The 34th Vancouver International Film Festival will run from September 24th to October 9th, 2015 with John Crowley’s Brooklyn starting the festival off in the Opening Night Gala spot. With scripting by Nick Hornby (Wild, An Education), this 50s-era immigration film is an exhilarating tale of female empowerment. Marc Abraham’s I Saw the Light holds the Closing Night Gala position with a feature on the life of country star Hank Williams. Produced by Vancouver’s Bron Studios, this film reflects the best in BC’s ongoing production boom. Canadian productions remain front and centre when Philippe Falardeau’s My Internship in Canada opens the Canadian Images program, while Patricia Rozema’s Into the Forest takes the BC Spotlight Awards Gala spot.
The complete list of films in the Gala and Special Presentation categories include:
Opening Gala
Brooklyn
(JOHN CROWLEY, UK/IRELAND/CANADA)
Lured from Ireland by the American Dream, Eilis (Saoirse Ronan) instead lands in a hardscrabble reality of cramped boarding houses and grungy dancehalls. As homesickness grips her, she’s also torn between two admirers (Domhnall Gleeson and Emory Cohen). With Nick Hornby scripting, John Crowley crafts a stirring 50s-era immigration tale that also serves as an exhilarating profile of female empowerment. “Classily and classically crafted in the best sense.” —
Hollywood Reporter
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=2&v=15syDwC000k
Closing Gala
I Saw the Light
(MARC ABRAHAM, USA)
Having played gods and monsters with aplomb, Tom Hiddleston takes centre stage as country music legend/renegade Hank Williams. In turns as rambunctious as a barn dance and as reflective as a ballad, Marc Abraham’s film chronicles Williams’ rapid ascent to stardom and the tragedy of a career cut short by substance abuse. Laid to rest at only 29, Williams left behind a truly remarkable body of work. Handling the singing chores himself, Hiddleston does the man—and his music—proud.
Canadian Images Opening Film
My Internship in Canada
(PHILIPPE FALARDEAU, CANADA)
Philippe Falardeau (Monsieur Lazhar) returns with an energetic, laugh-out-loud political comedy that couldn’t be more timely. Steve Guibord (Patrick Huard, brilliant) is an independent Quebec MP travelling to his northern riding with a new Haitian intern. Soon after finding themselves caught in the crossfire of activists, miners, truckers, politicians and aboriginal groups, it turns out that Guibord somehow holds the decisive vote in a national debate that will decide whether Canada will go to war in the Middle East! The fabulous Suzanne Clément co-stars.
BC Spotlight Awards Gala
Into the Forest
(PATRICIA ROZEMA, CANADA)
The BC coastal forest is in all its glory as a father and his two daughters drive off to their remote and idyllic getaway home. They have little sense at first of the growing apocalypse that they are leaving in their wake. It will come to them. Ellen Page, Evan Rachel Wood, Max Minghella, Callum Keith Rennie and Michael Eklund star in this Patricia Rozema-directed adaptation of Jean Hegland’s novel.
Spotlight Gala
Beeba Boys
(DEEPA MEHTA, CANADA/INDIA)
Mix propulsive bhangra beats, blazing AK-47s, bespoke suits, solicitous mothers and copious cocaine, and you have the heady, volatile cocktail that is Deepa Mehta’s latest film, an explosive clash of culture and crime. Jeet Johar (Indian star Randeep Hooda) and his young, charismatic Sikh crew vie to take over the Vancouver drug and arms trade in this all-out action/drama. Blood is spilled, heads are cracked, hearts are broken and family bonds are pushed to the brink.
Special Presentations
Arabian Nights
(MIGUEL GOMES, PORTUGAL)
Miguel Gomes’ (Tabu, Our Beloved Month of August) astonishing three-volume, six-hour epic draws inspiration from the tales of Scheherazade (here played by Crista Alfaiate) and once again uses a fascinating combination of reality and fiction to comment on Portugal’s past, present and future. “There’s Bunuelian satire, lo-fi crime, Brechtian allegory, and high fantasy all in the mix. It’s dizzying stuff… a film that’s moving, sad, exciting, fiery, and funny.” — Indiewire
Dheepan
(JACQUES AUDIARD, FRANCE)
Jacques Audiard’s (A Prophet, Rust and Bone) latest dramatic inquiry into life on society’s margins is an alternately gripping and tender love story about the eponymous former Tamil fighter (Antonythasan Jesuthasan) and his improvised family, who exchange war in Sri Lanka for violence of another kind in Paris. “A searing yet hopeful slow-burn drama… Audiard delivers another distinctive [work] with this portrait of a family forged out of necessity…” — Hollywood Reporter Palme d’Or, Cannes 15
High-Rise
(BEN WHEATLEY, UK)
Ben Wheatley’s bold adaptation of JG Ballard’s novel takes no prisoners. This scorching satire on class, hedonism and depravity in an imploding luxury apartment building is an even more apocalyptic class polemic than Snowpiercer. Throw in exquisitely unsettling turns from Tom Hiddleston and Jeremy Irons, a string quartet cover of ABBA’s 1975 hit “SOS,” an orgy or two and spice with cannibalism, and you have a tour de force of astonishing architectural ambition.
