Since 2001, the start of the new year has always marked a special period for Canadian cinema. Founded in 2001 by TIFF, Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival celebrates the best Canadian films (both short and feature-length), and this year marks its 15th anniversary. In a world dominated by Hollywood films, it is exhilarating for people to partake in a film festival that commemorates Canadian talent. Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival provides an opportunity for individuals to indulge in films that embrace Canadian culture, evoking a sense of familiarity and pride.
The festival is held from January 8-17 in Toronto, but also hosts a tour with screenings around different parts of Canada (Montreal, Vancouver, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary, Halifax, and Ottawa). Along with screenings of the carefully selected Canadian films of the year, the festival also hosts other events like onstage discussions with filmmakers and actors/actresses, learning sessions, and industry events. This year, individuals had the opportunity to hear Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black) and Kiefer Sutherland (Stand By Me) talk about their dynamic film careers as part of TIFF’s “In Conversation With…” event.
This year’s feature length film program consisted of Closet Monster (Stephen Dunn), The Demons (Philippe Lesage), The Forbidden Room (Evan Johnson and Guy Maddin), Guantanamo’s Child: Omar Khadr (Patrick Reed and Michelle Shephard), Hurt (Alan Zweig), Into The Forest (Patricia Rozema), Les Êtres Chers (Anne Émond), My Internship in Canada (Philippe Falardeau), Ninth Floor (Mina Shum), and Sleeping Giant (Andrew Cividino).
Short films, meanwhile, included Nina (Halima Elkhatabi), Balmoral Hotel (Wayne Wapeemukwa), O Negative (Steven McCarthy), The Little Deputy (Trevor Anderson), Bring Me The Head of Tim Horton (Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, and Galen Johnson), Overpass (Patrice Laliberté), Interview With a Free Man (Nicolas Lévesque), Never Steady, Never Still (Kathleen Hepburn), Bacon & God’s Wrath (Sol Friedman), and My Enemy, My Brother (Ann Shin). As usual, the selection of films was diverse and filled with creativity, innovation, and boldness.
Following TIFF’s reputation for being “the people’s festival,” Top Ten provides ample opportunities for viewers to experience cinema in a more intimate way, despite its large audiences. The festival emphasizes Q&A sessions held after the films are screened, giving the audience opportunities to connect with the creative minds (directors, actors/actresses, producers, writers, etc.) behind the film, which enriches the overall cinematic experience. People are able to gain more insight into the film as they learn about the processes of creating/producing the film, discover fascinating material about the film, and hear the backstory of the film as the artists passionately speak about their work. As well, some of the brilliant films in the festival have limited releases; the festival gives people a wonderful chance to see films that are harder to access.
When people see movies, Canadian films aren’t often the first ones they choose to see. But why not? These films have just as much to offer as big box-office films, if not more. Venturing outside the realm of box-office films can take you to a fantastical world of cinema that you have never encountered before. A world filled with pizzazz, alluring aesthetics, and unconventional stories that will warm you up but also inspire you to question the people and things around you. So take a chance and try something different. Open your heart to a world of new and exciting experiences. You never know—you might even like it.
