Call for submissions: 2015 Air Canada enRoute Film Festival

Air Canada today announced submissions are open for the ninth annual Air Canada enRoute Film Festival. Emerging Canadian filmmakers are invited to showcase their artistic talent, out-of-the-box thinking and compelling vision in this year's festival that includes a star studded jury, a cash prize and a chance to travel to the Berlin International Film Festival to have their film screened at the European Film Market.

The winner of Best Short Film will receive a $5,000 cash prize courtesy of presenting sponsor Cineplex Entertainment. Other awards include Achievement in Direction, Achievement in Cinematography, Achievement in Animation, Achievement in Documentary and the third annual People's Choice Award. Achievement Award supporters include, the Directors' Guild of Canada, William F. White International Inc., the National Film Board of Canada and the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Film Festival.

14th annual Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival announces schedule and tour dates

KICK OFF 2015 IN THE COMPANY OF CANADIAN TALENT DURING
THE 14th ANNUAL CANADA’S TOP TEN FILM FESTIVAL
JANUARY 2–11 AT TIFF BELL LIGHTBOX
Guests include David Cronenberg, Keanu Reeves, Sturla Gunnarsson, Maxime Giroux, Harold Crooks, Bonnie Sherr Klein, Naomi Klein and Avi Lewis

The 14^th annual Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival kicks off at TIFF Bell Lightbox on January 2, 2015, offering 10 days of public screenings of the year’s top 10 features, shorts and student films. Established in 2001, the Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival celebrates excellence in Canadian cinema and raises global awareness of Canadian achievements in film. The festival features introductions and Q&A sessions with filmmakers — including Sturla Gunnarsson, Harold Crooks, Maxime Giroux, David Cronenberg, Andrew Huculiak, Marie-Hélène Cousineau and Stéphane Lafleur— as well as two special onstage events: In Conversation With... Naomi Klein and Avi Lewis on January 10, and In Conversation With... Keanu Reeves on January 11.

2014 Polaris Music Prize announces short list

The 10 albums on the 2014 Polaris Music Prize Short List were revealed at The Carlu‘s Round Room in Toronto earlier today.

Montreal actor, producer and writer Jay Baruchel will host the 2014 Polaris Gala being held September 22 at The Carlu in Toronto. Baruchel, who once played the role of obsessed Led Zeppelin fan Vic Munoz in Almost Famous, also helped unveil the 10 albums on the 2014 Short List earlier today in Toronto.

The actor is known for his roles in This Is The End, Goon, as well as the How To Train Your Dragon series, The Trotsky, Knocked Up and Tropic Thunder. His current projects include the FXX comedy series Man Seeking Woman and an adaptation of the book Baseballismo written by Dave Bidini.

2014 Polaris Music Prize announces long list

The Polaris Music Prize has announced the long list for the 2014 award. The 40 Long List albums were unveiled at the National Music Centre in Calgary in association with the Sled Island Music Festival.

In total 189 titles made the first ballots of the 190 member jury. Twenty-three of the 40 Long List titles are first-time Polaris Music Prize nominees. Of those, three have been in previously nominated groups.

“The city has been so welcome and after what happened last year we felt it was important to reveal this year’s list in one of the most musical places in Canada. We’d like to congratulate all of the inspiring artists who made the list and the people with the easiest/toughest job in the world of narrowing that 189 worthy records to just 40 – our jury,” said Jordan.

The Great Digital Film Festival 2014, Jan 31–Feb 6

CINEPLEX BRINGS FAN FAVOURITES TO THE BIG SCREEN
WITH FIFTH ANNUAL GREAT DIGITAL FILM FESTIVAL

Event brings sci-fi, action and cult classics to Cineplex theatres across Canada

January 7, 2014 – Back by popular demand, The Great Digital Film Festival returns to Cineplex theatres from January 31 to February 6, 2014.

The Great Digital Film Festival brings a week of fan favourite sci-fi, action and cult films back to the big screen, where they were meant to be seen – often for the first time in crystal clear digital format.

The festival expands again this year, with Cineplex’s Front Row Centre events adding locations at Cineplex Odeon Gardiners Road Cinemas in Kingston, ON; Cineplex Cinemas Park Lane in Halifax, Nova Scotia andCineplex Cinemas Avalon Mall Cinemas in St. John’s, Newfoundland.