Ingrid Bergman: In Her Own Words
(STIG BJÖRKMAN, SWEDEN), CANADIAN PREMIERE
Casablanca, Notorious, Voyage to Italy… That Ingrid Bergman, three-time Oscar winner, is one of filmdom’s all-time greats is inarguable. Narrated by Swedish (and now Hollywood) star Alicia Vikander, Stig Björkman’s intimate exploration of Bergman’s personal and professional life benefits immensely from the cooperation of Bergman’s daughter Isabella Rossellini, who allowed him access to never-before-seen private footage, notes, letters, diaries and interviews. The result is a rich and multicoloured portrait of this extraordinary human being—in her own words.
Louder Than Bombs
(JOACHIM TRIER, USA/FRANCE)
When a war photographer (Isabelle Huppert) dies on assignment, her husband (Gabriel Byrne) struggles to mount a retrospective while dealing with his grieving sons (Jesse Eisenberg, Devin Druid) and her combative colleague (David Strathairn). Joachim Trier (Oslo, 31st August) poses tough questions about family, marital responsibility and balancing one’s calling and kin. “A smart, measured tale steeped in understatement and complimented by first-rate performances…” — Indiewire
Room
(LENNY ABRAHAMSON, IRELAND/CANADA/UK)
Directed by Lenny Abrahamson and based on the best-selling Man Booker Prize-nominated novel by Irish-Canadian author Emma Donoghue, this is the story of five-year old Jack, who lives in an 11-by-11-foot room with his mother. Since it’s all he’s ever known, Jack believes that only “Room” and the things it contains (including himself and Ma) are real. Then reality intrudes and Jack’s life is turned on its head… A remarkable and disturbing work.
A Tale of Three Cities
(MABEL CHEUNG, HONG KONG/CHINA)
A rousingly entertaining movie romance, this historical drama tells the deeply moving story of kung fu superstar Jackie Chan’s parents. Both grew up in China’s tumultuous 20th century, swept by war, revolution and resistance. When charismatic customs officer Fang (Lau Ching-wan) meets impoverished young widow Chen (Tang Wei), an unbreakable bond is forged. Together, their love endures through extraordinary adventures, as they head towards a future in Hong Kong.
This Changes Everything
(AVI LEWIS, CANADA)
Naomi Klein (Shock Doctrine) has risen to prominence around the world as one of Canada’s most forceful and relevant public intellectuals. Her cogent call to direct action has inspired youth, helped chart roadmaps for social progressives and environmentalists, and yet worried those who believe that her critique of capitalism plays into the hands of right wingers who think climate change is a socialist plot. Join us, Naomi Klein and director Avi Lewis for this special presentation of This Changes Everything.
Youth
(PAOLO SORRENTINO, ITALY/FRANCE/SWITZERLAND/UK)
Michael Caine, Harvey Keitel and Rachel Weisz anchor Paolo Sorrentino’s gorgeous follow-up to The Great Beauty. Fred (Caine), a retired composer, and friend Mick (Keitel), a film director, are sojourning in a stunning Swiss alpine spa. Surrounded by bodies old and young, supple and sagging, they reconsider their pasts–while Sorrentino choreographs the action with exquisite control. “Sorrentino’s… brightly effusive visual imagination can be intoxicating…” — New York Times
Canadian Images Special Presentations
Hyena Road
(PAUL GROSS, CANADA)
In Paul Gross’ film, ripped from the headlines, a sniper, who has never allowed himself to think of his targets as human, becomes implicated in the life of one of them. An intelligence officer, who has never contemplated killing, becomes the engine of a plot to kill. A legendary Mujahideen warrior, who had put war behind him, is now deeply involved. Three different men, three different worlds, three different conflicts, yet all stand at the intersection of modern warfare.
