unsatisfactory, to say the least. Thor is ruthlessly mocked by his elder sisters, while his mother can't be bothered to hide her frustration at having to sacrifice her pleasure for the sake of her children. While Thor suffers from absentee parenting, Christian's drunken and abusive father is, unfortunately for him, all too present. When the two friends strike up romantic relationships with a pair of girls, the events that follow threaten to destroy the longest and most meaningful relationship either has ever had. Evincing a real feeling for how kids relate to one another, Heartstone also offers a powerful portrait of the limits of small-town life. While Thor and Christian's relationship takes centre stage, Guðmundsson also skillfully integrates a wide range of supporting characters (from a possibly psychotic local bully to the seedy clerk at the local diner/ bar, whose crass insensitivity reaches epic levels) and casts a cold eye on the boys' parents, whose privation and boredom have left them ill-equipped to fulfill their roles as protectors and nurturers. Well-crafted and very affecting, Heartstone is the finest debut by an Icelandic director since Rúnar Rúnarsson's Volcano. Desc. courtesy of the Toronto International Film Festival.

Growing up in North Carolina as an undocumented gay man, Mexican-born Moises Serrano shares his story and advocates for justice and equality in this timely, inspiring documentary. When Moises Serrano was a baby, his parents risked everything to flee Mexico in search of the American Dream. The 24-year-old Serrano spent 22 years in the rural South, and yet is still forbidden to live and love in the country he calls home. Serrano sees only one option—to fight for justice and equality while activating a national movement. Driven by a deep love for his family, who have come to accept being treated as invisible, the impassioned, eloquent Serrano is proof of how one person can change the world. Desc. courtesy of NewFest.