Ottawa resident Justin Tan, 17, was walking his dog during the COVID-19 pandemic when he first thought about creating his own production company.
Now a fourth-year film student at Toronto Metropolitan University, Tan has wrapped up his thesis film, received the 2025 Harvey Hart Director’s Award for his top directing ability, sold out a premiere and screened his works at festivals across Canada.
His company, Parseptchien Pictures is thriving, but his proudest achievement is sticking through film school.
Tan applied to more than ten other universities, but only ever cared about TMU’s Image Arts: Film program — though he initially kept his acceptance a secret from his parents.
“It was a very hard discussion,” Tan said. “I have Asian parents, and telling them I wanted to go to an art school was very difficult.”
Tan grew up in Montreal before moving to Ottawa for high school, where he struggled to find other filmmakers his age. This inspired him to create Parseptchien Pictures in hopes of bringing out the community he was missing. Even after relocating to Toronto, where the film scene is bursting, he prioritizes connecting with like-minded peers.
When they first met, classmate Daniel Fusco was impressed by Tan’s drive for community-building and his initiative to create a group chat with every person in the program.
“He has this dream of having a united film scene that unifies all of the film schools in this side of Canada,” Fusco said.
Tan also serves as the VP of Outreach for Film and Arts Fundraising, an organization at TMU that aims to make film more accessible to students in the industry.
The group’s founder, TMU biology and film student Malak Bakir, first met Tan on a production external to the university. She has since worked with him on on-campus student productions and as an assistant director on his second-year film.
“He’s a go-getter,” Bakir said. “When I started this organization, I thought that I definitely wanted him a part of my team.”
Tan also connects people through his art by crafting human-centered and emotionally evocative stories.
His thesis film, Encore Encore, follows an old Cambodian shopowner on his restaurant’s closing night. Tan drew inspiration from his own childhood and family history to convey the Canadian immigrant experience.
The depiction resonated for Bakir, who immigrated to Canada eight years ago.
“We need more authentic stories,” Bakir added.
Tom McSorley, director of the Canadian Film Institute and Ottawa Morning film critic for CBC Radio, believes emotional power is the key to a quality film.
“I’m always surprised at something that makes me go, ‘Oh my God, you’re not alone,’” McSorley said. “We’re not alone.”
Going forward, Tan plans to make more shorts, as well as his first full-length feature film.
His ideas are to follow young Canadian characters as they deal with emotions, mysteries and relationships — though nothing is set in stone.
“It’s as it comes, as it goes,” Tan said.
Featured image by Akira Watanabe.
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