Remember
(ATOM EGOYAN, CANADA)
Atom Egoyan returns with a completely original take on the darkest chapter of horror in the last century. Christopher Plummer plays a man who’s looking for the person who might be responsible for wiping out his family, as he strains to seize the evanescent memories of long-ago brutality. The all-star cast includes Henry Czerny, Martin Landau and Bruno Ganz. Benjamin August’s screenplay will keep you guessing until the very end.
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REVERSION, written and directed by Jose Nestor Marquez, and opening theatrically on October 9, has released a new Trailer and poster. The film stars Aja Naomi King (How to Get Away With Murder), Colm Feore (Gotham, The Chronicles of Riddick), Gary Dourdan (CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Being Mary Jane) and Jeanette Samano (ISA, Speechless).
REVERSION centers on Sophie Clé (Aja Naomi King), a delighted user of the Oubli, a wisp of high-tech jewelry that wraps behind the ear and uses neuroscience to help its users experience their most joyful memories as if they were happening for the first time. In addition to being the head of marketing for the company that makes this revolutionary memory-enhancing wearable device, she is also the daughter of its inventor, Jack Clé (Colm Feore).
Sophie’s most joyful memory is the last day she saw her mother alive, fifteen years earlier. But on the eve of the Oubli’s worldwide launch, a stranger named Isa (Jeanette Samano) kidnaps Sophie, setting off a chain of events that remind us all, you can’t escape what you can’t forget.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgrqlTb5SZM
Ten nonfiction short films were announced today as finalists for the 
The Film Society of Lincoln Center will co-host a 
Following its well-received World Premiere at this year’s 
The 27th NewFest will run October 22 to 27 at the newly renovated Bow Tie Chelsea Cinemas, and today announced the lineup of nearly 100 LGBT films around the world. Opening night is the New York premiere of legendary filmmaker Peter Greenaway’s EISENSTEIN IN GUANAJUATO (pictured above), a visually stunning, sexually explicit celebration of pioneering Russian filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein’s gay coming of age during a trip to Mexico in the 1930s. The cinematic masterpiece, which had its world premiere to wide acclaim at the Berlinale this year, has been hailed as one of the finest films of Greenaway’s long, illustrious career.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fb364B6u1XE
Closing out the 
US producer Steve Golin will be the recipient of the 2015 
The 2015 Toronto International Film Festival today announced award winners, and Room (pictured above) by Lenny Abrahamson is the winner of the Grolsch People’s Choice Award. Told through the eyes of five-year-old-Jack, Room is a thrilling and emotional tale that celebrates the resilience and power of the human spirit. To Jack, the Room is the world…it’s where he was born, where he and his Ma eat and sleep and play and learn. But while it’s home to Jack, to Ma it’s a prison. Through her fierce love for her son, Ma has managed to create a childhood for him in their 10-by-10-foot space. But as Jack’s curiosity is building alongside Ma’s own desperation — she knows that Room cannot contain either indefinitely. The second runner up is Tom McCarthy’s Spotlight. The first runner up is Pan Nalin’s Angry Indian Goddesses.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_Ci-pAL4eE
The Grolsch People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award went to Ilya Naishuller for Hardcore. Resurrected with no recollection of his past, a cyborg named Henry and his ally Jimmy must fight through the streets of Moscow in pursuit of Henry’s kidnapped wife, in the world’s first action-adventure film to be entirely shot from the first person perspective. The second runner up is Jeremy Saulnier for Green Room. The first runner up is Todd Strauss-Schulson for The Final Girls.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wv33e0TyL6M
The Grolsch People’s Choice Documentary Award went to Evgeny Afineevsky for Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight For Freedom. Chronicling events that unfolded over 93 days in 2013 and 2014, the film witnesses the formation of a new civil rights movement in Ukraine. What started as peaceful student demonstrations supporting European integration morphed into a full-fledged violent revolution calling for the resignation of the nation’s president. The second runner up is Brian D. Johnson’s Al Purdy Was Here. The first runner up is Avi Lewis’s This Changes Everything.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RibAQHeDia8
SHORTS CUTS AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN SHORT FILM
The Shorts Cuts Award for Best Canadian Short Film went to Patrice Laliberté for Overpass. The jury remarked, “For its seductive, elliptical and graceful manner of exploring the nature of grief and the unconventional ways that families react to loss, all of which was elevated by the performance of Téo Vachon Sincennes.”
