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.

Osheaga Festival Musique et Arts 2011, July 29-31

The sixth annual Osheaga Festival Musique et Arts 2011 kicks off its music festival today. This year they've expanded to three days and five stages.

In addition to major headlining acts like Eminem, Elvis Costello & The Imposters and The Flaming Lips, you'll be able to catch performances by artists such as Karkwa, Sam Roberts Band, Death Cab for Cutie, Janelle Monáe, Fucked Up, The Rural Alberta Advantage and MSTRKRFT,

Osheaga Music and Arts Festival
Parc Jean-Drapeau, July 29-31
www.osheaga.com

Call for submissions: 4th Annual Film Snacks Competition

Enter our 4^th Annual Film Snacks Competition

Feel there's an environmental story yet to be told? This is your chance to tell it! The Film Snacks Competition is a platform for the best of tomorrow's film-making talent, featuring compelling short-films that build on environmental themes. You could have your film screened on the BIG screen, TV, and online!

To enter, you must simply upload your short film (2 minutes or less) to the designated page. Your submission must be based on an environmental theme.

Judges will be basing their decision on production quality (video and audio), creativity and entertainment value and choice of topic. The contest opens July 21, 2011, 12:01 a.m. ET and closes on September 15, 2011, 11:59 p.m. ET.

Summer in 70mm at TIFF Bell Lightbox, July 28-Aug 17

Summer in 70mm

After our popular 2010 holiday season of three classics—Jacques Tati’s Playtime, David Lean’s Lawrence of Arabia and Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey—screened in 70mm, we present another season of widescreen spectacles (including a return engagement of Lean’s great desert adventure), each screening daily for week-long engagements.

Films in Summer in 70mm

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Lawrence of Arabia

68th Venice International Film Festival lineup announced

Today the full lineup for the 68th Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica di Venezia (Venice International Film Festival) was announced. The opening film is set to be the world premiere of The Ides Of March, directed by and starring George Clooney. Whit Stillman’s Damsels in Distress will close the festival.

Other titles in competition include David Cronenberg’s A Dangerous Method, Steve McQueen's Shame, Carnage by Roman Polanski, Tomas Alfredson’s Tinker Tailor, Soldier, Spy, William Friedkin’s Killer Joe, Andrea Arnold’s Wuthering Heights, Faust by Aleksander Sokurov, 4:44 Last Day on Earth from Abel Ferrara, and Dark Horse by Todd Solondz. A 22nd competition film will be unveiled during the festival.

The opening film Out of Competition is the documentary Vivan las Antipodas! by Victor Kossakovsky. Also playing out of competition are Steven Soderbergh's Contagion, Mary Harron's The Moth Diaries, Madonna’s W.E., and Al Pacino's documentary Wilde Salome. Al Pacino will be the recipient of the Jaeger-Le Coultre Glory to the Filmmaker Award.

2011 Urban X Awards - winners

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Call for submissions: monologues by Afro-Canadian playwrights

Call for Monologues – New Anthology – due August 5th
by QDF

CALL FOR MONOLOGUES

Playwrights Canada Press invites submissions of monologues written by Afro-Canadians to be included in a new anthology for publication in 2012/13. Specifically we are seeking new or previously published monologues, choreo-poetry, or spoken word pieces (written for the theatre) of approximately 5 minutes.  If previously published, the submission must include information on how to contact the publisher. If the play is unpublished, please indicate where reading scripts can be obtained.

Only electronic submissions in the form of a Word document or PDF will be accepted. The deadline for submissions is Friday August 5^th, 2011.  This call is only open to Canadian citizens and landed immigrants living in Canada.

Toronto International Film Festival 2011 announces first films

At a press conference this morning at the Hyatt Regency in Toronto, the Toronto International Film Festival announced their first group of films that will play at their 36th annual festival.

In the leadup to the press conference, co-director Cameron Bailey (@cameron_tiff) tweeted several of the titles in advance. He announced Michael Winterbottom's Trishna starring Freida Pinto and Riz Ahmed, Luc Besson's The Lady with Michelle Yeoh, David Thewlis, Huh Jong-ho's Countdown starring Jeon Do-yeon, and Fernando Mereilles' 360 starring Jude Law, Rachel Weisz and Anthony Hopkins. All four are world premieres.

The Opening Night gala is Davis Guggenheim's U2 documentary From the Sky Down. This is the first time that a documentary has opened the festival. Also announced were Sarah Polley's Take This Waltz and David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method. Also, the festival will host the world premiere of Bennett Miller's Moneyball with Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill.

Call for submissions: Vancouver Women in Film Festival (VWIFF 2012)

OPEN CALL FOR ENTRIES
 

7th Annual Vancouver Women in Film Festival (VWIFF 2012)

7 Annual March 08, 2012 to March 11, 2012

Each year since 2006, the Vancouver Women in Film Festival (VWIFF) has showcased an impressive line-up of short and feature films (narrative, documentary and animation) by established and emerging women filmmakers from around the world. The Festival is presented by Women in Film and Television Vancouver and is one of our key annual celebration events. In addition to offering independent filmmakers a professional screening opportunity, the festival also serves to build audiences and appreciation for relevant cinema by women.

