#FIRSTLOOK: TVO ORIGINAL “THE SANDBOX” ARRIVES ON TVO EARLY 2027 | IN THEATRES THIS FALL

TVO Original The Sandbox—director Kenya-Jade Pinto’s debut feature—exposes the global machinery of surveillance and its devastating human cost. Spanning the deserts of Arizona, to high-tech refugee camps in Greece, Mediterranean rescue operations, and digital labour centers in East Africa, this visually daring, conceptually bold film invites us to see and feel the unsettling reach of borders that have been transformed into dystopian laboratories. This is a world where human lives are raw material for observation, experimentation, and control–and there’s no opting out.

The Sandbox had its world premiere at CPH: DOX, followed by the North American premiere at the 2026 Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Film Festival. The film begins its national theatrical release on October 13 at the VIFF Centre, ahead of its broadcast and digital premiere on TVO in early 2027

Runtime: 90 mins

Languages: English, Arabic, Greek, Somali

Country of Production: Canada

Countries of Filming: Canada, USA, Greece, Italy, Germany, Kenya, South Africa

The Sandbox lands in select Canadian theatres this Fall.

VANCOUVER, BC – Oct 13 + 16 + 21 – VIFF Centre
WOLFVILLE, NS – Oct 14 – Al Whittle Theatre
QUEBEC CITY, QC – starting Oct 15 – Cinema Beaumont
TORONTO, ON – Oct 16* – Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema
MONTREAL, QC – starting Oct 19- Cinémathèque québécoise
WINDSOR, ON – Nov 4 – Windsor International Film Festival
*Director Kenya-Jade Pinto in attendance

Produced by Shasha Nakhai and Kenya-Jade Pinto, TVO Original THE SANDBOX is executive produced by Rich Williamson, Bob Moore and Jennifer Baichwal, with Shane Smith as Production Executive and Alexandra Roberts as Commissioning Editor, TVO Docs. Presented by EyeSteelFilm and TVO, the film is a Compy Films production, produced with the participation of the Canada Media Fund, Telefilm Canada, Ontario Creates and in association with Ford Foundation JustFilms.