Oh Canada! Festival Announces Impressive Selection Of Canadian Features
Toronto – The Toronto International Film Festival announces a wealth of Canadian features including highly anticipated new works by acclaimed Canadian filmmakers Denis Villeneuve, Bruce McDonald, Xavier Dolan, Jacob Tierney, Louis Bélanger and William D. MacGillivray, Sturla Gunnarsson, Ingrid Veninger, and Carl Bessai and on screen appearances by Molly Parker, Jay Baruchel, Don McKellar, Scott Speedman, Jill Hennessy, David Suzuki, Martha Plimpton, Peter Stormare, Jennifer Beals, Emily Hampshire, Jean Lapointe, Guylaine Tremblay, Harvey Keitel, Jason Jones, Scott Caan, Tricia Helfer and the late Tracy Wright.
“It’s a testament to the creative minds and incredible talent in this country that we have such a diverse and exciting offering of Canadian films across all programmes in this year’s Festival,” says Steve Gravestock, Programmer, Toronto International Film Festival. “It’s an exciting time for Canadian cinema and we’re proud to bring audiences this line-up of films which includes documentaries profiling some of our beloved national figures, powerful and unsettling dramas, thrillers, comedies, romances and a record number of dysfunctional families.”
New this year, the Festival presents TheCanadian Pack, a ticket package selected by TIFF programmers thatoffers film lovers exposure to Canadian talent with a selection of five new Canadian films for $80.
GALAS
A Beginners Guide to Endings Jonathan Sobol, Canada
World Premiere
Raucous, charming and very funny, Jonathan Sobol's comedy A Beginners Guide to Endings follows three sons as they deal with their gambler father's somewhat complicated legacy. Featuring the legendary Harvey Keitel, the film also stars Scott Caan, Paolo Costanzo, Wendy Crewson, Tricia Helfer, Jason Jones, and J.K. Simmons.
Previously announced Canadian Galas include: The Bang Bang Club, Steven Silver; Barney's Version, Richard J. Lewis; Casino Jack, George Hickenlooper; Score: A Hockey Musical, Mike McGowan.
SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS
Force of Nature: The David Suzuki Movie Sturla Gunnarsson, Canada
World Premiere
At 75 years old, David Suzuki shows no signs of slowing down. In this captivating documentary portrait, the passionate environmentalist's legacy lecture is entwined with candid interviews in which he reflects on his life and shares deeply personal stories, revealing a side previously unseen.
Good Neighbours Jacob Tierney, Canada
World Premiere
Director Jacob Tierney (The Trotsky) returns with an innovative and unsettling thriller about some very strange people living in the same apartment building in Montreal's Notre-Dame-de-Grâce neighbourhood. The film stars Scott Speedman, Emily Hampshire and Jay Baruchel.
Incendies Denis Villeneuve, Canada
North American Premiere
After their mother Nawal's death, twins Simon and Jeanne embark on a journey to the Middle East that shines a disturbing light on their mother's past and culminates in a shocking revelation. Based on the acclaimed play by Wajdi Mouawad and directed by Genie and Jutra award-winner Denis Villeneuve (Polytechnique).
Les amours imaginaires (Heartbeats) Xavier Dolan, Canada
English Canadian Premiere
Wunderkind filmmaker Xavier Dolan returns with his second feature – a sophisticated comedy about close friends, Francis and Marie, who pursue their mutual obsession with a young man. As they face off in competition, cracks in their friendship begin to appear with both comic and tragic results.
Repeaters Carl Bessai, Canada
World Premiere
Veteran director Carl Bessai returns with a tense thriller that follows three young addicts in a rehabilitation centre. Each day they live the same events over and over – a situation each responds to in radically different ways.
Trigger Bruce McDonald, Canada
World Premiere
Molly Parker and the late Tracy Wright form a highly dysfunctional yet endearing rock duo reuniting a decade after their band called it quits. Directed by Bruce McDonald (Pontypool, The Tracey Fragments, Hard Core Logo, Highway 61), and written by Daniel MacIvor, the film features Sarah Polley, Don McKellar and Callum Keith Rennie.
CONTEMPORARY WORLD CINEMA
À l’origine d’un cri Robin Aubert, Canada
World Premiere
Three generations of men from the same family drunkenly careen across the Québécois countryside in an emotionally powerful journey through the past from one of Québec’s most intriguing young filmmakers.
MODRA Ingrid Veninger, Canada
World Premiere
In this authentic portrait of teenaged self-discovery, recently-dumped seventeen-year-old Lina and free spirit Leco travel to visit Lina's extended family in the quirky town of Modra, Slovakia.
A Night for Dying Tigers Terry Miles, Canada
World Premiere
The night before Jack goes to prison for five years, his family gets together at their ancestral home for a farewell dinner. What begins as a civil, if not joyful, reunion quickly devolves into a morally questionable whirlwind of regret, reversals, and revelations. The film stars Jennifer Beals, Gil Bellows, Kathleen Roberston, Lauren Lee Smith, Tygh Runyon and John Pyper-Ferguson.