“There was such a breadth of vision, expression and storytelling in the submissions we received last year, I’m very excited to see what we’ll be presenting to our audiences in 2012,” says Festival Artistic Director, Roslyn Muir.

Festival du Film de Juste pour rire 2011 (Just For Laughs Film Festival), July 24-30

JUST FOR LAUGHS FILMS                  

We have done it again!  After countless months of travel, sleepless nights, drinks, dance and hard work (in that order), we bring you the best comedy films, documentaries and shorts.

Homeboy Angelo Tsarouchas will be in town to present his award-winning film FRED & VINNIE; come see heavy-hitter Harvey Keitel and Emmy-winner Scott Caan in a tale of an unusual family reunion in A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO ENDINGS; or how about “the best movie about comedy” (Sarah Silverman said this) and the “wonderful... irreverent... brilliant” (The Huffington Postsaid this) PUNCHING THE CLOWN.

And we are proud to present the world premiere of the hilarious waiter-rebellion comedy, SERVITUDE, with several members of the cast and crew in attendance; marvel as madman Cap'n Video (aka Ralph Zavadil), the pre-Jackass prince of stupid neck-breaking stunts, finally gets his due in the Hot Docs smash hit (literally) BEAUTY DAY; the documentary PHUNNY BUSINESS will take us back to the historic comedy club All Jokes Aside which, for a decade, was the preeminent black comic showcase in America; while TELL YOUR FRIENDS! THE CONCERT FILM! will take you to the future of American comedy.

Pleasure Dome presents Open Screening Under the Stars

Pleasure Dome presents
Open Screening Under the Stars

Outdoor Screening @ 401 Richmond St. West Courtyard
Saturday, July 23, 9pm PWYC

(Please arrive before 9pm if you are submitting work to be screened)
(Rain location: CineCycle, 129 Spadina Ave.)

416-656-5577 / www.pdome.org

The annual Open Screening Under the Stars is your chance to screen any shred of celluloid or tape you have for a maximum of 10 minutes. Bring your latest experimental film or video—finished or unfinished, found or stolen—to the courtyard before 9pm. We screen on a first come, first shown basis, and can accommodate most formats (Super 8, 16mm, VHS, miniDV, DVD and Blu-Ray). Please contact us at pdome@ican.net for more information.

Heavy MTL: Festival international de musique métal, July 23-24

The 3rd edition of Heavy MTL: Festival international de musique métal is Montreal's two-day heavy metal and hard rock festival. It takes place on three stages this weekend at Parc-Jean Drapeau on Ile Ste-Hélène.

Heavy MTL bills itself as North-America’s premier destination heavy music festival. Featured acts include Kiss, Billy Talent, Motörhead, Anthrax, Opeth, Children of Bodom, As I Lay Dying, The Sword, Times Of Grace, and DevilDriver.

http://www.heavymtl.com/

Call for submissions: 25th Anniversary Images Festival

The 25th Anniversary Images Festival for experimental and independent moving image works has put out a call for submissions for both their On Screen and Off Screen selections. On Screen is their category for films, videos and works meant to be projected in a cinema. Off Screen is for gallery installations, live performances and online/new media projects.

The On Screen has two deadline dates. The regular deadline date is October 17, 2011 (postmark). The late deadline date with a higher fee is November 14, 2011. The Off Screen section has a deadline of August 2011 (postmark).

Artist fees (screening fees) paid for all works presented.

Toronto International Burlesque Festival 2011, July 22-24

After a Meet and Greet Teaser last night at Mitzi's Sister, the 4th Annual Toronto International Burlesque Festival officially gets under way tonight. The gala event starts at 8pm at the Gladstone Hotel Ballroom.

This year's theme is Canadiana-Rama and focuses on this country's own talent. There will still, however, be plenty of guest performers from around the world.

Some of the participating acts are 2011 Miss Exotic World Miss Indigo Blue, 2010 Miss Exotic World Roxi Dlite, First Lady of Burlesque April March, Vancouver's Melody Mangler, Japan's Cherry Typhoon, NYC's Amber Ray, Darlinda Just Darlinda, Trixie Little and the Evil Hate Monkey, Montreal's Scarlett James, Oui Oui Encore, Chicago's Boylesque sensation Jett Adore, Vancouver's Burgundy Brixx, Halifax's Miss C, and Toronto's Coco Framboise, Sauci Calla Horra, Miss Mitzy Cream, Mahogany Storm,  Mysterion the Mind reader, and Legend Tanya Cheex to name a few of the over 70 Canadian and international acts.

2011 Shinsedai Cinema Festival, July 21-25

The 3rd annual Shinsedai Cinema Festival which spotlights Japanese film starts tonight at the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre in Toronto.

The evening begins with a reception at 7pm. The opening night screening will be of Koji Fukuda's Hospitalité and is scheduled to begin at 8pm. Producer/actress Kiki Sugino who stars in the film will be in attendance a participate in a Q&A after the screening.

Other guests in attendance will be actor/director/comedian Devi Kobayashi to present his double bill of comedies Mariko Rose the Spook and Hikari on Sunday, July 24th at 5pm. 15-year-old Ryugo Nakamura will present the North American premiere of The Catcher on the Shore on July 23rd at 6pm.

The Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre is located at 6 Garamond Court in Toronto.

