Toronto Film Festival
Toronto Film Festival
SepT 16, 2006
Mexican filmmakers pull upset Sep. 17, 2006 TORONTO -- A trio of Mexicans triumphed at the Toronto International Film Festival on Saturday when their U.S. independent drama "Bella" captured the People Choice Award, voted on by festival audiences. "Bella," written and directed by Alejandro Gomez Monteverde, and produced by Monteverde, Leo Severino and Eduardo Verastegui, beat all comers with their English-language drama about a young soccer star, played by Eduardo Verastegui, and a waitress, performed by Tammy Blanchard, who see their lives converge and be turned upside down during a single day in New York City. "These Mexican guys go to America and beat the American independents at their game -- it's impressive," Toronto festival co-director Noah Cowan said after an awards luncheon. "Bella" marks the feature directorial debut for Monteverde, who graduated from film school at the University of Texas at Austin before shooting a string of documentaries and commercials in Los Angeles. (Etan Vlessing)  FULL STORY
Picturehouse acquires 'Cantante' rights Sep. 16, 2006 TORONTO -- Picturehouse president Bob Berney has landed all North American rights to the most sought-after film of the Toronto International Film Festival, "El Cantante," paying a little less than $6 million. The $18 million-range salsa music-filled biopic stars the film's producer, Jennifer Lopez, and her husband, Marc Anthony, as an onscreen husband and wife. Director Leon Ichaso's drug-fueled story of late salsa pioneer Hector Lavoe (Anthony) had indie distributors Miramax Films, Focus Features and the Weinstein Co. dancing around sellers Endeavor Independent and William Morris Independent since its world premiere Tuesday night at Toronto's Elgin Theatre, but Picturehouse completed the deal at 5:30 a.m. Friday at the Park Hyatt Toronto. Picturehouse plans a summer release for the film on about 500-700 screens before a wider rollout. (Gregg Goldstein) FULL STORY
Toronto focus on politics, comedy and horror Sep. 15, 2006 TORONTO -- Global politics, seniors in love, fantastical fairy tales, technical glitches and the Weinstein brothers dominated the 31st Toronto International Film Festival. The event was split between the haves (pictures with distribution in fall launch mode) and the have-nots (movies seeking buyers). And there were plenty of celebrities, such as producer-star Jennifer Lopez, selling her salsa musical "El Cantante," who flew in to strut the red carpets. The fest was dominated by studio mini-majors more interested in hawking their fall films and building Oscar buzz than in picking up hot acquisition titles. "For the past several festival cycles, more great films have been launched, with some interesting smaller film deals. The market was soft," Picturehouse president Bob Berney said. Of the movie stars who flew to Toronto, elegantly confident "Babel" star Brad Pitt was universally adored; less favored were Sean Penn and Russell Crowe, whose films "All the King's Men" and "A Good Year," respectively, lost altitude. (Anne Thompson and Gregg Goldstein) FULL STORY
Docu makers saw Zidane rage coming Sep. 15, 2006 TORONTO -- Documentary filmmakers Douglas Gordon and Phlippe Parreno saw it coming. The duo spent 10 months with French soccer star Zinedine Zidane while shooting "Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait" and were not surprised when the sensation shocked the world by headbutting an Italian defender in the chest during this summer's World Cup final in Berlin. "I looked at his face (during the game's second half) and said to myself, 'A red card is coming,' " Parreno, who watched the final on TV, recalls. Gordon, who attended the France-Italy matchup at Berlin's Olympic Stadium, also sensed second-half danger as he saw distress increasingly etched on Zidane's face. "I saw some of the same rage I'd seen in the past," he said. "You could sense his frustration." (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Lou says he'll work around ban Sep. 15, 2006 TORONTO -- During his visit to the Toronto International Film Festival, Chinese director Lou Ye said he is considering making movies in the West to evade a five-year ban on producing film or TV work in China imposed on him by Chinese authorities last week. But Lou, attending the North American premiere of his latest film, "Summer Palace," said his lawyer will appeal the blacklisting by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television so that he can possibly continue making movies in China. "I will try both to make movies outside China, and I will try hard to get the ban lifted so I can get back the right to make a movie in China," Lou said through an interpreter. