The 2019 Toronto International Film Festival unveiled today its In Conversation With… lineup featuring five remarkable, multi-talented industry heavyweights. This year’s lineup stands out for the richness and diversity of the experiences that these accomplished artists will share with Festival goers.
The Toronto International Film Festival celebrates diversity with 35 international short films rounding out its Short Cuts lineup. Program highlights include the North American premiere of Nimic, a drama by Yorgos Lanthimos starring Matt Dillon as a professional cellist whose life takes a very strange turn. Two more films by celebrated directors — whose recent features have also played the Festival — are Yona Rozenkier’s Butterflies, a warm and moving snapshot of one family’s encounter with the natural world, and Teemu Nikki’s All Inclusive, the story of a bullied man who gets a mysterious chance to even the score.
An irreplaceable filmmaker’s final feature, a look at the future of our seas, and a retelling of an important Inuk story are among five unique and inspiring Special Events featured at this year’s 2019 Toronto International Film Festival.
The 2019 Toronto International Film Festival highlights the works of Indigenous filmmakers and artists, from veteran Alanis Obomsawin (Abenaki), who comes to TIFF with the provocative and emotional Jordan River Anderson, The Messenger, to relative newcomer Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers (Sámi/Blackfoot/Blood), with The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open.
Director Mati Diop has received the honor of being the inaugural recipient of the Mary Pickford Award supported by MGM, to be presented at the TIFF Tribute Gala on Monday, September 9 at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival. The award, named in honor of Toronto native Mary Pickford, recognizes an emerging female talent who is making groundbreaking strides in the industry. Pickford was the pioneering actor, producer, and Co-Founder of United Artists, and the award is being launched in conjunction with United Artists’ centennial this year. The creation of the award follows TIFF’s continued commitment to championing women and diverse voices in front of and behind the camera.
Pedro Almodóvar’s Pain and Glory will open the Miami Film Festival’s fall season extension, Miami Film Festival GEMS 2019, scheduled for October 10 to 13, at MDC’s Tower Theater Miami.
The European Film Academy announced the 46 films on this year’s EFA Feature Film Selection, the list of feature-length fiction films recommended for a nomination for the European Film Awards 2019. With 31 European countries represented, the list illustrates the great diversity in European cinema.
The international premiere of the film The Song of Names, starring Tim Roth, Catherine McCormack and Clive Owen, will close the Official Selection at San Sebastian Festival’s 67th edition, out of competition, on September 28. The Canadian François Girard, screenwriter of Le violon rouge (The Red Violin, 1998), Silk (Soie, 2007) and Boychoir (2014), directs this drama set against a historical and musical backdrop, with a soundtrack by Howard Shore.
Film at Lincoln Center announced its holiday series, a career-spanning retrospective of Agnès Varda, the most comprehensive survey to date of the late filmmaker’s vast canon, opening December 20 and presented in partnership with Janus Films.
Costa-Gavras, a French filmmaker of Greek origin, will receive the second Donostia Award at the 67th edition of the San Sebastian Festival which, with this distinction, applauds the militant cinema of the author of movies including Z, Missing and Capital, with which he competed for the Golden Shell in 2012.
For its 15th edition, the Camden International Film Festival (CIFF) which will take place September 12-15, 2019 throughout Camden, Rockport and Rockland, Maine, will present 38 features, 50 short films, and 16 virtual reality and immersive experiences from over 35 countries. More than half of the feature films are presented as major premieres, including the US Premiere of Alex Gibney’s Citizen K.
Writer-director Miles Doleac (Demons, Hallowed Ground) is in production on his latest film, The Dinner Party, described as a wickedly delish slice of horror that’s part Guto Parente’s The Cannibal Club, part Mother, and all scares!