Screening the International Students: Global Changemakers Documentary Short: The Team’s Perspective 

This year, the Innovation Hub’s continued partnership with the Centre for International Experience (CIE) has connected our team with a new cohort of documentary participants and team members for the International Students: Global Changemakers project. In this blog, the Audiovisual Storytelling team reflects on their experience at the documentary’s first screening this past spring, and what they learned from seeing changemakers in action. 

Written by the Audiovisual Storytelling Team 

---

This April, we hosted the first viewing of the documentary with our five participants and our partners from the Centre for International Experience (CIE). Being able to meet with the participants for the first time and see their reactions to our work was exciting. To see the different components of the documentary making finally come to life in the final cut made us all so proud. Although the documentary won’t be publicly screened until the fall, the trailer is available now. 

Watch the Trailer: 

The screening of the documentary marked the end of a year-long journey filled with learning, connection, and community building. For most of us on the team, this was our first foray into the audiovisual side of storytelling and media. While our aims were to learn from the documentary process and develop some professional skills, we ended this year with a deeper understanding of what it means to be a changemaker. We learned that changemaking doesn’t have to be a daunting task but that it can start with something small, which can be equally impactful. From our participants, we learned that changemaking truly happens when you engage meaningfully with your commitments and community.  

When we screened the documentary for our participants and our partners, it was the first time the participants had met each other, too. We could feel the warmth and community as the participants chatted about their journey at U of T, their lives as international students, and of course their changemaking objectives. Overall, it was an incredible experience to be able to bring these five remarkable stories together, and we hope the project inspire future changemakers within the student community at U of T. 

Brooklin: “My favourite thing about the screening was being able to watch how our participants engaged with each other’s work. Some of the participants even had a chance to talk to each other about how their values and methodologies have shaped their work. To me this really reflected the essence of what Global Changemakers is trying to inspire in the U of T community – creating opportunities for meaningful connection and learning that help us better understand one another and carry that understanding into our own lives, work and communities.” 

International Students: Global Changemakers – Premiering in Fall 2026 

We couldn’t be more excited about sharing International Students: Global Changemakers with the larger U of T community. Stay tuned for the documentary’s official launch in the Fall of 2026. 

About the Participants

In September 2025, we issued a widespread call for five international students at U of T who have demonstrated commitment to personal changemaking efforts through their work and studies. We were moved by students’ interest and received many applications for the project. After getting to know them and hearing their unique stories, we selected our five fantastic participants:  

• Naturinda “Emma” Emmanuel (he/him), Master of Health Informatics 

• Dzhafar Kabidenov (he/him), Public Policy & Economics 

• Adriana Diaz Lozano Patino (she/her), PhD Engineering 

• Mridula Sathyanarayanan (she/her), Neuroscience & Philosophy 

• Aloha Yu (she/her), Master of Education 

---

Contributors