2013 Great Digital Film Festival, Feb 1-7

Today, the Cineplex Entertainment kicks off its fourth-annual Great Digital Film Festival, playing in select Cineplex Entertainment theatres across Canada from February 1 to 7, 2013. The Great Digital Film Festival brings some of Hollywood’s greatest classics and fan favourites back to the big screen, often for the first time in digital format.

Titles include: The Matrix, Jaws, 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, An American Werewolf in London, The Fifth Element, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Gremlins, Battle Royale, Oldboy, Goodfellas, Casino, Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction.

Call for submissions: CBC Short Film Face Off

The CBC has put out a call for submission for this year's edition of the Short Film Face Off.

Filmmakers may submit a short film of up to 12 minutes running time of drama, comedy or animation (but not music video or documentary). Through a competitive process, a winning film will be selected to receive a prize package worth $50,000.

The contest is open to all Canadians. The submission address provided below is for Quebec films. Filmmakers from other regions should contact their local CBC office for their mailing address.

The deadline for submissions is March 30, 2012.

The Great Digital Film Festival 2012, February 3-9

The Great Digital Film Festival 2012 begins today across Canada. At Cineplex theatres in Vancouver, Langley, Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, London, Hamilton, Toronto, Ottawa, Kirkland and Montreal, classic films will be shown on the big screen from Blu-Ray discs or 2K digital prints.

It may seem somewhat pointless to watch something available on disc, but I think there is great value in watching films on the big screen even if it's HD and not 35mm. It's always worthwhile to see things on as large a screen as possible. We see things differently when it's presented on a larger scale and are able to appreciate much more of the subtleties such as discreet emotions. For example, something like fighting back tears (e.g. in The Godfather when Robert Duvall is told of some deaths by a rival, or The Remains of the Day when Anthony Hopkins hides his emotions to Emma Thompson) can get completely lost when viewed on a television, even a large one.

FREE Songwriting Workshops Across Canada, Sept 7-Oct 2

Astral Radio presents the Radio Star New Songwriters Workshop Tour, which provides educational sessions at all of the 11 workshops for new songwriters to be held across Canada from Sept. 7 through Oct. 2, 2011.

Each workshop will consist of four parts. Part 1 examines What's in a Song; Part 2 is Music Publishing 101; Part 3 looks at Songwriting Revenue Streams; and Part 4 is The Music Meeting (Song Review) in which participants can play their demos for panelists to get instant feedback.

The workshops are co-sponsored by the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN), Canadian Music Publishers Association (CMPA), and the Songwriters Association of Canada (SAC).

These workshops are free to attend, but everyone wishing to attend must pre-register for the event at http://www.radiostar.ca/songwriters-workshop/register. Registration is now open.

Red State: An Evening with Kevin Smith

PHASE 4 FILMS PRESENTS RED STATE:  AN EVENING WITH KEVIN SMITH

EXCLUSIVE ENGAGEMENTS IN MONTREAL, TORONTO, EDMONTON, CALGARY AND VANCOUVER THIS AUGUST

Phase 4 Films is pleased to announce Red State: An Evening with Kevin Smith, a five city exclusive engagement featuring a screening of the controversial thriller RED STATE, followed by an extensive “Q&A” with the acclaimed indie director.  Smith will bring his no-holds-barred tales about filmmaking, pop culture and his life to Canadian audiences with stops in Montreal on August 14 at Theater Hall Concordia, Toronto on August 15 at Toronto Underground, Edmonton on August 16 at The Garneau, Calgary on August 17 at The Uptown, and Vancouver on August 18 at The Vogue.

"I wear my love for Canada on the sleeve of my hockey sweater, so ever since we started planning the RED STATE USA TOUR, I've been ready to do a RED PROVINCE TOUR across the grand cultural mosaic that is the Great White North.  Now, thanks to Phase 4, I finally get to scare the shit out of a buncha Canucks with the weird little Tarantino/Coen Brothers homage flick that is RED STATE. This is not a comedy like CLERKS; this is a horror movie. Like JERSEY GIRL."

Call for submissions: the $100 Film Festival 2012

the $100 Film Festival

2012 Call for Submissions

Deadline for Entries:  December 1, 2011.
·      16mm or Super 8 Film under 22min
·      MUST provide a 16mm or Super 8 film print for screening.
·      Official Release date after December 1, 2009.

The Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers is pleased to present the annual $100 Film Festival from March 1-3, 2012.  The festival embodies the spirit of independent filmmaking and brings the experience of projected celluloid to our audience by only screening film prints.  It is the only competitive festival in Canada that screens exclusively on Super 8 and 16mm film.  The $100 Film Festival does not charge any entrance fees and pays artist honorariums for all films selected for the festival.    The selected films will also be eligible for festival prizes.

Call for submissions: Exhibit P: Photography and Media Art from the Prairies

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS FROM ARTISTS

Exhibit P: Photography and Media Art from the Prairies

The western interior is not simply W.O. Mitchell’s “basic requirements of land and sky,” the kettle lakes and bluffs of Gabrielle Roy’s water-hen country, or the remote forests and mountains of Ralph Connor’s Mounted Police – it is all three and more. – Gerald Friesen

Prefix Institute of Contemporary Art is seeking submissions from photo, film, video and digital artists at all stages of their careers for feature coverage in an upcoming issue of Prefix Photo magazine. To be considered for inclusion, an artist must be a current resident of Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Alberta, or a native of the Canadian Prairies residing elsewhere. Consideration will also be given to any artist whose work explicitly addresses the subject of the Prairies.

Reel Artists Film Festival 2011, Feb 23-27

The Canadian Art Foundation kicks off the 8th edition of the Reel Artists Film Festival tonight in Toronto with its selection of 17 documentaries on top contemporary art and artists. Tonight's gala screening is the world premiere of KOOP, Katherine Knight's portrait of Wanda Koop.

It takes place at Koerner Hall at the Royal Conservatory. The director and artist will be present and will participate in a Q&A after the screening with Jane Perdue, critic and urban planner. The evening also includes a pre-screening reception and an opening night celebration.

The rest of the screenings will take place at the festival's new home, the TIFF Bell Lightbox on Reitman Square, 350 King Street West. Two other films will be having their world premieres -- Nam June Paik: Open Your Eyes and Picture Start.

Many of the filmmakers and featured artists will be in attendance, including for the films Sol LeWitt: Wall Drawings, Aakideh: The Art & Legacy of Carl Beam, Ghost Noise and Picture Start.

The Great Digital Film Festival 2011 opens across Canada, Feb. 4-10

Cineplex Entertainment Theatres returns with its 2nd annual Great Digital Film Festival. It starts today Friday, February 4 and runs until Thursday, February, 10, 2011. It has also expanded this year from Toronto to include six cities: Montréal, Ottawa, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver. A selection of 19 movies will be shown on the big screen throughout the week in a digital or High Definition format.

The Great Digital Film Festival 2011 takes place at the Scotiabank Theatre Vancouver, Scotiabank Theatre Chinook in Calgary, Scotiabank Theatre Edmonton, SilverCity Gloucester Cinemas in Ottawa, Scotiabank Theatre Toronto and Scotiabank Theatre Montreal. Scotiabank Theatre Montreal will also show some movies using the D-BOX Motion system in which the seats are synchronized with the action onscreen to provide an immersive movie experience.

Tickets are a real bargain. General admission is only $5.00 for any one movie, $9.00 for a double feature, and $22.00 for five movies (D-Box seats are subject to an additional charge).

http://www.cineplex.com/Events/DigitalFilmFest/Home.aspx

The Great Digital Film Festival 2011 schedule includes:

Free screenings - The Worldwide Short Film Festival National Tour

The Worldwide Short Film Festival normally takes place in Toronto in early June. It is run by the Canadian Film Centre and is the largest short film festival in North America. Now they are taking the show on the road and offering a free screening of sample films from the recent festival in three Canadian cities -- Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver -- in their Best of the Fest National Tour.

Films include a number of prize-winners such as I.D. by Sam Firth, which won numerous awards such as the “Human Condition 60 Second Film Competition” at the Chicago International Film Festival. The Poodle Trainer won Best Documentary Short at this year's WSFF, which Slip won Best Experimental Short. There is a good mix of fiction and documentary, live-action and animation, and Canadian and international films.

Screenings take place in mid- to late-November. To RSVP, click on the link provided.