Route 132 Louis Bélanger, Canada
English Canadian Premiere
A powerful drama directed by acclaimed veteran Louis Bélanger, Route 132 focuses on a man who loses a loved one and embarks on a journey in an attempt to rediscover his roots and come to terms with his grief.
Small Town Murder Songs Ed Gass-Donnelly, Canada
World Premiere
A modern, gothic tale of crime and redemption about an aging police officer from a small Ontario Mennonite town who hides a violent past until a local murder upsets the calm of his newly reformed life. The film stars Peter Stormare, Jill Hennessy, Aaron Poole and Martha Plimpton.
MIDNIGHT MADNESS
Midnight Madness Opening Night
Fubar II Michael Dowse, Canada
World Premiere
In the sequel to the 2002 cult comedy Fubar, hoser headbangers Terry and Dean are back and hit the road to find wealth, happiness and more beer in the oil fields of Alberta. Special appearance by Tron.
REAL TO REEL
How to Start Your Own Country Jody Shapiro, Canada
World Premiere
Shapiro's documentary about micro-nations, tiny countries seldom recognized by the outside world, mixes comedy and compassion with a serious analysis of the concept of statehood and citizenship.
The Man of a Thousand Songs William D. MacGillivray, Canada
World Premiere
Veteran East Coast filmmaker William MacGillivray returns to the Festival with this emotional, intimate and tender documentary about the life of fabled Atlantic songwriter Ron Hynes.
VISIONS
Curling Denis Côté, Canada
North American Premiere
Set in a village in Quebec, Denis Côté’s Curling follows inveterate loner Jean-François, a single father, and his isolated 12-year-old daughter Julyvonne. Between his unremarkable jobs, Jean-François devotes an awkward energy to Julyvonne until some unexpected events jeopardize the fragile balance of their relationship.
Trois temps après la mort d'Anna Catherine Martin, Canada
English Canadian Premiere
After vibrant young violinist Anna dies, her mother Françoise leaves Montreal and takes refuge at the country home of her maternal ancestors in Kamouraska. She has given up on life, but an old friend labours to revive her desire to live.
CANADIAN OPEN VAULT
A Married Couple Allan King, Canada
A restruck and restored version of master filmmaker Allan King's classic cinema-verité film, one of the most influential and celebrated Canadian films ever made, A Married Couple records the collapse of a middle class couple's marriage. The film is being restruck in conjunction with Zoe Druick's monograph on the film, co-published by the University of Toronto Press and TIFF.
The Gala programme is made possible through the generous support of ET Canada on Global.
The Special Presentations programme is made possible through the generous
sponsorship of American Movie Classics Company LLC.
The Real to Reel programme is made possible through the generous support of A&E IndieFilms.
The Contemporary World Cinema programme is made possible through the generous support of Sun Life Financial.
The Midnight Madness programme is made possible through the generous support of Cineplex Entertainment LP and SPACE.
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For further information, contact the Communications Department at 416-934-3200 or by email at proffice@tiff.net.
Ticket packages for the Festival are now available for purchase by cash, debit or Visa†. Purchase online at tiff.net/thefestival, by phone at 416-968-FILM or 1-877-968-FILM (Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.) or in person at the TIFF Box Office at 2 Carlton Street, West Mezzanine (Monday to Friday: 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.)
The 35th Toronto International Film Festival runs September 9 to 19, 2010.
About TIFF Bell Lightbox:
Currently under construction, TIFF Bell Lightbox, a breathtaking five-storey complex located in downtown Toronto, will provide a permanent home for film lovers to celebrate cinema from around the world and will propel TIFF forward as an international leader in film culture. Designed by innovative architecture firm KPMB, TIFF Bell Lightbox’s fluid structure encourages exploration, movement and play. The campaign to build TIFF Bell Lightbox is generously supported by founding sponsor Bell, the Province of Ontario, the Government of Canada, the City of Toronto, the King and John Festival Corporation - consisting of the Reitman family and the Daniels Corporation – RBC as major sponsor and official bank, Visa†, the Copyright Collective of Canada, the Slaight Family Foundation, NBC Universal Canada, the Brian Linehan Charitable Foundation, the Harbinger Foundation, CIBC and BMO. The Board of Directors, staff and many generous individuals and corporations have also contributed to the campaign. For more information on the TIFF Bell Lightbox campaign, visit belllightbox.ca.
About TIFF:
TIFF is a not-for-profit cultural organization whose mission is to transform the way people see the world through film. Its vision is to lead the world in creative and cultural discovery through the moving image. TIFF generates an annual economic impact of $170 million CAD and currently employs more than 100 full-time staff and 500 part-time and seasonal staff, and counts upon the largesse of over 2,000 volunteers year-round.
The Toronto International Film Festival is generously supported by Lead Sponsor Bell, Major Sponsors RBC and BlackBerry, the Government of Ontario, Telefilm Canada, and the City of Toronto.
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For information, contact the Communications Department at 416-934-3200 or email proffice@tiff.net.