TIFF celebrates 2019 Top Ten Canadian films

Story by Allan Tong / Photos by Sally Warburton
 
Last week, TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival) announced its annual Top Ten Canadian features and shorts at a public panel held at the Samsung Store in the Eaton Centre, breaking away from the Lightbox in past eyars. After a private reception, co-CEO Cameron Bailey (far left, above) moderated a public panel in the store with directors (from left to right) Sophie Deraspe (Antigone), Calvin Thomas and Yonah Lewis (both White Lie). Per tradition, the Lightbox will screen all the films into January.

Features

And the Birds Rained Down (Il pleuvait des oiseaux)
Dir: Louise Archambault | Quebec

Anne at 13,000
Dir: Kazik Radwanski | Ontario

Antigone
Dir: Sophie Deraspe | Quebec

Black Conflux
Dir: Nicole Dorsey | Newfoundland/Quebec

The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open
Dir: Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers & Kathleen Hepburn | British Columbia

Matthias & Maxime
Dir: Xavier Dolan | Quebec

Murmur
Dir: Heather Young | Nova Scotia

One Day in the Life of Noah Piugattuk
Dir: Zacharias Kunuk | Nunavut

The Twentieth Century
Dir: Matthew Rankin | Quebec

White Lie
Dir: Calvin Thomas, Yonah Lewis | Ontario

A step forward for Canadian diversity at 2017 CSAs

Tatiana Maslany (above) walked away with two big statues at Sunday's Canadian Screen Awards gala in Toronto. That's three if you count the award that Orphan Black (below) snagged for its farewell season. Pretty good for a show that nobody in Canada picked up until BBC America did. Oh, Canada...

Other big winners were Montreal director Xavier Dolan's It's Only the End of the World, the Jesse Owens biopic Race and Letterkenny for best TV comedy series.

Nominations announced for the 2017 Canadian Screen Awards

The nominations for the 2017 Canadian Screen Awards were announced today in joint press conferences in Montreal and Toronto. Montreal director Xavier Dolan’s It’s Only the End of the World | Juste la fin du monde and Space’s series Orphan Black are the leading nominees for this year’s Canadian Screen Awards.

Dolan’s French-language drama It’s Only the End of the World | Juste la fin du monde leads the film portion with nine nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Actor for French actor Vincent Cassel.

Orphan Black leads the televion categories with 14 nominations. CBC comedy “Schitt’s Creek followed with 13 nominations, while another of their comedies “Kim’s Convenience had 11. “19-2 and “Vikings each received nine nominations.

Christopher Plummer had been previously announced as the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2017 Canadian Screen Awards.

The gathering of the Canadian film tribe: the CFC BBQ

Story and photos by Allan Tong

"You going to the barbecue?"

If you're a Canadian at TIFF, you inevitably hear that question, followed by, "Did you get an invite?"

Held in the first Sunday afternoon of the festival, "the barbecue" is a gathering of the Canadian film tribe as well as a fundraiser for the Canadian Film Centre. It takes place on the manicured lawns of the CFC far north of the Lightbox but near the millionaire mansions of the Bridal Path. Given its distance and isolation, the barbecue is hard to crash and coveted.

If you're lucky enough to get in, you nibble on burgers, hot dogs and pizza and sip wine and beer that sponsors generously donate. But the real point is to show your face, shake hands and catch up with other Canadian filmmakers from various disciplines. Exchanging business cards is an essential ritual.

Each year, CFC founder Norman Jewison delivers a speech and this year under a sweltering sky, the venerable film director, wearing his "NJ" baseball cap, asked for a moment of silence on the anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.