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Lionsgate gets U.S. rights to Polley's 'Away' Sep. 14, 2006 TORONTO -- Lionsgate has picked up all U.S. distribution rights to actress-turned-director Sarah Polley's "Away From Her," following its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. The romantic drama stars Julie Christie as a woman facing Alzheimer's disease and its effect on her 44-year marriage. Gordon Pinsent co-stars in this adaptation of Alice Munro's short story "The Bear Came Over the Mountain," playing a man torn apart by his wife's slow descent into dementia. She insists on going to a rest home in an attempt to relieve him of the burden of her illness. Olympia Dukakis plays the wife of a fellow rest home patient who Pinset's character turns to in his distress. Wendy Crewson, Michael Murphy, Kristen Thomson, and Alberta Watson round out the cast. (Gregg Goldstein) FULL STORY
Musicians make deals at film fest Sep. 14, 2006 TORONTO -- Deal-making at the Toronto International Film Festival has spread to the Canadian Music Cafe' where homegrown musicians match up with U.S. music supervisors for studio and indie movies. U.S. music supervisor John Bissell ("Lord of War") on Wednesday shook hands with Toronto-based jazz songstress Molly Johnson on submitting a song for John Dahl's "You Kill Me." For Bissell, who tends to scout bands late night, listening to acts away from Los Angeles and in the middle of the day at a film festival is optimum for gleaning what he needs to glean from new musical acts. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Glover adds producing to resume Sep. 14, 2006 TORONTO -- Danny Glover, currently prepping his directorial debut "Toussaint," put Africa into the spotlight at the Toronto International Film Festival this week with "Bamako," a drama on which he served as executive producer. The film unspooled as part of Toronto's Vision sidebar. Glover, as much a social activist as actor these days, said Tuesday that "Bamako" is the latest in a string of films by international directors he's backing that he considers socially relevant as well as commercially viable. "I want to be supporting directors whose stories take you into the lives of people around the world who have been displaced, who are trying to make sense of what has happened to them and who, as the urban poor, have been pushed into, or out of, cities," Glover said while in Toronto. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
First Look puts 'Paris' in N.A. Sep. 13, 2006 TORONTO -- First Look Pictures has acquired all North American rights to "Paris, je t'aime," a collection of romantic short films about the city featuring such stars as Natalie Portman, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Elijah Wood, Nick Nolte and Juliette Binoche. The actors worked with such top directors as Gus Van Sant, Wes Craven, Alexander Payne and the Coen brothers. "Paris" had its North American premiere Sunday at the Toronto International Film Festival after opening the Un Certain Regard section at May's Festival de Cannes. It's slated for theatrical release in early 2007. A wide assortment of filmmakers crafted the story of different romantic encounters in each one of Paris' arrondissements. Themes of joy, separation, unexpected encounters and love are explored by the international collection of directors and actors. Fanny Ardant, Bob Hoskins, Emily Mortimer, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Rufus Sewell, Barbet Schroeder, Ludivine Sagnier, Gena Rowlands, Miranda Richardson and Steve Buscemi round out the cast. (Gregg Goldstein) FULL STORY
'Exiled' finds new home with Magnolia Sep. 13, 2006 Magnolia Pictures has acquired all English-language rights to Johnny To's "Exiled" from Media Asia Entertainment Group. The action thriller, set in the Hong Kong underworld and modeled after To's 1999 "The Mission," had its North American premiere Thursday at the Toronto International Film Festival. The deal was completed following its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. "A lot of people thinking that the Hong Kong gangster film ran its course in the '90s are going to be pleasantly surprised by the freshness and innovation of 'Exiled,' " said Eamonn Bowles, president of Magnolia Pictures, which will release the film next year in the U.S. (Gregg Kilday) FULL STORY