Free screening of Fright Night

In anticipation of the upcoming Disney and Dreamworks remake, Rue Morgue's monthly screening series Cinemacabre presents a free showing of the original 1985 horror film Fright Night.

The projection will be a of a 35mm print. There will also be classic trailers and prizes given away.

Due to the renovations and change of ownership at the Bloor Cinema, this screening will take place at the Toronto Underground Cinema, located at 186 Spadina Avenue. To celebrate the move, the screening will be free. It all happens tonight Thursday, July 21st at 9:30pm.

2011 MTV Video Music Awards - nominations

MTV has announced the nominations for their 28th annual MTV Video Music Awards. Katy Perry leads the pack with nine nominations including Video of The Year for 'Firework', Best Pop Video for the recent 'Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)' and Best Direction for 'E.T.'

Adele was next with seven nominations, all for her video for 'Rolling In The Deep.' Kanye West received six nominations, for 'All of the Lights' and 'Power,' but also appeared in Katy Perry's 'E.T.' which picked up five nominations.

Bruno Mars scores four nominations including Video of The Year for 'Grenade.' Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Nicki Minaj and Eminem each received three nominations.

The MTV Video Music Awards ceremony takes place on August 28 at 9pm at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles.

And Justice For All: The Films of Norman Jewison, August 11-31

TIFF Bell Lightbox will be presenting a retrospective of the films of one of Canada's greatest filmmakers, Norman Jewison. The program will feature 13 of Jewison’s finest films including The Russians are Coming, The Russians are Coming, In the Heat of the Night, Agnes of God, Jesus Christ Superstar, A Soldier's Story, and The Hurricane.

The program opens on August 11 with a screening of Moonstruck which will be introduced by Norman Jewison himself. Also in attendance will be actress Olympia Dukakis and writer John Patrick Shanley, both of whom won Academy Awards for their work on this film.

In addition, director Clement Virgo will be in person to introduce the screening of In the Heat of the Night and director Bruce McDonald will be in person to introduce the screening of Rollerball.

[UPDATE, August 3]
Norman Jewison will also be in attendance for the screenings of The Hurricane on August 20. In addition, another special screening has been added: on August 29, Norman Jewison will be joined on stage by Michael Barker, Head of Sony Picture Classics for a discussion of his career in cinema followed by a screening of his little-known Gaily Gaily.

The Amazing Spider-Man trailer

A trailer for the Spiderman reboot The Amazing Spiderman has hit the web on the opening day of San Diego's Comic-Con. It's good trailer but focuses almost entirely on the origin story which is familiar territory, especially since the previous Raimi films aren't that old.

Despite the high-quality resolution, Twitch Film says it's still a bootleg. They tweeted earlier today "The Spider-Man trailer doing the rounds today is still a bootleg, though a high quality one. Sony is VERY unhappy. Thus it is not on Twitch."

We get a glimpse of the impressive cast alongside Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker. We see brief glimpses of Campbell Scott as Peter's father, Emma Stone and Dennis Leary as Gwen Stacy and her father, Martin Sheen and Sally Field and Uncle Ben and Aunt May, and Rhys Ifans as Dr. Curt Connors.

Call for submissions: fu-GEN Asian Canadian Theatre Co's playwright's kitchen

fu-GEN Asian Canadian Theatre Company has put out a call for submissions to writers interested in participating in their workshop known as the "kitchen."

fu-GEN (short for future generation) is a theatre company founded in Toronto in 2002 to support Asian Canadian theatre actors, writers and directors. Part of that mandate is to create theatre original theatre works with an authentic Asian Canadian voice.

Participants in the program go through a mentorship program with Nina Lee Aquino and/or David Yee and other veterans in the Toronto theatre community. Over the course of 10 months, you will be guided through the process of creating a short play or a portion of a longer play that will receive a staged reading in the spring of next year.

I have participated in the Kitchen myself, both as an actor and a writer. I found the process immensely gratifying and would recommend it wholeheartedly to any and all Asian artists.

2011 Teen Choice Awards - 2nd wave nominations

After announcing the first wave of nominations for the 13th annual Teen Choice Awards, they've released a list of their second wave of nominations today. Leading the way with five nominations each were the television shows Pretty Little Liars and Switched at Birth.

In the film division, the Choice Summer Movie nominees were Captain America: The First Avenger, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, Horrible Bosses, Monte Carlo and Transformers: Dark of the Moon. The films Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, Monte Carlo and Transformers: Dark of the Moon each received three nominations.

Fans aged 13-19 can vote once each day, per category, for all of their favorite TEEN CHOICE 2011 nominees at www.teenchoiceawards.com (Warning: it is a Rupert Murdoch/Fox-owned site). Voting concludes Friday, August 5.

6th Toronto Summer Music Festival, July 19-August 13

The 6th annual Toronto Summer Music Festival opens tonight at the Royal Conservatory of Music's Koerner Hall. The festival's theme this season is Beethoven and the Romantics.

Tonight's concert is a piano recital by Kirill Gerstein which features two great piano sonatas, the last one Beethoven in C minor and the only one by Franz Liszt in this his bicentennial year. The pairing is very apt since Liszt is perhaps the Romantic composer who best understood Beethoven. This is reflected in his sonata's complex structure which recalls the multi-form technique used by Beethoven in works such as the Ninth Symphony.

