2010 Reel Asian Film Festival award winners announced [updated]

At the Closing Night gala of the 2010 Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival, award-winners were announced prior to the screening of Au Revoir Taipei. Winners included Vancouver-based animator Jeff Chiba Stearns taking the NFB Best Canadian Film or Video Award for his personal documentary One Big Hapa Family. Jane Kim's Seeing Through the Spider's Web won the WIFT-T (Women in Film and Television - Toronto) Award and CFC graduate Gloria Kim received the LIFT and Fuji Best Film Award for short film The Auction. Japanese director Miwa Nishikawa won the Astral's Harold Greenberg Fund Best Film or Video Award for his comedy Dear Doctor. The Features Jury consisted of Jari Osborne, Marina Di Pancrazio and Darcy Murphy, while the Canadian and Shorts Jury was comprised of past Reel Asian filmmakers Randall Okita, Paul Wong and Mishann Lau. [UPDATE] The winner of the Reel Asian Audience Award was announced after the closing festivities. The award winner was Naoko Ogigami for Toilet. The favourite feature film was chosen by the audience by secret ballot and the award comes with a $500 cash prize.

The winners of the So You Think You Can Pitch? competition were Shahrzad Nakhai and Rich Williamson (Sugar Bowl) in the Emerging category; and Tricia Lee and Ryan Reaney (Searching for Wonder) in the Professional category. The jurors for the competition were Toronto-based filmmaker Nobu Adilman, Worldwide Short Film Festival director Eileen Arandiga, and Toronto Irish Film Festival director Lila Karim.

2nd annual Governors Awards honour Coppola, Godard, Wallach, Brownlow

On Saturday, November 13, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences (AMPAS) held its second annual Governors Awards at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland Center. Honorary Oscars were presented to Jean-Luc Godard, Eli Wallach, and Kevin Brownlow. Francis Ford Coppola was presented with the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award. Last year, the decision was made to have a separate ceremony from the main Academy Awards ceremony, so that they could honour several people for career achievement and more properly take time to celebrate them without worrying about time constraints. Last year's Governor's Award recipients were Lauren Bacall, Roger Corman and Gordon Willis, with the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award going to John Calley.

Jean-Luc Godard's award was considered controversial selection by some who believe him to be anti-Hollywood and/or possibly anti-Semitic. He did not attend the ceremony and will personally be presented with his award at his home in Switzerland by Academy president Tom Sherak. Six different governors gave tributes to him. Phil Alden Robinson addressed him humourously in absentia, saying “Mr. Godard, in your long career as a filmmaker and provocateur, let’s be honest – you have said things that undoubtedly have upset everyone in this room, at least once. You have also had unkind things to say about Hollywood and the Oscar – but then again, so has everyone in this room, at least once. None of that has deterred this board of governors from bestowing upon you the highest honor we can for artistic achievement. Let’s be clear - this ain’t the Hersholt Humitarian Award.” Robinson's speech was received with great laughter.

Call for submissions: 2011 SummerWorks Theatre Festival

While November 15 is the deadline for applications to the Toronto Fringe Festival, the applications have opened for the other summer theatre festival in Toronto, SummerWorks. This year, SummerWorks takes place from August 4-14. It's a juried festival that only takes 35 plays during its 11-day run. Their focus is on new Canadian works and writers from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply.You do not have to be a Toronto resident.

To apply, you must fill out the application form (both online and a hard copy) and send in your support material and two cheques. The first $25 reading fee is non-refundable. The second $700 fee is an entrance fee that only gets cashed if your project is accepted. All other cheques are destroyed. The artistic producer of the festival Michael Rubenfeld reads all of the submissions with a jury consisting of four theatre professionals.

The deadline for entries is 6pm on Tuesday, February 1, 2011.

25th Annual Gemini Awards, winners announced

The Gemini Awards celebrated their 25th edition at the Winter Garden Theatre in Toronto on Saturday night. The big winner at as the Winnipeg-based comedy Less Than Kind, which won Best Comedy Program, Best Writing in a Comedy or Variety Program, and Best Actor in a Comedy for Benjamin Arthur. It was a bittersweet night for the show as their cast and crew are still mourning the death of its lead actor Maury Chaykin, who died in July on his 61st birthday.

Best Dramatic Series went to CBC's Irish-Canadian co-production The Tudors about King Henry the VIII. It beat Flashpoint, which entered the night as the favourite with 15 nominations. Its only win was for Best Direction in a Dramatic Series for David Frazee.

The evening was hosted by Calgary-born star of Glee, Cory Monteith. But the night was also a big one for U.K. attendees. In addition to wins by The Tudors, Scottish actor Robert Carlyle won Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role for his part in Stargate Universe. Elvis Costello won  Best Talk Series for Spectacle: Elvis Costello With...

