Although these days I am more focused on other pursuits, at one point in my life there was nothing I loved more than the cinema. I worked at a movie theatre on and off for six years, and I even went to university for film studies, working (briefly) in the Toronto film industry upon graduation.
One thing that was always sorely lacking in Canada was a viable distribution model for our films. Not to put too fine a point on it, but most films shown in Canada are American. That’s just the way it is. Sometimes a Cronenberg or a Egoyan film would slip through, much to the surprise of everyone involved, but generally speaking, American films dominate Canadian screens.
There are several people trying to change that. One such organization is the Canadian Film Festival. The festival is currently running in Toronto, and continues tonight an tomorrow.
From their site:
The Canadian Filmmakers Festival is a non-profit organization devoted to the celebration, promotion and advancement of Canadian filmmaking talent.
By exclusively featuring Canadian films, its goal is to provide filmmakers with valuable showcasing and networking opportunities and to offer the public homegrown productions to view and enjoy.
Held annually in downtown Toronto theatre locations the festival showcases short and feature films and also includes opening and closing galas, parties, panels and other meet-and-greet sessions.
I probably will not have an opportunity to attend the festival this year, but if you are in the Toronto area, and want to support some homegrown talent, you probably can’t do much better than this. Check out their site for full schedule and other information.