Films mixing fact, fantasy are major focus at fest Sep. 13, 2006 TORONTO -- With Gabriel Range's "Death of a President" -- the film that begins by imagining the assassination of President Bush -- making headlines at the Toronto International Film Festival, films that blend fact and fantasy in a media-saturated digital age are grabbing the spotlight. Piers Handling, Toronto festival co-director said dramas or faux documentaries like "President," Michael Moore's agitprop film and innovative digital fare are attempting to crystallize controversy in a post-Sept. 11 world. "Filmmakers are trying to be provocative and wake people up in a sea of discordant media and imagery," Handling said. French filmmaker Nicolas Rey brought "Schuss!" a documentary about skiing, to Toronto to unspool as part of the fest's Wavelengths program. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Newmarket backing Range's 'President' in U.S. Sep. 12, 2006 TORONTO -- Newmarket Films has picked up all U.S. rights to "Death of a President," the most controversial film at this year's Toronto International Film Festival because of its realistic depiction of an imagined assassination of President Bush. The distributor paid $1 million for the film, and Maple Films paid $500,000 for all Canadian rights. Newmarket is expected to give "President" a wide release within the next few months. Financed by Film 4/Channel 4, it will air on U.K. television next month. Foreign sales, totaling around $3 million, have been completed to a consortium of distributors including France's Hart et Court, Italy's Lucky Red, the Netherland's A-Film, Belgium's Cineart and Switzerland's Frenetic. Director Gabriel Range's $2 million faux-documentary mixes real footage and dramatized segments to depict the aftermath of an October 2007 Bush assassination and its impact on U.S. civil liberties. The director was reportedly the subject of death threats just days before its Sunday world premiere, though sources close to the production said the reports were exaggerated. (Gregg Goldstein) FULL STORY
'Fire' the latest in new genre: African reality pic Sep. 12, 2006 TORONTO -- In the wake of such recent Oscar contenders as "The Constant Gardener" and "Hotel Rwanda," a new subgenre has emerged at this year's Toronto International Film Festival: the dramatic thriller based on the real-life horrors of Africa. While Kevin Macdonald's "The Last King of Scotland" centers on Uganda dictator Idi Amin, Phillip Noyce's "Catch a Fire" chronicles the true story of Patrick Chamusso's transformation from oil refinery worker to African National Congress radical. "Fire" -- an Oscar hopeful from Focus Features that will have its second Toronto screening tonight -- isn't just trying to catch a trend, though. Its screenwriter, Shawn Slovo, has been interested in the subject ever since her late father, ANC leader Joe Slovo, told her about Chamusso in the mid-1980s. After Chamusso's successful ANC assault on the oil refinery in Secunda, Slovo's father told the writer, "If you ever want to write a story about this period in South African history, tell the story of the unsung hero Patrick Chamusso." (Anne Thompson) FULL STORY
Stones: Hello, ani 'Tuesday' Sep. 12, 2006 TORONTO -- The Rolling Stones, long identified with their lips-and-tongue logo, are about to get the cartoon treatment in "Ruby Tuesday," an animated film featuring 12 of their songs set to begin production later this year. EuropaCorp. and Mick Jagger's Jagged Films are co-producing the project, which will be written and directed by Paul and Gaetan Brizzi. The story is described as "a Faustian tale of a single mother searching for happiness in New York." The film's song selection has not been finalized, though presumably the well-known title track will be included. (Gregg Goldstein) FULL STORY
