Local Films Premiering on International Stage
Four Nova Scotia films will be in the spotlight at this year's Toronto International Film Festival, one of the film world's most highly regarded events, Sept. 8-17.
Two feature-length films from Nova Scotia -- Thom Fitzgerald's 3 Needles and Camelia Frieberg's Whole New Thing -- are celebrating their world premiers at the festival. Two other Nova Scotia entries are short films -- Shandi Mitchell's Tell Me and Andrea Dorfman's There's a Flower in My Pedal.
"We are proud of Nova Scotia's talented filmmakers and pleased to have contributed financial assistance through our programs," said Ann MacKenzie, CEO of the Nova Scotia Film Development Corporation. "Congratulations Thom, Camelia, Shandi, and Andrea, we wish you the best of luck at the festival."
Thom Fitzgerald's 3 Needles will be screened as part of the festival's special presentations component, which showcases high-profile films featuring major stars and directors. Written, produced and directed by Mr. Fitzgerald, 3 Needles adds to his growing reputation as an up-and-coming director. The film stars Lucy Liu, Chloe Sevigny, Stockard Channing, Sandra Oh, and Olympia Dukakis and is set in China, South Africa, and Canada. The film depicts how the AIDS epidemic has touched these continents as seen through the lives of three very different characters.
Ms. Frieberg's Whole New Thing will be screened as part of the festival's core program, Contemporary World Cinema. Co-written by Cape Breton's Daniel MacIvor and Toronto-based Amnon Buchbinder, Whole New Thing is a comic coming-of-age story starring Rebecca Jenkins, Robert Joy and Aaron Webber. Set in rural Nova Scotia, it was filmed this past year in Mahone Bay and along the eastern shore of Halifax Regional Municipality.
Ms. Mitchell's Tell Me and Ms. Dorfman's There's a Flower in My Pedal will be screened as part of the Short Cuts Canada program. The program recognizes emerging talent across the country. Both of these shorts were filmed as part of the 30th anniversary celebration of the Atlantic Filmmakers' Co-operative. Started in 1976, the Toronto International Film Festival allows film producers and directors to showcase their work for an international audience of distributors, buyers, media and films fans.
The Nova Scotia Film Development Corporation is a provincial Crown corporation reporting to the minister of Economic Development. The corporation provides a wide range of programs and services to build the capacity and competitiveness of the province's film, television and new media industries. The provincial film industry is the fourth largest in Canada, regularly exceeding $100 million in economic activity annually.