Toronto International Film Festival 2011
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TORONNA ON MY MIND
The social network has made festival overviews easier to assemble. Besides the dvds that are made available in advance, several websites (Festival Scope, Cinando) make features available after their market premieres, which may have taken place at Festival A before their official screening at Festival B. Doing the circuit certainly makes Toronto more manageable. Since it is not a competitive event (they don’t have to be, as some insist), a number of films have been shown elsewhere (Cannes, Berlin, Sundance), so you might have several titles under your belt without ever having a market badge. Some publicists send links and passwords […]
by Howard Feinstein on Sep 7, 2011 -
Five Questions with Last Call at the Oasis Director Jessica Yu
For Oscar-winning filmmaker Jessica Yu’s latest film, Last Call at the Oasis, she looks at the frightening realities of the current global water crisis. Produced through the social issue giants Participant Media, Yu’s film has the makings of a must-see like An Inconvenient Truth and Food, Inc. Filmmaker: Tell us a little about what your film is about? Yu: Last Call at the Oasis is about the water crisis, which is global and urgent, yet largely hidden here in the U.S. The film tells stories of people who are on the front lines in dealing with water shortage or contamination, […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Sep 7, 2011 -
TIFF TIX TIPS
With the festival already upon us we probably don’t have to tell you that your chances to get tickets to this year’s TIFF are slim. But there’s no hurt in trying. In this video below, the folks at TIFF explain the easy ways you can purchase single tickets (which at this point are your best bet). And here’s an interactive festival ticket guide.
by Jason Guerrasio on Sep 7, 2011 -
STAR MAPS
If you’re heading to TIFF in the hopes to partake in some star sightings but have no clue where the hot spots are in Toronto, here’s a top 10 list that will point you in the right direction. And check out indieWIRE’s annual Insider’s Guide for the best places to eat, drink and shop while in Toronto.
by Jason Guerrasio on Sep 7, 2011 -
Five Questions with Jeff, Who Lives At Home Writer/Directors Mark and Jay Duplass
Last year Mark and Jay Duplass ventured into the world of studio filmmaking when they made the dramedy Cyrus for Fox Searchlight. At this year’s TIFF the Duplass brothers and Searchlight will premiere their next effort, Jeff, Who Lives at Home, starring Jason Segel, Ed Helms and Susan Sarandon. Filmmaker: Tell us a little about what your film is about? Duplass Bros: It’s about a 30 year-old guy named Jeff (Jason Segel) who believes, heavily, in fate. He bides his time in his mom’s basement, eagerly awaiting the day that the universe will deliver his destiny upon him. When his […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Sep 7, 2011 -
WEINSTEINS START VOD LABEL
A few weeks ago we learned about Focus Features’ new VOD arm, Focus World, well today Deadline broke the story that at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival (which begins Thursday) The Weinstein Company will go full steam ahead on their own VOD label. The Weinstein Company has also confirmed that Magnolia Pictures’ SVP and Head of Acquisitions, Tom Quinn, will come over to head the label along with Magnolia’s head of legal and business affairs, Jason Janego. The two had been instrumental in Magnolia’s day-and-date platform. Quinn and Janego will be at TIFF scouting titles for the Weinsteins’ as […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Sep 7, 2011 -
TORONTO FEST UNVEILS COMPLETE LINEUP
After multiple announcements of films screening at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival that spanned over several weeks, this morning TIFF completed their 2011 lineup by unveiling the titles in its Masters section, participants in its Maverick series and the works in the Discovery and free sections. See the complete list of films and fest schedule at the TIFF website. Totaling 268 features and 68 shorts, TIFF 2011 will have 123 world debuts from 65 countries. 13 films will screen in the Masters section, including Wim Wenders‘ Pina and Jafar Panahi‘s This is Not a Film. TIFF’s Maverick series, which […]
by Jason Guerrasio on Aug 23, 2011 -
TRAILER WATCH: FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA’S “TWIXT”
When I listened to Francis Ford Coppola give a master class at last year’s Marrakech Film Festival, some of the most valuable information imparted was about the creative process. So that’s what struck me when I watched this trailer of his latest film, Twixt, premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival this month. Val Kilmer stars as a mass market horror novelist, and there’s clearly some kind of meditation going on about the workings of the imagination. As quoted at First Showing, Coppola says the film “‘was inspired by the eerie writings of Nathaniel Hawthorne and Edgar Allan Poe’ and […]
by Scott Macaulay on Aug 2, 2011