MGM buys 'Rescue Dawn' before Toronto premiere Sep. 11, 2006 TORONTO -- During the Toronto International Film Festival's frenetic first weekend, MGM preemptively nabbed all rights to Werner Herzog's much-anticipated Vietnam War drama "Rescue Dawn," starring Christian Bale. Many distributors did not even get a shot at the film, which MGM claimed as its own before the movie's world premiere Saturday. Meanwhile, the Weinstein Co. was busy, showing its love for the teen horror flick "All the Boys Love Mandy Lane" by picking up all worldwide rights for $3.5 million, as well as the comedy documentary "Vince Vaughn's Wild West Comedy Show: 30 Days & 30 Nights -- Hollywood to the Heartland," which it acquired for $2.5 million-$3.5 million. In a strange echo of last year's tug of war over the acquisition of "Thank You for Smoking," which wound up being released by Fox Searchlight, the negotiations for "Rescue" were conducted by neophyte producers who didn't necessarily follow normal acquisition protocols. (Gregg Goldstein and Anne Thompson) FULL STORY
Fest glitches plague Moore at Toronto fest Sep. 11, 2006 TORONTO -- The film festival that first made Michael Moore a name sorely tested the maverick filmmaker when faulty projection plagued the screening of clips from two works in progress, including his upcoming documentary "Sicko." For Moore, the technical mishaps Friday night at the Toronto International Film Festival were a repeat of similar snafus Thursday, when he helped out his friend, director Larry Charles, at the world premiere of "Borat," which was brought to a premature halt when the projector broke down. Ironically, Charles on Friday night was moderating an onstage conversation with Moore at the historic Elgin Theatre when faulty sound marred the screening of a clip from "The Great '04 Slacker Uprising," a new Moore docu about the aftermath of the 2004 presidential election to be released by the Weinstein Co. "This is last night all over again," Moore said before ordering a halt to the "Slacker" clip after it barely had begun. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Strand lands Kaurismaki's 'Dusk' Sep. 10, 2006 TORONTO -- Small distributor Strand Releasing acquired all domestic rights to Aki Kaurismaki's "Lights in the Dusk" from production company Match Factory. The film has its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. In the Finnish-language black comedy, a lonely night watchman for a Helsinki security firm becomes entangled in a series of romantic and criminal misadventures with a femme fatale and a shady businessman. "Dusk" is the final part of Kaurismaki's trilogy of films (including "Drifting Clouds" and "The Man Without a Past") dealing with the theme of isolation. The director is perhaps best known for his 1989 film "Leningrad Cowboys Go America" and his 1990 film "The Match Factory Girl." The deal was negotiated by Strand co-president Jon Gerrans and Match Factory's Michael Weber. (Gregg Goldstein) Canada pins sale hopes on Polley's 'Away' Sep. 11, 2006 TORONTO -- U.S. indie It-Girl Sarah Polley's "Away From Her," which will have its world premiere as a gala here Monday night, is Canada's best hope for a U.S. sale in Toronto this festival. Polley, best known for her star-turns in "Guinevere" and "My Life Without Me," adapted an Alice Munro short story in the New Yorker to develop her first feature that stars Julie Christie and Gordon Pinsent in a drama about a budding romance between elderly lovers. "This is a story that should translate well internationally," Polley said of the feature that should appeal to graying baby-boomers and whose worldwide rights are with HanWay, while William Morris Independent is selling the U.S. rights. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Faulty equipment mars 2nd Toronto screening Sep. 09, 2006 TORONTO -- Broken projectors and sound systems have plagued Michael Moore and Larry Charles as both American directors screened their latest films at the Toronto International Film Festival. Moore endured a faulty sound system at the Elgin Theatre on Friday night as he attempted to show clips from "Slacker Uprising," a film he did on the aftermath of the 2004 U.S. election. "It's painful. I love this place (Toronto festival), too," Moore said, barely hiding his anger. After technicians solved the problem, Moore was able to show clips from "Sicko," his expose of the U.S. health insurance industry that is slated for release in June 2007. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Faulty technology cancels 'Borat' screening Sep. 09, 2006 TORONTO -- Not waiting until Friday when he is due to talk about his latest movie, "Sicko," at the Toronto International Film Festival, Michael Moore grabbed the stage Thursday night at an aborted screening of 20th Century Fox's "Borat." At around 11 minutes into the 82-minute world premiere at the Ryerson Theatre for "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan," the projector failed, prompting howls of disappointment from the expectant house. Only minutes earlier, comic Sacha Baron Cohen ("Da Ali G Show"), who stars in the comedy as the gleeful Kazakh TV journalist Borat Sagdiyev, roared up the red carpet in a cart that included a small pony and, as the Kazakh national anthem played in the background, he was pulled by a half-dozen woman in peasant dress. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
'Journals' makes point as Toronto's fest opener Sep. 08, 2006 TORONTO -- The Toronto International Film Festival got off to a brave start Thursday night with the kickoff gala screening of "The Journals of Knud Rasmussen," a Inuktitut- and Danish-language drama about Canada's Inuit people being stripped of their traditions by Christianity. Business also got under way as IFC First Take announced it has picked up all North American distribution rights to "... So Goes the Nation," a documentary uncovering election manipulation in Ohio during the 2004 U.S. presidential race. "Nation" is scheduled to have its world premiere at the festival Thursday. At the fest's opening, the strains of native throat-singing and drum-beating opened the proceedings at Roy Thomson Hall as co-directors Zacharias Kunuk and Norman Cohn introduced a cast of unknown Inuit actors to about 4,000 guests. (Etan Vlessing and Gregg Goldstein) FULL STORY
'Bonneville' revs up for Toronto fest Sep. 08, 2006 "Bonneville," which will debut in a gala slot Monday at the Toronto International Film Festival, is one of the hot titles vying for buyers' attention. The road movie, which stars Jessica Lange, Kathy Bates and Joan Allen, is targeting older female moviegoers, a niche that has seen success with such recent movies as "Something's Gotta Give," "The Banger Sisters," "Ladies in Lavender" and "The Boynton Beach Bereavement Club." "Bonneville" is one of six films that Cinetic's John Sloss, who sold "The Station Agent" and "The Fog of War," is handling at the festival. "I'm a little concerned over the hype," he said. "It delivers to its target audience of mature women. Distributors are getting smart and realize that a movie can work with this demo with the right cast and high concept." (Anne Thompson) FULL STORY
Buyers look for home run in Toronto Sep. 07, 2006 TORONTO -- As the 31st Toronto International Film Festival kicks off Thursday night, local moviegoers are snapping up tickets for their annual celluloid fest. Meanwhile, in the parallel festival that buyers and sellers inhabit, distributors are eyeing the menu just as hungrily, looking for a few choice dishes. After such dramatic acquisition showdowns as last year's tussle over "Thank You for Smoking," in which Fox Searchlight won in a messy fight with Paramount Classics, the big question is whether any of this year's crop of films will show the same breakout potential -- or command similar $6.5 million price tags. To accommodate the ravenous buyers, this year the fest is initiating buyer-only screenings for 10 hot titles, including "El Cantante," "Penelope" and "Rescue Dawn" in an effort to make the fest more of an industry-friendly environment. Available to buyers with a premium pass, the screenings reflect the growth in sales activity, are designed to help alleviate overcrowding at press and industry screenings and, along with a new special marketing program offering bus shelter ads and display models promoting available projects, might help secure TIFF's position as the pre-eminent North American film market. (Gregg Goldstein) FULL STORY
New Toronto fest screenings for buyers only Sep. 07, 2006 TORONTO -- For the first time in its 31-year history, the Toronto International Film Festival will this year offer Sales Premiere screenings, a program shown exclusively to buyers, along with a new marketing initiative allowing sales agents to promote their films via transit system posters and 3-D displays. The trial program, available to a limited selection of buyers who purchase a premium pass, will feature 10 films. They include "The Bubble," "El Cantante," "The Dog Problem," "The Fall," "Hula Girls," "The Magic Flute," "Penelope," "The Pleasure of Your Company," "Rescue Dawn" and a film still in negotiations at press time. Each screening will take place after a film has its first festival showing, and some will be concurrent with press and industry screenings. They will use venues offering 70-1,400 seats in early mornings and late evenings. (Gregg Goldstein) FULL STORY
