We are pleased to welcome a University of Toronto alumnus back as the 2026 Universal Screenwriter in Residence. Atom Egoyan is one of the most preeminent directors of the Toronto New Wave. He emerged during the 1980s and made his career breakthrough with Exotica (1994), a hyperlink film set in a strip club. He followed this with his most critically acclaimed film, The Sweet Hereafter (1997), an adaptation of the Russell Banks novel of the same name, for which he received Academy Award nominations for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay.
As part of his residency at the Cinema Studies Institute, Atom will teach CIN349H1Y - Screenwriting in 2026/27. We are accepting applications for enrolment in CIN349H1Y until May 1.
In 2025, Atom Egoyan celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Cinema Studies Institute by presenting an exclusive screening of his most recent feature, Seven Veils. The Q&A, moderated by CSI Assistant Professor Brett Story, can be revisited below.