The impressive lineup features many fine pianists. Menahem Pressler of the renowned Beaux Arts Trio will play with the Leipzig Quartet. Toronto's own piano great Anton Kuerti will perform late Romantic pieces with Colin Fox and Zebra Trio with Christopher Costanza and Mark Fewer. André Laplante will perform with the quartet of Ian Swensen, Jonathan Crow, Teng Li and Antonio Lysy, and additional guests.

2011 Constellation Awards - winners

The 5th annual Constellation Awards took place this weekend at the Grand York Ballroom of the Sheraton Parkway Toronto North Hotel. The Constellation Awards are Canada's science fiction awards recognizing excellence in science fiction film and television. Winners are selected by public voting.

The main winner was Christopher Nolan's Inception. It had led the film nominations with six and came away with wins for Best Film and Best Overall Script. It was the only multiple award-winner of the evening. The acting prizes went to Johnny Depp for Alice In Wonderland and Chloe Grace Moretz for Kick-Ass.

Although Doctor Who led the television nominees with a total of nine, its only win was for composer Murray Gold. The award for Best Television Series went to Stargate Universe, while the acting awards were claimed by Adam Baldwin for Chuck, and Anna Torv for Fringe.

Free screening of El Bulli – Cooking in Progress

Open-air RIDM screening

 Quebec premiere of El Bulli – Cooking in Progress

With sommelier and writer François Chartier

Montreal, July 18, 2011 – The Montreal International Documentary Festival (RIDM), in collaboration with the Society for Arts and Technology (SAT) and Quartier des spectacles, invites you to the Quebec premiere of El Bulli – Cooking in Progress on August 5, 2011 at 9 p.m. in place de la Paix, on Saint-Laurent Blvd. between Sainte-Catherine and René-Lévesque.

Through the eyes of German director Gereon Wetzel, the film takes us into the world of Ferran Adrià, one of the world’s most famous chefs. The film will be introduced by François Chartier, author of Taste Buds and Molecules and a flavour harmonies consultant for elBulli. A Q&A session will follow the screening.

McLuhan Legacy Network (MLN) Festival, July 18-24

In honour of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Herbert Marshall McLuhan, the McLuhan Legacy Network (MLN) is launching their inaugural McLuhan Legacy Network (MLN) Festival over the next week in Toronto. The multi-disciplinary event is called “Connecting the Visible with the Invisible.”

Marshall McLuhan is famous for expressing ideas such as "the medium is the message" and "the global village" and predicting the internet thirty years before its invention. He was an important philosopher and scholar who taught at the University of Toronto with colleagues such as Harold Innis and Northrop Frye.

It kicks off Monday afternoon with a free workshop called McLuhan and Transparency: Perspectives on Technological Mediation. The festival takes place at various locations around the city including the University of Toronto, OCAD University and Ryerson University. Many of the events are free and you can reserve tickets in advance.

The festival runs until July 24.

1st Annual Maldives Film Awards - winners

The inaugural Enchanteur Maldives Film Awards took place last week at the Maldives Centre for Social Education Centre in Malé. President Mohamed Nasheed appeared at the event and pledged continued government support for the film industry.

The big winner of the night was Happy Birthday which won 12 awards including Best Film, Director, Screenplay and Actor (Yoosuf Shafeeu).

Next was Yoosuf with eight awards including the Best Actress (Niuma Mohamed) and the Viewers Choice Award.

Actor Hassan Manik received a Lifetime Achievement award for his 32 years of work in the film industry.

Call for submissions: Festival du nouveau cinéma's 3x3x3

The Festival du nouveau cinéma has put out a call for submissions for its cross-media workshop 3x3x3, part of their industry program FNC Pro. They are looking for filmmakers or content creators with projects that will function on three platforms. They will select three projects and their creators will have the opportunity to spend days during the Festival du nouveau cinéma working with three mentors.

The program also involves a pitch competition where the three project teams pitch their ideas to a jury and an audience. Prizes will be awarded by both jury and audience.

The deadline for submissions is September 1. The 40th edition of the Festival du nouveau cinéma takes place October 12-23, 2011. The transmedia component of FNC Pro takes place from October 17-19.

http://www.nouveaucinema.ca/home

Call for submissions: Festival du Film de Stop Motion de Montréal

The Festival du Film de Stop Motion de Montréal (Montreal Stop Motion Film Festival) has put out a call for submissions for their 3rd annual festival.

To be eligible, films must employ the stop-motion (puppet) animation technique for at least 75% of its duration. In addition to a DVD screener and a completed application form, they require a director bio, photo and filmography as well as 2 stills from the project itself. Selected films become eligible for prizes.

The deadline for entries is September 26. The third Festival du Film de Stop Motion de Montréal will take place on the weekend of October 21-23.

15th FanTasia International Film Festival, July 14-Aug 7

After last week's programming announcement, the 15th FanTasia International Film Festival kicks off tonight with a screening of Kevin Smith's controversial Sundance Film Festival hit Red State. Unlike most of his work, this film is not a comedy but a horror film about fundamentalist religion.

Other films screening tonight are King of Devil's Island, Chop and Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame.