'Death' lands on doorstep of Toronto fest Sep. 05, 2006 TORONTO -- The Toronto International Film Festival will give a British telefilm in which President Bush is assassinated a world premiere Sept. 10 (HR 9/1). "Death of a President," co-written and directed by Gabriel Range, dramatizes the assassination of Bush in the style of a retrospective documentary. The telefilm from British producer Borough Films mixes archival footage with narrative elements to portray the assassination, which takes place during a visit to Chicago, where Bush confronts a massive anti-war demonstration. Britain's Channel Four has picked up "Death" for its fall schedule. William Morris Independent will be shopping U.S. rights in Toronto. Toronto takes big bows Aug. 23, 2006 TORONTO -- The latest films from Paul Verhoeven, Ridley Scott, Anthony Minghella, Douglas McGrath and Patrice Leconte were tabbed for the red carpet treatment Tuesday as the Toronto International Film Festival released its full 352-film lineup. Festival organizers said they have booked world premieres for Minghella's "Breaking and Entering," a Weinstein Co./ Miramax drama about intersecting lives in London that stars Jude Law, Juliette Binoche, Robin Wright Penn and Vera Farmiga; and Scott's "A Good Year," the Russell Crowe starrer about an investment banker who moves to southern France. 20th Century Fox will release the film Nov. 10. Both will receive high-profile festival sendoffs at Roy Thomson Hall, as will Leconte's comedy "Mon meilleur ami" (My Best Friend), starring Daniel Auteuil and Dany Boon, and Verhoeven's "Zwartboek" (Black Book), a Dutch-language thriller about a feisty German Jewish girl surviving World War II. Closing Toronto this year is the world premiere of Michael Apted's "Amazing Grace," which stars Ioan Gruffudd, Romola Garai, Michael Gambon and Albert Finney. The festival already announced that Canadian Inuit-language film "The Journals of Knud Rasmussen" will kick things off Sept. 7 with a gala premiere. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Toronto locks 'Catch,' 'King' for showcase Aug. 18, 2006 TORONTO -- The Toronto International Film Festival on Thursday an-nounced world premieres for Phillip Noyce's "Catch a Fire" and Kevin Macdonald's "The Last King of Scotland," starring Forest Whitaker as demonic Ugandan president Idi Amin, as part of its annual showcase of African and African-themed films. Toronto also announced that Spike Lee's four-hour HBO documentary about the lives of people rebuilding after Hurricane Katrina, "When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts," will unspool as part of its Masters series. Noyce's political thriller, which shot on location in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Mozambique, stars Derek Luke as a rebel fighter pursued by an apartheid-era policeman played by Tim Robbins. It will bow in Toronto before being released Oct. 7 by Focus Features. Fox Searchlight's "Last King of Scotland," which unspools in the special presentations sidebar, was produced by Channel Four. The drama portrays James McAvoy as a young Scottish doctor who becomes entangled with Uganda's mercurial dictator. (Etan Vlessing) Toronto fest launches 2 U.S. pics Aug. 11, 2006 TORONTO -- The Toronto International Film Festival said Thursday that it will give the red-carpet treatment to films from Christopher Guest, Christopher Rowley, Emilio Estevez and Pedro Almodovar. The 31st edition of the festival has scheduled gala world premieres for Guest's latest mockumentary, "For Your Consideration," and "Bonneville," Rowley's directorial debut. In addition, North American bows are set for Estevez's "Bobby" and Almodovar's "Volver," the Penelope Cruz starrer that earned two prizes at May's Festival de Cannes. "For Your Consideration," a Warner Independent Pictures release featuring Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Harry Shearer, Fred Willard, Bob Balaban and Parker Posey, follows the making of an indie melodrama, "Home for Purim," that changes the lives of its cast. The film will be shown at the Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto ahead of a Nov. 17 theatrical release. Rowley's "Bonneville" features Jessica Lange as a grieving widow who hijacks her two best friends (Kathy Bates and Joan Allen) and takes to the road in a vintage 1966 Bonneville convertible. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Toronto festival to break 'Dawn' Aug. 09, 2006 TORONTO -- The Toronto International Film Festival on Monday announced world premieres for Werner Herzog's "Rescue Dawn," starring Christian Bale, and Hal Hartley's Parker Posey starrer "Fay Grim." "Dawn," a drama based on the story of a U.S. Navy lieutenant who escaped from a POW camp in Laos during the Vietnam War, will unspool as part of the festival's Masters sidebar. Also scheduled for the Masters program is the world premiere of Margarethe von Trotta's latest film, "I Am the Other Woman," an erotic thriller starring Armin Mueller-Stahl and Katja Riemann. "Grim," booked for the festival's Special Presentations program, is Hartley's sequel to 1997's "Henry Fool." Posey will play a single mother caught up in international espionage while searching for her husband. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Toronto puts films in Vanguard Aug. 08, 2006 TORONTO -- The Toronto International Film Festival on Aug. 1 unveiled a new sidebar, dubbed Vanguard, that aims to help the launch of indie movies that push sexual and cultural boundaries (HR 8/2). The inaugural Vanguard program will include a world premiere for Australian filmmaker Geoffrey Wright's "Macbeth," a contemporary take on the classic William Shakespeare play that features gangland warfare and a drug-addled Lady Macbeth. The sidebar also has booked world premieres for the erotically charged murder-mystery "Chacun Sa Nuit," from French filmmakers Pascal Arnold and Jean-Marc Barr, and "Jade Warrior," a martial arts epic traversing ancient China and modern-day Finland from Finnish director Antti-Jussi Annila. Also set for an inaugural screening is South African filmmaker John Barker's debut feature, "Bunny Chow," a road-trip movie featuring a trio of South African stand-up comics. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Director quartet will don Lab coats at Toronto fest Aug. 04, 2006 TORONTO -- Helmers Paul Haggis, Brian De Palma, Phillip Noyce and Mary Harron will mentor young Canadian filmmakers at the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival, organizers said Thursday. Other creative mentors participating in the Talent Lab include film producer Jan Chapman and Canadian writer Michael Ondaatje, whose novel "The English Patient" was adapted by Anthony Minghella and Ondaatje into an Oscar-winning movie. Also Thursday, Toronto un-veiled its Discovery program lineup, led by a world premiere for U.S. filmmaker Ed Stone's "Griffin and Phoenix," a romance starring Dermot Mulroney and Amanda Peet. Stone's remake of Daryl Duke's 1976 film will be among 13 innovative features unspooling here as part of the Discovery sidebar in September. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Toronto documentary sked heavy with music, debuts Aug. 01, 2006 TORONTO -- The Toronto International Film Festival on Thursday unveiled a slew of documentaries for its upcoming edition, including the world premiere of "Dixie Chicks — Shut Up and Sing" from Oscar-winning director Barbara Kopple and Cecilia Peck (HR 7/28). The controversial Cabin Creek Films offering about the Dixie Chicks country music trio and the political storm they faced after an off-the-cuff anti-President Bush remark will receive a rare high-profile gala screening for a documentary at Roy Thomson Hall. Toronto's Real to Reel documentary sidebar will present 13 world premieres, among them, U.S. filmmaker A.J. Schnack's "Kurt Cobain About a Son" and French filmmaker Jerome Laperrousaz's "Made in Jamaica," a portrait of Jamaican reggae and dance hall artists struggling to the top. FULL STORY