HTMlles 2010: Festival of Media Art and Digital Culture, November 13 to 20

Tonight, the 9th edition of the HTMlles Festival of Media Art and Digital Culture kicks off in Montreal. The festival is a unique gathering that showcases "women’s independent media artworks from all facets of contemporary technological creation, including but not limited to: digital storytelling, cyber art, short film and video art, audio and electronic art, installation, locative media, 3D animation, game art, virtual reality, electronic publishing, design, performance and interdisciplinary practices." Opening night events include a performance by Moe Clark, a tribute to media art pioneers Louise Poissant and Jade Raymond, and the launch of .dpi 19.

The name HTMlles is a clever merger of HTML and "elles," the French pronoun for women. The Festival was begun in 1997 by Studio XX. It is curated this year by Anne Briard, Anne Golden, Cindy Poremba, Émilie Grenier, Kat Baulu, Louise Poissant and Paulina Abarca-Cantin. All of the events take place at their location at 4001 rue Berri (near Duluth).

2010 Hollywood Post Alliance Awards winners announced

On Thursday night, the Hollywood Post Alliance held its 5th annual awards ceremony at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. The HPA Awards are given to those working behind the scenes in motion pictures, television and commercials. Nominations were announced in September and special awards were also previously announced, including a Lifetime Achievement Award for Ted Gagliano, President of 20th Century Fox

The HPA describes itself as "the trade association serving the professional community of businesses and individuals who provide expertise, support, tools and the infrastructure for the creation and finishing of motion pictures, television, commercials, digital media and other dynamic media content."

In the feature film categories, Inception won for Outstanding Editing, District 9 received the award for Outstanding Sound, Alice in Wonderland  took the Outstanding Color Grading using a DI (Digital Intermediate) Process, and Avatar received the award for Outstanding Compositing.

13th Rencontres internationales du documentaire de Montréal (RIDM) starts tonight

The 13th Rencontres internationales du documentaire de Montréal (RIDM) begins tonight and over the next twelve days, you'll be able to see many of the most eagerly anticipated documentaries before they are released theatrically or broadcast on television. They released their full lineup of films two weeks ago. The opening gala film tonight is Stephanie Lanthier's Les Fros, which takes a look at the people from around the world who work as lumberjacks in Quebec ("fro" is slang from the English word "foreigner"). This film was made through the National Film Board of Canada (NFB). Afterwards, the Opening Party takes place featuring the franco-bluegrass band Canailles.

RIDM will screen a total of 100 films. In addition, there are a variety of other events such as master classes, discussions, special presentations and parties. The Doc Circuit Montreal is an essential networking event for filmmakers developing projects, and takes place from November 10-12. The festival continues to November 21.

Nuit Blanche Toronto: 2011 Call for Artist Submissions

Toronto's Nuit Blanche is an event held yearly on the weekend prior to Canadian Thanksgiving. Only a month after this year's event, the organizers are looking ahead to next year's edition. They have put out a call for submissions, and artists can apply in the categories of Open Call Projects or Independent Projects.

To learn more information, the City of Toronto is providing two information sessions, on November 23 and November 30, from 6-9pm. To attend a session, you can RSVP to info@scotiabanknuitblanche.ca

The deadline for submitting an Open Call Project is Wednesday December 15, 2010, while the Independent Project deadline is Tuesday, February 15, 2011. The 2011 Nuit Blanche takes place on Saturday, October 1, 2011.

Toronto Fringe Festival Applications Due November 15, 2010

In Toronto, the two large theatre festivals that take place in the summertime are the Fringe Festival and Summerworks. Of the two, Summerworks is a juried festival and takes place in early August (their applications are due January 3, 2011). The Fringe Festival takes place earlier in July and is non-juried. Instead of the usual application process, they hold a lottery to decide who gets to mount a show. This makes it much easier for emerging writers and directors to mount a production.

The resulting quality of the productions can be quite varied as a result, but people can be more bold and daring. Shows are often performed in unusual locations. And when they work, they really work. They can often grow to become substantial hits such as The Drowsy Chaperone, which went on to become a Broadway hit.

To apply for the lottery, go to the Toronto Fringe website. The deadline for applications is November 15, 2010 at 5:00pm.

2011 People's Choice Award nominees announced

The People's Choice Awards are returning for their 37th edition and today they announced the nominees for this year. Their awards are fan-based and this year they've introduced a number of new categories that were also chosen by online voters. In the film categories, the dominant film was The Twilight Saga: Eclipse. The teen vampire movie received eight nominations for Favorite Movie, Favorite Drama Movie, Favorite Movie Actor (Rob Pattinson and Taylor Lautner), Favorite Movie Actress (Kristen Stewart), Favorite On Screen Team (Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, and Taylor Lautner), and Favorite Movie Star Under 25 (Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson).