The Fantasia Opening Night Party will provide entertainment by the bands Triggered Response and the Hypnophonics, DJs Mr. Black and Plastik Patrik, and visuals by TIND. It starts at 9pm at Club 1234, located at 1234 Rue de la Montagne at Sainte Catherine.

http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2011/en/

FestivalOpéra de Saint-Eustache, July 14-17

The 2nd annual FestivalOpéra de Saint-Eustache starts tonight at Église de Saint-Eustache with performances of French opera scenes. Saint-Eustache is a picturesque, historic off-island suburb just west of Montreal.

This second edition of the festival focuses on the music of France, Canada, Italy and Austria and will offer two classical staged operas, concerts, recitals, a singing workshop and personalities who have distinguished themselves in the world of opera.

The festival lasts four days from the 14th to the 17th.

http://www.mule-agency.com/festivals/festivalopera/index.html

In Conversation With . . . Gena Rowlands

Gena Rowlands is in Toronto to introduce the retrospective screening series of John Cassavetes films at Tiff Bell Lightbox, Masks and Faces: The Films of John Cassavetes.

She will give a talk Thursday night at 6:30. as part of their In Conversation With... series. She will introduce some of the screenings in the retrospective. Friday morning at 11am, she will appear at the free Higher Learning event for students and faculty with ID at 11am. They will screen Opening Night, after which she will do a Q&A.

http://tiff.net/filmsandschedules/tiffbelllightbox/2011/201104150043039

Two-time Academy Award nominee Gena Rowlands, John Cassavetes’ widow and frequent star, joins us onstage for a look back at their legendary collaboration as we begin our full Cassavetes retrospective. She returns later in the night to introduce the screening of one of their key films (containing one of her greatest performances), A Woman Under the Influence, and then on Friday evening for the screening of Faces.

The program Masks and Faces: The Films of John Cassavetes presents all of his films as director (except for his last film Big Trouble which he disowned since the studio had vetoed many decisions and re-cut it). Also screening are three films in which he appears as an actor: Roman Polanski's Rosemary’s Baby, Elaine May's Mikey and Nicky, and The Dirty Dozen by Robert  Aldrich.

Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television announces new Board of Directors

Academy appoints New Board

Toronto, July 13, 2011 – The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television is pleased to announce its new Board of Directors, effective immediately. Producer Martin Katz (Prospero Pictures) is the new ACCT Chair.

The 12 new ACCT Board Members, from all areas of the film, television and digital media industries (in alphabetical order) are:

·                     ACCT Chair – Martin Katz, President, Prospero Pictures

The Montreal 60 Second Film Festival (M60) launch party

On Wednesday night at the Casa Del Popolo in Montreal, the Montreal 60 Second Film Festival, also known as M60, will hold its launch party for its 4th edition.

Registration opens at 8:30pm. The first 120 people to register will learn the secret theme of the 2011 festival. In previous years, the themes were In A Montreal Minute (2008), Deception (2009) and Adventure (2010). You can register only one film, be it yours or a friend’s. There is no online or advance registration. Any number of people can work on a given film, but only one must sign up. 

Registrants will then have one month to make the film and upload it to the festival's site or drop off a hard copy. Each submitted film will receive 1 free ticket valid for 1 screening night. Other tickets may be purchased before the screenings.

The launch party will feature door prizes, live music and some surprises. They will also hold a raffle for prizes including concert tickets from Montréal indie concert promoter Blue Skies Turn Black, film tickets from Fantasia International Film Festival + program guides, a Phonopolis gift certificate, Lawrence Restaurant gift certificate, Dépanneur Le Pick Up gift certificate, artwork by artist Julie Lequin and by Matt Forsythe, and original ceramic artwork by Lily Lanken.

29th Film Academy of the Phillipines Awards (Luna Awards) - winners

Yesterday, the Film Academy of the Philippines (FAP) held their 29th FAP Awards, also known as the Luna Awards, for the best in Filipino cinema in the year 2010. The ceremony took place at the Quezon Hall of the Quezon City Sports Club. The Luna Awards had not been held for the last two years due to budgetary constraints. This year's edition was a last-minute affair with the result that many nominees and winners did not attend the modest event, having not received their invitations in time.

The big winner was Emir which took four awards. It won for Best Picture, Director (Chito Roño), Cinematography and Editing.

Rosario, however, came away with more awards. In addition to tying for Best Cinematography, it won for Supporting Actor (Yul Suervo), Screenplay, Production Design and Musical Score.

Lorna Tolentino (Sa ‘Yo Lamang) won for Best Actress while Best Actor went to Dolphy for Father Jejemon. Best Supporting Actress was Anne Curtis for In Your Eyes.

TIFF ticket packages now on sale to the public

Previously, the Toronto International Film Festival began selling ticket packages for the 2011 festival to TIFF members and Visa card holders. Starting today, they are selling all of their ticket packages to everyone. 

If you are in any way serious about attending the festival, you would be well advised to buy your ticket package ASAP. Many of the most popular packages such as the 10-Ticket Flex Pack or the student/senior packages will sell out very quickly. Otherwise, you could be stuck paying full price for each ticket ($19.69 + fees).

