Private Project

Try To See Me

On a winter morning in Toronto, a homeless man stops a routine outreach check and forces a stranger—and the audience—to confront the life he lived before he became invisible.

  • Laila Vaga
    Director
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm14655267/
  • Marina Vorobyeva
    Writer
    https://www.imdb.com/title/tt35934593/?ref_=nm_knf_c_1
  • Marina Vorobyeva
    Producer
  • Raymond Tuquero
    Director Of Photophaphy
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4459570/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_0_nm_8_in_0_q_raymond%20tuqu
  • Charlie Ebbs
    Key Cast
    "Homeless Man (present days)"
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4198328/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_0_nm_8_in_0_q_charlie%20ebbs
  • Tiffany Branton
    Key Cast
    "Business Woman"
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm10496422/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_0_nm_8_in_0_q_tiffany%20branton
  • Ashley Jarvis
    Key Cast
    "Homeless Man (early years)"
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm10779378/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_0_nm_8_in_0_q_Ashley%20Jarvis
  • Andre Kelly
    Key Cast
    "Partner"
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12686510/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_0_nm_8_in_0_q_Andre%20Kel
  • Denis Bareev
    Key Cast
    "Homeless Man (as a kid)"
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm17063350/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_1_nm_7_in_0_q_denis%20bareev
  • Jay Da Costa
    1st AD
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6122316/
  • Myles Charron
    Camera Operator
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm15286528/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_4_nm_4_in_0_q_Myle%20Charron
  • Samuel Mapaderun
    1st AC
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm13394540/?ref_=fn_t_1
  • Humeyra Fatma Erdogan
    2nd AC
  • Natasha Czajkowski
    Audio/Boom
  • Keaton Browning
    Script Superviser
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm14655265/?ref_=fn_t_1
  • Maria Zvezdina
    Production Designer
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm17286895/?ref_=fn_t_1
  • Salma Sairi
    Set Decoration
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm11245065/?ref_=fn_t_1
  • Eugene Kim
    Art/Driving PA
  • Dominique Dutil
    Gaffer
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12037922/?ref_=fn_t_1
  • Samuel Arango
    Electric
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8161395/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_0_nm_8_in_0_q_samuel%20arango
  • Nicolas Marneris
    Key Grip
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm16708342/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_0_nm_8_in_0_q_nicolas%20marneris
  • Noah Abdelati
    Grip
  • Gabrielle Plourde
    Grip
  • Jacqueline Hei Tung Yung Hei Tung Yung
    DMT/DIT
  • Raymond Tuquero
    Post Editor
  • El Mielke
    Post Editor
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm16018925/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_7_nm_1_in_0_q_el%20mielke
  • Leah Hidalgo
    Composer
    https://www.imdb.com/name/nm13553543/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_0_nm_4_in_0_q_Leah%20Hidalg
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Runtime:
    7 minutes 30 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    May 6, 2026
  • Production Budget:
    15,000 CAD
  • Country of Origin:
    Canada
  • Country of Filming:
    Canada
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital (Sony SLog)
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
Director Biography - Laila Vaga

Laila Vaga is a Toronto‑area director and producer — a graduate of Sheridan College’s Film & Television program with a passion for telling stories that give voice to the unseen. Her mission as a filmmaker is rooted in empathy and connection, creating work that asks us all to look deeper.
Laila was also featured in Canada’s Walk of Fame Future Storytellers series for her film about humanitarian leader Dr. Samantha Nutt, an experience she found deeply rewarding and inspiring as a young filmmaker.
Her direction on Try to See Me brings incredible heart and perspective to a story about visibility, humanity, and the people we often walk past without seeing.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

As a storyteller, I am drawn to stories that reflect the complexity of human nature while also highlighting societal norms and views. Within our country, during this time of economic uncertainty, there has been a surge of individuals living below the poverty line - facing food insecurity, unstable housing and more. Homelessness is noticed but often goes ignored by society, with people in power acknowledging it as a crisis but choosing to ignore it, hoping it will resolve itself. I hope the film can serve as a resource for individuals to understand the complexity of homelessness and what potential circumstances can cause people to become unhoused; that they are people like you and I, who have fallen on hard times in life and lack resources in a society whose infrastructure does not support them. The message of the film is about the human desire to be seen, which is something I believe anyone can relate to and is what drew me to this story – that every human deserves to be noticed and understood.