2015 Toronto International Film Festival Reveals First Round of Galas, Special Presentations

Featuring World Premieres from filmmakers including Michael Moore, Ridley Scott, Deepa Mehta, Meghna Gulzar, Stephen Frears, Rebecca Miller and many more

Piers Handling, CEO and Director of TIFF, and Cameron Bailey, Artistic Director of the Toronto International Film Festival, announced the first round of titles premiering in the Galas and Special Presentations programmes of the 40th Toronto International Film Festival®.

Of the 15 Galas and 34 Special Presentations announced, this initial lineup includes films from such acclaimed directors as Ridley Scott, Michael Moore, Deepa Mehta, Lenny Abrahamson, Brian Helgeland, Charlie Kaufman and Duke Johnson, Jason Bateman, Cary Fukunaga, Catherine Corsini, Stephen Frears, Tom Hooper, Hany Abu-Assad, Meghna Gulzar, Terence Davies, Jonás Cuarón, Julie Delpy, Rebecca Miller and Johnnie To.

“We are celebrating our 40th anniversary in 2015 and this first round of films offers a taste of the incredible lineup at this year’s Festival,” said Handling. “Made by both established and emerging filmmakers from around the world, these films offer a global snapshot of our times.”

2015 MTV Video Music Awards – nominations

The 2015 MTV Video Music Awards nominations are here — so get voting!

The list for the show, airing Sunday, August 30 at 9 p.m. ET/PT — and hosted by Miley Cyrus — is led by Taylor Swift, who is up for nine Moonmen. Following Taylor, pal Ed Sheeran has six noms and is competing against her for the coveted Video of the Year category. We doubt there will be any bad blood, though.

The nominations were announced on Apple’s Beats 1 radio show today. Check out the full list below and start voting now.

The 2015 MTV Video Music Awards will air live from L.A.’s Microsoft Theater at 9 p.m. ET, on Sunday, August 30.

Polaris Music Prize announces 2015 short list

The 2015 Polaris Music Prize Short List was revealed this morning at The Carlu in Toronto.

Caribou (2008, 2010, 2015) and Drake (2012, 2014, 2015) now join Metric (2006, 2009, 2013), Shad (2008, 2010, 2014) and Owen Pallett (2006, 2010, 2014) as the only acts to be nominated for the Short List on three separate occasions. This is second time Braids (2011, 2015) and The New Pornographers (2006, 2015) have made the Short List. Alvvays, BADBADNOTGOOD, Jennifer Castle, Tobias Jesso Jr., Buffy Sainte-Marie and Viet Cong are all first-time nominees.

Call for submissions: Doc Circuit Montreal One-on-One Pitches for Emerging Filmmakers

Doc Circuit Montreal is proud to announce the fifth edition of the One-on-One Pitches for Emerging Filmmakers on Wednesday, October 7, 2015. Ten up-and-coming filmmakers will have the opportunity to meet ten established producers during a full-day event dedicated to documentary pitches. Doc Circuit Montreal is committed to offering a new generation of directors the opportunity to enhance their pitching skills and directly present their projects to film and television producers.

A networking and proposal activity, One-on-One Pitches for Emerging Filmmakers is designed to encourage the formation of new business partnerships and spark intergenerational discussions about the challenges, issues and changes facing the documentary industry. Filmmakers interested in participating have until September 15, 2015 to submit a project.

The Toronto International Film Festival Names Its Inaugural Platform Jury

The Toronto International Film Festival today announced the inaugural jury for Platform, the new programme to champion directors’ cinema from around the world. This year, the three-person international jury is composed of acclaimed filmmakers Jia Zhang-ke, Claire Denis and Agnieszka Holland. Together, they will award a prize of $25,000 to the best film in the programme, to be announced at the Awards Ceremony on September 20, 2015.

“We have a long history with Zhang-ke, Claire and Agnieszka. They are master filmmakers with unique voices that we have championed throughout the years, both at the Festival and in our year-round programming,” said Piers Handling, Director and CEO of TIFF. “We are honoured to welcome them back to Toronto on our 40th anniversary as we celebrate our renewed commitment to artistically ambitious filmmaking with Platform.”

“Platform is our new home for original, personal filmmaking and this is our dream jury," said Cameron Bailey, Artistic Director of the Toronto International Film Festival. “We are thankful to these visionary filmmakers for making the time to join us this September. We can’t wait for the conversations they’ll have about the Platform films.”

Saluting Vittorio De Sica

The films of neo-realist pioneer, Vittorio De Sica, are being celebrated this summer at an exhibition taking place at Toronto's Italian Cultural Institute.  Last night marked the North American premiere of Tutti De Sica, presented in collaboration with TIFF Cinematheque and curated by Italian-Canadian artist Mimmo Baronello.

The 59 photographs, two video stations, a projection of De Sica's signature film, The Bicycle Thief, and the bicycle used in that film amount to a scaled-down version of an exhibit presented in Rome at Ara Pacis in 2013. (Actually, the bicycle was missing during last night's opening, courtesy of Canada Customs which has held it up. It will be in the exhibit as of today.)

TIFF Celebrates its 40th Anniversary with Slate of Free Programming

TIFF thanks audiences for 40 years of support with 40 free films including a screening of Vertigo with a live score co-presented with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, crowd-sourced screenings and a free exhibition celebrating film fans

Piers Handling, Director & CEO of TIFF, tonight announced special programming taking place during the 2015 summer and fall seasons in celebration of the organization’s 40th anniversary. The announcements were made at a free community party held in David Pecaut Square in downtown Toronto, prior to this season’s first TIFF in the Park event, a screening of the 1992 Toronto International Film Festival People's Choice Award–winner Strictly Ballroom.

“The free programming we’re offering will revisit and commemorate TIFF’s history, and allow us to thank our audiences for their dedication and support over the last four decades,” said Handling. “This is a milestone year for the organization. Not only are we looking back and celebrating 40 years of bringing the world to Toronto, but we’re looking ahead to the next 40 years, with a focus on taking our programming to cultural centres around the world.”