The best deal is still the daytime pass, good for movies that start at 5pm or earlier. Now it is for 20 tickets rather than 25, but at $170 for 20 it works out to $8.50 per ticket (less if you're a student or senior). Over the eleven days, that averages out to 2 screenings a day, which is a very comfortable pace.

Other bargain packages include the Wavelengths pack of 5 screenings for $45. The Wavelengths program is for shorter avant-garde and experimental works and was singled out by the New York Times' Manohla Dargis for its excellence. The new Back Half pack gives you five screenings in the second half of the festival for $50.

34th Festival de Lanaudière, July 9-Aug 7

Over the next month, the 34th edition of the Festival de Lanaudière takes place in Joliette, just north and east of Montreal. It is the largest Classical music festival in Canada. The festival presents a series of intimate recitals in the historic churches of the region and performances by famous symphony orchestras at Amphithéâtre Fernand-Lindsay.

In addition to Kent Nagano and the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, Bernard Labadie with Les Violons du Roy, and Yannick Nézet-Séguin leading the Orchestre Métropolitain, former OSM conductor Charles Dutoit will be making a return to Quebec with the Philadelphia Orchestra. Next year, Yannick Nézet-Séguin takes over from Dutoit as the Principal Conductor in Philadelphia.

Soloists performing at the festival include pianists such as Alain Lefèvre, Kirill Gerstein, Arnaldo Cohen, Valentina Lisitsa, Serhiy Salov and Pascal Amoyel. Many of the concerts will feature the underappreciated music of Franz Liszt, in recognition of the bicentennial of his birth.

A series of films are projected outdoors, free of charge, on the Tuesday evenings. The films screened will be Radu Mihaileanu's Le Concert, Todd Graff's rock comedy Bandslam, Luc Dionne's L'Enfant Prodige (The Child Prodigy) and Disney's Fantasia.

Théâtre de Verdure 2011, July 8-Aug 8

For the next month, Montrealers will have the opportunity to take in free outdoor entertainment in the picturesque setting of Parc La Fontaine. There will be fifty presentations at the open amphitheatre of music, dance, theatre, poetry readings and cinema.

Free films screened during the summer are L’illusionniste (The Illusionist), Cinética, Voyage à Alger (Trip to Algiers), Amour d’un Zombi (Loves of a Zombie), Julie et Roméo, The Sacred Dancer, Sortie 67, La Dérive douce d’un enfant de Petit-Goâve (The Sweet Drifting of a Child From Petit-Goâve), La Brique Lego (The Lego Brick), Jane Birkin So French, Potiche, The King's Speech, Gratien Gélinas: un géant aux pieds d’argile (Gratien Gélinas: a Giant with Feet of Clay), New London Calling, The Socalled Film, and Incendies.

Music performances include two shows by the Orchestre Métropolitain. Yannick-Séguin conducts Russian music by Tchaikowsky and Rachmaninoff, while Alain Trudel conducts a concert featuring the winners of the 2011 Canadian Music Competition.

BITE ME! Toronto international Body Image Film & Arts Festival, July 8-10

This weekend marks the 2nd annual BITE ME! Toronto international Body Image Film & Arts Festival. Film screenings get underway this afternoon before the official Opening Night Reception and screening of Katrin Bowen's Amazon Falls.

BITE ME! Is a non profit arts, culture, media literacy and education organization. Its mission is to advance the public’s understanding of critical social justice issues pertaining to self discovery & identity through the body, representations and interpretations of body perceptions and body images. BITE ME! explores, challenges and redefines the contested “body beautiful” wrapped in our experiences of the provocative and the every day. 

15th FanTasia International Film Festival programming announced

At a press conference this morning at the Cinémathèque québécoise in Montreal, the FanTasia International Film Festival announced the programming for their 15th annual festival. FanTasia is the largest genre film festival in North America. This is its largest edition yet with over 130 feature films and around 240 shorts.

The opening night film will be Kevin Smith's Sundance hit Red State about religious fanatacism. The closing film is set to be Tory Nixey's Don't Be Afraid of the Dark. Other featured film titles include Andrew Traucki's The Reef, Jan Švankmajer's Surviving Life, Mikkel Nørgaard's Klovn (Clown), Jalmari Helander's Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale, and John Landis' Burke and Hare.

Among the Asian titles are Takashi Miike's 13 Assasins (Director's Cut), Yoshimasa Ishibashi's Milocrorze: A Love Story, Jun Tsugita's Horny House of Horror, Ryoo Seung-wan's The Unjust, Lee Joon-ik's Battlefield Heroes, Johnny To's Don't Go Breaking My Heart, Tsui Hark's Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame, Herman Yau's Ip Man: The Legend is Born and Panna Rittikrai's Bangkok Knockout.

The festival has organized a number of free panels and events. In addition to parties and receptions, they will have the master class Die Bad on Screen: Master Class with director Ryoo Seung-wan, a Women in Horror panel, the talk Robin Hardy in conversation with Richard Stanley, a Lecture on the Hammer Mythology, and an East Asian Calligraphy Workshop.

6th Polaris Music Prize - short list

Today at the Drake Hotel in Toronto, the Polaris Prize short list was announced. The long list of 40 was whittled down to 10.

To no one's surprise, Arcade Fire's The Suburbs made the cut. It has already triumphed at the Grammy Awards, The Brit Awards and the Junos.