Robert Downey Jr. was himself a multiple nominee for his work on Iron Man 2, receiving nominations for Favorite Actor, Favorite Action Star and Favorite On-screen Team with Don Cheadle

Over 35 million votes were cast online to decide the new categories and this year's nominees. Voting begins today at http://www.peopleschoice.com/. The awards ceremony takes place in Hollywood on January 5, 2011. Queen Latifah is slated to host the event which will be broadcast by CBS.

14th Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival, November 9-15

The 14th Annual Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival kicks off tonight. The opening gala screening is the martial arts comedy Gallants. The screening starts at 7pm at the Bloor Cinema, and although it is sold out, there will be tickets available at the door. But get there early if you want to get it.

In addition to the many exciting screenings scheduled, there are many useful industry events worth checking out. You do not have to Asian of course to participate.

The festival continues until Sunday when it closes with a screening of Au Revoir Taipei. 

Restored Metropolis screening, German film screenings

Coming up in the next couple of months, Toronto will have a good number of films of particular interest to Germanophiles. The Goethe-Institut Toronto has partnered with some of the city's festivals and arts organizations to present some exciting programming.

Topping the list as a must-see is the full-length restoration of Fritz Lang's classic masterpiece Metropolis, playing at the TIFF Bell Lightbox with a live orchestra. There had been many restored versions in the past, but this one includes 25 minutes of new footage from a complete print discovered in 2008 at the Museo del Cine in Buenos Aires (read the story of its discovery at the New York Times site). Using the latest technology, they've cleaned up as much as possible (about eight minutes was unsalvageable) and there are entire subplots now present that have not been seen in decades.

Metropolis screens November 9 and 19 at 8pm at the TIFF Bell Lightbox, with a newly commissioned score by Gabriel Thibaudeau performed by a live orchestra. 
http://tiff.net/filmsandschedules/tiffbelllightbox/2010/201008050055571

2010 European Film Award Nominations announced

Today at the Seville European Film Festival, the European Film Academy and EFA Productions announced the nominees for the 2010 European Film Awards. Roman Polanski's The Ghost Writer led with a total of 7 nominations for best film, director, screenplay, cinematography, actor, production designer and composer. The other nominees for Best European Film were Bal (Honey), Des Hommes et Des Dieux (Of Gods and Men), Lebanon, El Secreto de Sus Ojos (The Secret in their Eyes), and Soul Kitchen. Surprisingly, Olivier Assayas lengthy epic Carlos was not nominated for the top award but it did receive nominations for directing and editing.

Many of the nominees are already prize-winners from festivals and other awards ceremonies. Des Hommes et Des Dieux (Of Gods and Men) won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival while Lebanon took the Golden Lion and the Nazareno Taddei Award at Venice in 2009. The excellent film El Secreto de Sus Ojos (The Secret in their Eyes) was the surprise winner of the Best Foreign Language Film at the 2010 Academy Awards for Argentina (it is also nominated here as it is a co-production with Spain). Cell 211 was the big winner at Spain's Goya Awards. Two weeks ago Submarino won the 2010 Nordic Council Film Prize, the top Scandinavian film award. 

Call for proposals: Inside Out Queer Video Mentorship Project

The Inside Out Toronto LGBT Film and Video Festival has announced a call for proposals for their mentorship program. Eight people between 17-24 years of age or over 55 and who self-identify as LGBTTI2QQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual, Transgender, Two-Spirit, Intersex, Queer and Questioning) will be selected to participate. They will be guided through the process of filmmaking by Inside Out in partnership with Charles Street Video and will then each make their own short video.

The deadline for submissions is December 6, 2010. Instruction begins in January of 2011. The short videos will be shot and edited from February to April, in time for the Inside Out Festival which takes place in 2011 from May 19-29. The completed films will be given a screening during the festival.

18th Annual Rendezvous with Madness film festival, November 5-13

Tonight marks the opening of the 18th Annual Rendezvous with Madness film festival, Toronto's specialty festival about mental health and addiction. It starts with a reception at the new TIFF Bell Lightbox. Then the opening night film screening at Lightbox is Carl Bessai's Repeaters. He will be attending and participating in a panel discussion after the film moderated by Dr. Kwame McKenzie.

Throughout the nine days of screenings, there will usually be a discussion that takes place after the screening. With the exception of the opening night film, the screenings take place at Workman Arts Theatre, 651 Dufferin Street. Additionally, there other industry events and parties. Some of them are free. The festival closes with a screening of The Man of a Thousand Songs with subject Ron Hynes in attendance, followed by a concert and closing gala party.