Toronto International Film Festival is encouraging young filmmakers and cinephiles to take part in its two new film festivals, the TIFF Kids International Film Festival and the TIFF Next Wave Film Festival, both happening this Spring at TIFF Bell Lightbox. Running from April 10 through 22, 2012, the TIFF Kids International Film Festival will celebrate special programming and activities for children aged 3 to 13. The TIFF Next Wave Film Festival runs May 10 through 12, 2012 and connects with youth aged 14 to 18 with programming aimed at a teen audience.

Entering its 11th year, the Jump Cuts Young Filmmakers programme engages Ontario’s young people and gives emerging directors the opportunity to see their work on the big screen. The TIFF Kids International Film Festival Jump Cuts competition is open to young filmmakers in two categories: grades 3 to 6 and grades 7 to 8.The submission deadline is March 5, 2012 and entries can be submitted via tiff.net/tiffkids. The TIFF Next Wave Film Festival Jump Cuts competition is open to amateur filmmakers in grades 9 through 12. The submission deadline is March 19, 2012 and entries can be submitted via tiff.net/nextwave/jumpcuts.

The TIFF Kids International Film Festival is also looking for young cinephiles to participate on their young people’s juries. The jurors actively discuss the films they see and work collaboratively to reach consensus on determining the Festival winners. TIFF Kids jurors attend the Festival for free and watch films in special reserved jury seating, all while enjoying complimentary popcorn and drinks. Winners of the internationally recognized awards will be announced at the end of the Festival. To apply for a place on the juries, young film fans aged 8 to12 must write a short review (100 to 250 words) of a movie they either particularly enjoyed or did not like. The official Jury Entry Form can be found on the TIFF Kids website. All reviews must be received by February 10, 2012.