The other bands on the short list are Austra, Braids, Destroyer, Galaxie, Hey Rosetta, Ron Sexsmith, Colin Steston, Timber Timbre and The Weeknd.

The eventual winner is selected by 227 writers across Canada and receives a $30,000 prize. The winner will be named at a gala on September 19 in Toronto.

TIFF IN THE PARK: Classic Musicals, July 6-Aug 31

Every Wednesday at sunset beginning in July, TIFF and the Toronto Entertainment District BIA present FREE outdoor screenings of classic screen musicals at David Pecaut Square (formerly Metro Square, next to Roy Thomson Hall). In addition to such family favourites as The Sound of Music, Mary Poppins and The Wizard of Oz, we are also proud to offer a sneak peek at TIFF Bell Lightbox’s epic Raj Kapoor retrospective with a screening of his classic film Jagte Raho.

Screenings start at 9:00 pm in July and 8:30 pm in August.

July 6: The Wizard of Oz
The beloved fantasy about a young girl’s journey through a strange world, accompanied by some very special friends.

July 13: The Umbrellas of Cherbourg
Catherine Deneuve stars in Jacques Demy’s delightful musical romance.

The Toronto Fringe Theatre Festival 2011, July 6-17

It's Finally Here!

The Toronto Fringe Festival officially starts July 6th, 4pm, at the Fringe Club behind Honest Ed’s. Gideon Arthurs, David Mirvish, and former Mayor of Toronto David Miller will be on hand to launch the festival in style.

Fringe Program Books have been flying off the shelves in record numbers. If you’re having trouble finding one, we recommend checking the online listings at fringetoronto.com or downloading the insanely amazing Mobile Site from NOW Magazine (iPhone, Android & Blackberry ready).

This year’s festival is all about creating a better experience for our patrons, so please, if you have a moment, fill out our patron survey, and check out some of the enhancements at the Fringe Club behind Honest Ed’s. This year we’ll be posting daily schedules to help navigate the 145 productions, and posting all free events at the Fringe Club too. While you’re here make sure not to miss the new Visual Fringe, and grab a bite from the many food vendors that will be serving over the course of the festival.

Grace Kelly: From Movie Star To Princess comes to TIFF Bell Lightbox

Grace Kelly: From Movie Star To Princess Set To Shine At TIFF Bell Lightbox This Fall

Iconic dresses, personal memorabilia of style queen come to Canada for the first time; major Hollywood Golden Age film programme to accompany the exhibition

Toronto – Following the weekend nuptials of Prince Albert of Monaco, and as Canada continues to play host to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on their first tour as a married couple, Piers Handling, CEO and Director, TIFF, and Noah Cowan, Artistic Director, TIFF Bell Lightbox, further fuelled royal fever today with the announcement that TIFF’s upcoming Fall exhibition will provide an exclusive look at the influential films and wardrobe and incredible memorabilia of one of the world’s most beloved stars. Running from November 4, 2011 to January 22, 2012 at TIFF Bell Lightbox, Grace Kelly: From Movie Star to Princess will feature rarely-displayed items and artifacts ranging from Kelly’s days as one of Hollywood’s most popular actresses to a princess of one of Europe's oldest royal families. Based on the Grimaldi Forum’s The Grace Kelly Years exhibition in Monaco, and the Victoria and Albert Museum’s Grace Kelly: Style Icon exhibition in London, TIFF Bell Lightbox is the only venue in North America to host elements from these landmark shows and to complement the exhibition with a dedicated film programme.

Many of Kelly’s original dresses, a special exhibit around an exact replica of her iconic wedding gown, her signature “Kelly bag” and tiara will star in the exhibition, along with images from her childhood scrapbooks and high school yearbooks, letters signed "Affectionately, Hitch," telegrams from Prince Rainier and her Academy Award® for The Country Girl. Kelly’s personal home movies – shot on Super 8, and featuring her famous friends and family – will provide visitors with an extremely rare glimpse into her personal life.

59th Cóndor de Plata (Silver Condor) Awards for Argentine films - winners

The Asociación de Cronistas Cinematrográficos de la Argentina (Argentine Film Critics Association) handed out the awards last night for their 59th Cóndor de Plata (Silver Condor) Awards.

The evening's main winner was Pablo Trapero's Carancho. It won Best Picture and Director, as well as prizes for Editing and Sound. This was in contrast to the Premios Sur (South Awards) given by the industry earlier in which it was shut out.

El mural (The Mural) also came away with four trophies. It won for Supporting Actress (Ana Celentano), Art Direction, Costume and Cinematography. Both Carancho and El mural had tied with 9 nominations.

La mirada invisible (The Invisible Eye) had led with 10 nominations. It won for Best Actress (Julieta Zylberberg) and Best Adapted Screenplay.

Call for submissions: Bell Media Diverse Screenwriters Program (West)

After successfully launching the Diverse Screenwriters Program earlier this year in Toronto, the Writers Guild of Canada (WGC) has expanded the program to Vancouver. The Toronto program will continue for applicants from Ontario and the Eastern part of Canada, while the Vancouver program will serve all applicants west of Ontario.