The jury gave an honorable mention to Sol Friedman’s Bacon & God’s Wrath, “For its whimsical and wry examination of religious conviction and intellectual conversion, and the acknowledgment that courage and transformation can be achieved at any age and involve any manner of pork by-product.”
SHORT CUTS AWARD FOR BEST SHORT FILM
The Short Cuts Award for Best Short Film goes to Maïmouna Doucouré’s Maman(s). The jury remarked, “For its daring and revelatory exploration of a family’s dysfunction and upheaval through the eyes of a child and its refusal to cast characters as villains but rather as complex, and highly conflicted, human beings the jury selects Maman(s). The jury also wanted to acknowledge the vulnerable, defiant performance of the gifted Sokhna Diallo.”
The jury gave an honorable mention to Fyzal Boulifa’s Rate Me, “For its blithely unconventional approach to new media and new mores, and a sense of humor as wry as it was rude.”
CITY OF TORONTO AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN FIRST FEATURE FILM
The City of Toronto Award for Best Canadian First Feature Film goes to for Andrew Cividino’s Sleeping Giant. The jury remarked, “For its sophisticated plotting, indelible characters and insightful critique of masculinity through a fateful rite of passage on the north shore of Lake Superior, the jury selects Sleeping Giant.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A25lvWI4mc
CANADA GOOSE AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN FEATURE FILM
The Canada Goose Award for Best Canadian Feature Film goes to Stephen Dunn’s Closet Monster. The jury remarked, “For its confidence and invention in tackling the pain and yearning of the first love and coming of age of a young gay man in Newfoundland, the jury recognizes the remarkable artistry and vision of first-time feature director Stephen Dunn for Closet Monster.” This award carries a cash prize of $30,000 and a custom award, sponsored by Canada Goose.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSLEI55SS5s
The jury gave an honorable mention to Philippe Falardeau’s My Internship in Canada, “For its dexterous intelligence and cinematic wit.”
THE PRIZES OF THE INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF FILM CRITICS (FIPRESCI PRIZES)
Prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) for the Discovery program is awarded to Marko Škop for Eva Nová. The jury remarked, “For exploring themes of humanity, dignity, addiction and redemption in a naturalistic, deceptively simple and non-exploitative manner, FIPRESCI is pleased to present the prize in the Discovery program to Marko Škop’s haunting debut feature Eva Nová.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BaWGVaslcQ
Prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) for Special Presentations is awarded to Jonás Cuarón’s Desierto. The jury remarked, “For using pure cinema to create a strong physical sensation of being trapped in a vast space and hunted down by hatred in its most primal form, FIPRESCI presents the prize in the Special Presentations program to Desierto by Jonás Cuarón.”
NETPAC AWARD
As selected by a jury from the Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema for the 4th consecutive year, the NETPAC Award for World or International Asian Film Premiere goes to Sion Sono for The Whispering Star. The jury remarked, “For its poetic, moving and brave attempt to express a grief that’s inexpressible, combining all too real elements with lo-fi sci-fi, the NETPAC jury awards the prize to The Whispering Star.”
TORONTO PLATFORM PRIZE
This is the inaugural year for Platform, the Festival’s new juried program that champions director’s cinema from around the world. The Festival awarded the first ever Toronto Platform Prize to Alan Zweig for HURT. The jury remarked, “Following a long discussion, the jury has chosen unanimously to give the Platform prize to HURT. It is a film that explores the complexity and fragility of human destiny in a country that much of the world sees as a paradise.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDLhsxNp8m4
The jury gave honorable mentions to Gabriel Mascaro’s Neon Bull, He Ping’s The Promised Land, and Pablo Trapero’s The Clan.
DROPBOX DISCOVERY PROGRAMME FILMMAKERS AWARD
Earlier in the Festival, the winner of the Dropbox Discovery Program Filmmakers Award was announced. The award went to Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah whose film, Black, was presented as part of the Discovery program.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qthmdtzPkL8
Polish director Marcin Wrona was 
SPOTLIGHT will be the Saturday Centerpiece Film and CAROL will be the Sunday Centerpiece Film for the 23rd Hamptons International Film Festival (
The 2015 Hamptons International Film Festival (HIFF) will honor Emily Blunt, iconic independent film production company Killer Films (celebrating its 20th anniversary), legendary documentary filmmaker Albert Maysles (receiving a posthumous tribute), and longtime HIFF board chairman Stuart Match Suna, at its inaugural Awards Dinner to take place in East Hampton on Sunday, October 11, 2015. The Dinner, which will take place during the