Tonight is the opening night of the 14th Cinéfranco International Francophone Film Festival of Toronto. Cinéfranco is considered the leading film event of international Francophone cinema in Toronto, and this year they are moving to their new location at TIFF Bell Lightbox.
The opening night screening at 6:45 will be of the film
Impasse du désir by Swiss filmmaker Michel Rodde. Rodde and the film's Québec star Rémy Girard will be in attendance. Girard will also attend the following screening at 9:30 of
Y'en aura pas de facile (Tough Luck) with director Marc-André Lavoie and producer Esther Long.
In addition to screenings, they will host a Master Class with Moroccan filmmaker Driss Chouika before the screening of his film
Destins croisés (Crossed Destinies), and an interview with Professor Eric Jennings prior to
Tête de Turc (Turk's Head). Both are free with the accompanying movies. They will also host two free roundtable discussions. The first is
Fiction Films: Past, Present and Future, and the second is
Documentary challenges: distribution and marketing.
The films come not only from France, but also Canada (both Québec and Ontario), Morocco, Switzerland, Belgium and Luxembourg. Many of screenings will take place with the filmmaker or actor in attendance.
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Cinéfranco 2011
20 year old Quebecois Marie Deschamps leaves her studies behind to embrace new experiences and learn English.
Among the 5 brothers of the Hayoun family, David the middle son is
chased with a vengeful determination by the Marseille Mafia. When David
goes back home to take shelter, he shares with is brothers a painful
secret about their dad’s death which sparks off a crisis
When Justine Lacroix, a lovely journalist meets the handsome emergency
ward surgeon, it is love at first sight, but there is a tiny little
detail Justine forgot to consider: the man she loves is…an Arab, well,
“A French man from North African descent”.
Boldly unconventional and cheerful, that's how one could
describe Babou. Never having cared about social conventions, she is
suddenly faced with the realization that her own daughter is ashamed of
her and therefore refuses to invite her to her wedding.
Three 40 something couples respond to the mysterious invitation of Raja, their old friend who disappeared…
Screened before "Les invités de mon père"
In this superbly crafted musical drama, New World passion collides with
Old World tradition when Marielle, an African immigrant, falls in love
with a female co-worker.
The break-up under duress with his girlfriend, the encounter
with a superb art thief and a programmed wedding in Florida: Arthur, a
brave salesman, has gone in a few days from a quiet life in Paris to a
frantic chase in the heart of Miami.
at the NFB, 150 John St.
Unique price : $8/film (tickets to be purchased at the door, cash only)
In Donald McGraw’s art gallery, twelve life-size portraits of the
principal Native Chiefs of New Brunswick exude gratitude, respect,
esteem and concern for justice, a collection that speaks of a desired
reconciliation between the two nations.
Elsa barely gets by on casual jobs and hopes to find stable employment so that she can regain custody of her son.
Clémentine and Sébastien, young parents first, stretched between
their job and their children, have to accommodate Sébastien’s mother,
Marie-France, determined to stay on.
Escaped from prison and searched by the police, Constant Billot
takes shelter in an abandoned barge. Silvia who spotted him, threatens
to call the police if he does not kill her adopted mother. A trap even
more dangerous than jail will from now on cage him in, the trap of black
mail and love…
This delightful comedy played by a trio of actors « sailing between
burlesque, black humour and romance genres » sizzles with well carved
dialogues.
Shorts
Nine short films for your enjoyment.
Teaching at Pierre-de-Ronsard secondary school in Seine Saint-Denis is a
challenge for young Anna Doblinsky faced with teenagers trapped in a
dead-end. Lakdar, one of her students, wants to become a cartoonist.
However an unfortunate medical error is going to rob him from his dream.
His tragic descent to hell will play havoc.
Paris 2011, a serial killer is playing havoc in the grocery
stores in Barbès, a Parisian neighbourhood. One of the victims is the
wife of an Algerian diplomat. It is enough for the Algerian Police to
intervene and lend the best detectives in North Africa to serve the
French National Police…Inspector Nerh-Nerh and The Kabyle, two hicks
whose investigating methods are less than conventional…
Robert, a psychiatrist and analyst, discovers that his young wife is
having an affair with. Totally overwhelmed by the situation, his
obsession with it prevents him from concentrating on his patients until
he meets Leo Debond, a depressive and psychotic bachelor. Secretly
identifying himself with Leo, Robert realizes that Leo will provide him
with the perfect means of relieving his suffering.
A group of adventurers set out to rob a gold mine in the heart of
Guyana. But the operation goes awry. 600 kilos of pure gold is a mighty
loot when you have to lug it on your back! Soon the thieves are chased
down. Pushed into the hostile jungle, the runaways fend for their lives
and their gold.
“In Gold We Trust surprises by going from hardcore action adventure to
being a human suspense story in which the real obstacles to be overcome
are each character’s interior demons." (Maxime Chevalier, filmsactu.com)
at the NFB, 150 John St
Unique price : $8/film (tickets to be purchased at the door, cash only)
Jérémie Fazel in attendance
Young people travel to Rwanda and Israel to reflect on keeping the
memory of the tragic Jewish and Tutsi genocides alive through present
and future generations.