The call for submissions has now officially gone out for diverse writers who are emerging or mid-career who are from the western half of Canada. Up to eight people will be selected for the training program which involves a week-long intensive session followed by a 10-12 week mentorship with a story editor. One writer will be selected at the end of the program to receive a paid internship on a Bell Media TV series.

You must apply with an original series idea, and an original writing sample for a feature film or television. Samples for existing series are not eligible. There is no cost or fee to participate in the program. Those selected from outside Vancouver will receive a bursary to cover their travel and accommodation expenses.

Wrap-up of the 32nd edition of the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal

Diversity, originality, quantity and quality

Montreal, Tuesday, July 5, 2011 - It’s official: this 32nd edition of the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, presented by TD in collaboration with Rio Tinto Alcan, was an utterly unparalleled musical triumph. With 1001 concerts and activities, the world’s largest jazz festival filled the ears-and hearts!-of fans, drawing the admiration and enthusiasm of artists, organizers and journalists from every corner of the planet. Free outdoor mega-events, superb indoor concert programming, shows under the stars, all of it presented on 20 stages and venues, bringing us the very best of jazz and its musical cousins from 3000 artists over 10 days and nights and drawing close to 2 million visitors… We’re speechless! The Festival was the perfect stage for everything the up-and-coming generation has to offer, the ideal arena for veteran artists to test out new material, the scene of triumphant performances by young contemporary virtuosi, and a magnificent showcase for unforgettable and rare visits by many international stars and out-and-out legends.

This 32nd edition closes with a balanced budget and will go into the history books capped by several new records: unprecedented coverage by international media-including France 2, Télé-Matin, RFI (France), The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, O, The Oprah Magazine, Rolling Stone (U.S.), BBC, Downbeat Magazine (U.K.), La Tempestad (Mexico) and the Yomiuri Shimbun Newspaper (Japan); the best indoor show occupancy rate with more than 85%; record guitar sales during the 5th Montreal Guitar Show; the greatest ever box office receipts for our American cousins’ national holiday weekend; and, finally, a new sales record for hotel and lodging packages (ensuring that most of Montreal’s downtown hotels were lighting up their “No Vacancy” signs), all of it resulting in thrilled Festival fans, delighted musicians and weather that was virtually perfect for the entire 10-day run.

29th Juste pour rire (Just for Laughs) Comedy Festival, July 5-31

Just as the world's largest jazz festival comes to a close in Montreal, the world's largest comedy festival kicks off. The 29th Juste pour rire (Just for Laughs) Comedy Festival. Featured performers include Russell Peters, John Oliver, Craig Ferguson, Daniel Tosh, Louis CK, Danny Bhoy, Jimmy Carr, Eddie Izzard, Eric Stonestreet, Kevin Smith, and Jeffrey Ross.

Tonight's programming begins with shows by Le Petit Roy and Les Fourberies de Scapin. English-language shows begin next week on Monday, July 11.

In addition to the impressive line-up of shows, the festival hosts a conference from July 27-30. It features panels, speeches, discussions, the Comedy Bootcamp for film, networking events and receptions. Participants include Andy Kindler, David Mirkin, Louis C.K., Richard Crouse, Rob Corddry, Steven Levitan, Colin Quinn and Kevin Smith.

Juste pour rire also hosts an adjoining film festival which runs from July 24 to 30. Features include Jonathan Sobol's A Beginner's Guide to Endings, Steve Skrovan's Fred & Vinnie and the world premiere of Warren Sonoda's Servitude. Documentaries include the world premiere of Albert Nerenberg's Rire Extrême. There are several short film programs as well. Many of the directors will be in attendance to introduce the films and follow with Question & Answer sessions.

Call for submissions: Telefilm Canada Features Comedy Lab

The Canadian Film Centre (CFC) has put out a call for their Telefilm Canada Features Comedy Lab which they run in collaboration with the Juste pour rire (Just for Laughs) Comedy Festival.

The program will select up to 5 producers or filmmaking teams to participate in the program to develop a comedy feature film. Writers and directors cannot apply directly, but participate in the training. Producers may apply with up to two projects.

The training is divided into two modules. The first takes place in Toronto from November 14-18. The second module takes place in Los Angeles in March. Last year's Los Angeles mentors included filmmakers from comedies such as The Hangover, Little Miss Sunshine, Zoolander, Elf, Legally Blonde, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle and There's Something About Mary.

Participants also become eligible for up to $75,000 financing through Telefilm. Selected filmmakers pay no fee to participate in the program.

1st annual Mascara & Popcorn Festival, July 4-11

Mascara & Popcorn is a week-long festival making its debut in July 2011, uniting independent filmmakers and artists alike in the hopes that it will impact communities in a positive and creative way and inspire underground filmmakers and artists to express themselves in an atmosphere they feel is right for them. Mascara & Popcorn is in fact an indie film festival as well as a unique cultural happening that encourages experimental, thought-provoking, subversive art.

With a visual and atmospheric blend of cult classic movie trailers, posters, memorabilia, post-modern horror, homages to grindhouse, eccentric makeup artists and stylists, psychedelic painters, singers, burlesque and fetische performers and a mix of punk, disco, funk, retro electro, new wave and electronica, all offering the perfect setting for participants who in return, will have the freedom to present pretty much anything they deem fit for the event.

The festival runs for a week at various venues. Many of the events are free.