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Lights, camera, action...

Firdaus Ali

Preparations for the 25th Toronto International Film Festival are already underway and fest enthusiasts are partying as if September has already arrived, we hear.

Come September and several Hollywood actors, directors and wannabes will be seen descending on Toronto to take part in the event, including various film screenings, previews and mega shows.

"The events and activities will celebrate the remarkable dedication and discerning taste of festival-goers and the festival's past programming success," stated a press release issued by the organizers.

The organizers for the festival, to be held between September 7 and 16, recently held a gala reception in Toronto to announce how it would spend a $ 1.5 million celebrating its 25th anniversary. The listed programs included free films and designer shorts.

"We want to mark the occasion of our 25th by paying tribute to our founders, the most enthusiastic audiences in the world, the filmmakers, studios, and distributors who have supported us over the years," said Piers Handling, director of the Toronto International Film Festival Group.

He also announced the first four initiatives to commemorate the Festival's 25th anniversary, which include: free screenings in August in theatres across Toronto, a filmmaker tribute, 10 preludes by Canadian filmmakers, and a new publication.

The segment 'Free Screenings of People's Choice Award-Winning Films' is to thank the supportive Toronto audiences, who have made the festival what it is today. This segment will include an array of 22 films from1978 to the present.

Films like Girl Friends to last year's sensational American Beauty are to be screened free of charge between August 25-31 at several Toronto indoor and outdoor theatres.

The 'International Filmmaker Tribute' segment will honour an international filmmaker and acknowledge the impact this filmmaker has had on the world of cinema. It will include a tribute to them and a formal dinner. Special guests will be invited to pay homage to those honoured throughout the evening.

The Ten Preludes by Canadian Filmmakers is a theme at the fest in partnership with Telefilm Canada, award-winning producer Niv Fichman (The Red Violin), and some of Canada's eminent filmmakers. The festival will produce 10 original short films that will premiere at next year's festival.

Filmmakers Denys Arcand, David Cronenberg, Atom Egoyan, Guy Maddin, Patricia Rozema, Michael Snow, and Anne Wheeler, will each direct a 'prelude' to mark the 25th anniversary of the Festival. Each 'prelude' will be approximately four minutes in length and will screen before the gala presentations and at public screenings the following day.

The program for the preludes is based on an idea borrowed from the 50th anniversary of the Cannes Film Festival.

A summer-long series of great films, including: The Arabian Nights, The Bicycle Thief, La Dolce Vita, Jules Et Jim, In The Realm Of The Senses and The Seven Samurai will screen as part of the concurrent 10th anniversary celebration of the organisers' sister organization, Cinematheque Ontario.

The Big Picture, A book by Brian D Johnson in partnership with Random House of Canada is also to be released on the occasion. Johnson is a film critic and senior entertainment writer at Maclean's and the book celebrates and captures the festival's 25 years. It features numerous photographs and fresh interviews with the stars and directors who have made it a success.

The Toronto fest has succeeded beyond the wildest dreams of its founders, Bill Marshall, Henk van der Kolk and Dusty Cohl, who began what was then known as the Festival of Festivals in 1976. Originally intended as simply a showcase for the best of other film festivals, it now even challenges Cannes as the most important festival on the globe.

From a small budget event, it now has annual outlay of $ seven million (not including the $ 1.5 million extra being spent on the anniversary). Most of this comes from sponsors in the private sector. The films and their fans generate $ 30 million annually for Toronto.

Fest organizers want the festival to remain non-competitive (its few prizes are all informal) and to showcase everything from the hottest Oscar contenders to the not-ready-for-prime-time fringe films.

Handling admitted that it was getting harder to keep Hollywood movies and stars from overwhelming the work of filmmakers from Canada, Europe, Africa and other countries.

In recent times, huge numbers of people from Hollywood have been visiting the festival after the American film industry began realising its potential in pushing movies into the upper bracket.

This year's festival is likely to have even more Academy Award contenders than usual because last year's People's Choice winner, American Beauty went on to win the Oscars for best picture, director, actor, cinematographer and original screenwriter.

But the fest still remains a haven for independent filmmakers, as one small piece of festival trivia shows. The filmmaker with the most new movies at the fest over the past 25 years is veteran fringe filmmaker Mike Hoolboom, who has unveiled 15 features and shorts there.

"When the festival began in 1976, it was an upstart..., created by a trio of dedicated and energetic founders. Over the years it has grown and matured into one of the most important festivals in the world," said Handling.

No wonder, all of Toronto is waiting for September.

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