Dr. Kruger, offers wealthy patients with terminal illnesses the chance
to die with dignity, holding a glass of champagne. But at this posh
clinic, nothing happens as planned!
at the NFB, 150 John St.
Unique price : $8/film (tickets to be purchased at the door, cash only)
They call themselves « truth seekers ». The documentarian calls them
“conspirationnistes”. He explores their passionate quest with cleverness
and intelligence.
Prudent Philibert Poirier (Guy A.Lepage), an agent of La
Sûreté du Québec (SQ) is awkward and goofy. Ventura (Rachid Bidouri) is a
James Bond like, daredevil elite French spy who can speak eight
languages. An unfortunate event forces them to work together. An
amazing, action-packed adventure made funny by the two protagonists’
language differences!
At the ripe age of 60, Serge cannot get his pension because he is
missing documents from his past jobs. His wife tells him to go get his
papers. Serge hits the road on his 1970 Mammuth bike. His trip across
France is packed with realistic, humorous and sometimes strange
encounters.
A small village in the Algerian countryside. Mounir , a bragger, has
only one dream- to finally be appreciated by his fellow villagers. But
everybody laughs at his sister who falls asleep everywhere and whom the
village is convinced will end up a spinster. On one drunken night,
Mounir spreads the rumor that his sister is going to marry a very rich
man. Recognition knocks at last and so does trouble…
While Julie dreams of leaving her small town to become a great
filmmaker, she crosses paths with the owner of the general store ...
Denis and his parents have to spend the night in a strange haunted manor because of a sudden car breakdown ...
80-year-old retired doctor Lucien has a big personality. And his
commitment is such that, without telling his family, he has just married
young and flashy Tatiana to protect her from deportation. But his
daughter Babette and his son Arnaud soon realize that the old man has
fallen in love with the gorgeous yet self-interested Eastern European
woman. The family dynamics suddenly dive into a chaos...
Driven by the memory of her grandmother, French-Canadian Director
Dany Chiasson travels on horseback across France, retracing Joan of
Arc's first 11-day ride over enemy land to meet the uncrowned King.
Along the way, Chiasson meets the colourful characters of the French
countryside who animate the surrounding history and attempt to help
fulfill her dream: to hear the call of the skylark.
A film of stunning beauty, poetry and warm sincere emotions! A real treat!
Thirty something man-child Alain cannot handle being a father. His
wife Nathalie is always glued to her family: her brother, a lawyer who
brags and owes everybody money; her sister in law who raises her
daughter like a horse in a show and her other sister who has completely
lost it... Useless to talk about the chaotic family dinners, a real
feast for us! But how will Alain be able to survive these family
ordeals?
at the NFB, 150 John St.
Unique price : $8/film (tickets to be purchased at the door, cash only)
A documentary on the boxer Sumbu Kalambay, 4 times World middleweight
boxing champion. A film about his fascinating life as a champion
athlete.
at the NFB, 150 John St.
Unique price : $8/film (tickets to be purchased at the door, cash only)
Encounters that are life-altering. Exceptional music and orchestra,
passion and disillusion. Lucy, Joseph, Venus, Nirvana and others, tell
the story of their lives and their hopes.
Coming out of a tragic pregnancy, Rose resumes her activities
as a home care nurse. The increasingly fragile eighty something Edmond,
clashes with his son who wants him in a retirement home. Rose feels that
her mission is to save aging Edmond. The film calls attention to the
actors.
For his film « Waiting for Pasolini », filmmaker Daoud Aouad Syed had
put up sets on lands he rented from the villagers of Zagora. Once the
shooting wraps up, the team leaves and the sets are destroyed except for
one, the set of the faux mosque that had become the local place for
worship.
Réjean, a professional biographer has to send a DVD
introducing himself to a dating website. Easy for a pro right?... As
Réjean is telling us the action packed funny moments of his life, his
stories swing between fiction and reality for our great pleasure!
“We are easily immersed in this very light comedy. (…) We come
out of the film happy to have been given the opportunity to see a cute
little film…” (Isabelle Hontebeyrie, fr.Canoe).
When physician Simon pays a call to a menacing housing project, his
vehicle is ambushed by rock-throwing youths, including high schooler
Bora, who launches a Molotov cocktail but then rushes to save the doc
before his car explodes. As Simon rests in a coma, Bora tries to avoid
exposing himself to the cops and his hot-blooded seamstress mom, but
he's soon beaten down by drug dealers angry that the neighborhood is now
filled with roving reporters and police patrols. (Variety.com)
Catherine, a battered humiliated wife, pulls away from her
husband’s violence to rebuild a new identity and pick up the pieces of
her shattered life. Will she succeed in getting over the fear of her
husband (so brilliantly played by Marc Béland)?
“With Twice a WomanFrançois Delisle delivers a
moving poetic film on how a battered wife wins her self-esteem back”
(Charles-Henri Ramond, Films du Québec).
Lucie, a 19 yr old intern at Suisse romande Television, sees her face in TV archives of the Geneva
feminist movement from the 70s. When she tells her grand-parents about
her clone, Lucie understands by their sudden stiffness that her family
is hiding a deep-seated secret. Lucie sets on a search to unearth the
mystery in the midst of life -changing personal events.
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