Fine Madness for 'Borat' Aug. 01, 2006 TORONTO -- The Toronto International Film Festival unveiled Tuesday a Midnight Madness program that includes the world premiere of U.S. director Larry Charles' "Borat," starring Sacha Baron Cohen as an outrageous Kazakhstani reporter. The 20th Century Fox comedy, set for a November theatrical release, follows Cohen's ("Da Ali G Show") Borat Sagdiyev as he travels from his native Kazak-hstan to the U.S. to make a docu-mentary that explains Americans to his country. Nine other films will unspool as part of the annual Midnight Madness gorefest, including world premieres for U.S. director Jonathan Levine's "All the Boys Love Mandy Lane," a horror film about a high school girl pursued by zombielike admirers, and New Zealand filmmaker Jonathan King's "Black Sheep," a sci-fi horror picture featuring lifelike beasts created by Kiwi effects house Weta Workshop ("The Lord of the Rings," "King Kong"). (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
'Fido' tops Toronto homegrown slate July 19, 2006 By Norma Reveler OTTAWA -- British Columbia director Andrew Currie's film about domesticated zombies, "Fido," will open the Canada First! section of the Toronto International Film Festival, organizers said Tuesday as they unveiled the fest's homegrown slate. "Fido" is one of nine features, all but one a world premiere, in the section devoted to emerging Canadian filmmakers, which runs Sept. 7-16. Also set to make their world premieres in Canada First! are Carolyn Combs' "Acts of Imagination," Jean Chateauvert's "La Coupure," Maurice Devereaux's "End of the Line," Paul Fox's "Everything's Gone Green," Mazdak Taebi's "Mercy," Camelia Frieberg's "A Stone's Throw" and Noel Mitrani's "Sur la Trace d'Igor Rizzi." The ninth film, "Cheech," from Quebec director Patrice Sauve, is scheduled to open in Quebec about two weeks before the festival begins. (Norma Reveler) FULL STORY
Toronto sets 'King's' premiere July 11, 2006 TORONTO -- The Toronto International Film Festival on Thursday said Sony Pictures' Sean Penn starrer "All the King's Men" will receive a high-profile world premiere in September (HR 7/7). Also slated for festival world premieres are "Bernard and Doris," a drama starring and directed by Bob Balaban; Agnieszka Holland's "Copying Beethoven," which stars Ed Harris and Diane Kruger; and Michael Ian Black's "The Pleasure of Your Company," starring Jason Biggs and Isla Fisher. Steven Zaillian's "All the King's Men," the Phoenix Pictures remake that also stars Jude Law, Kate Winslet and Anthony Hopkins, will receive the red-carpet treatment at Roy Thomson Hall. Zaillian's adaptation of Robert Penn Warren's novel of the same name features Penn as Willie Stark, a charismatic Southern politician bound as much to idealism as corruption and a lust for power. FULL STORY
Chu, Kassie tapped for Toronto fest board June 30, 2006 TORONTO -- The Toronto International Film Festival on Thursday bolstered the fundraising efforts for its proposed year-round headquarters by naming two veteran business people to its board of directors: Toronto real-estate broker Irene Chu of Premia Realty Inc. and David Kassie, CEO of Toronto investment house Genuity Capital Markets. "As the group continues to expand and build momentum toward Festival Center, their extensive knowledge, community involvement and expertise will be of great benefit to our organization," Allen Karp, chairman of Canadian exhibitor Cineplex Odeon Corp. until 2004, said in a statement. The umbrella Toronto International Film Festival Group also indicated that Paul Atkinson, CEO of Casero Inc., a digital media producer, has been named vice chair, and will succeed Karp as chairman of the festival's board of directors in June 2007. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
Toronto festival has Riviera feel June 28, 2006 TORONTO -- The Toronto International Film Festival unveiled 25 North American premieres Tuesday, nearly all of which first bowed at the Festival de Cannes, among them Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's "Babel." Toronto programmers said they booked the Cate Blanchett-Brad Pitt starrer "Babel" for a special presentation after the Paramount Pictures title earned Inarritu ("21 Grams") a best director award last month at Cannes. Toronto's Masters sidebar — which features work by established directors — will screen Ken Loach's Palme d'Or winner "The Wind That Shakes the Barley," about Ireland's fight for independence in the 1920s, along with Italian director Nanni Moretti's Festival de Cannes Competition entry "The Caiman," a biting portrait of Silvio Berlusconi's Italy. (Etan Vlessing) FULL STORY
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