I’ve been remiss in not mentioning this sooner, especially since I’m planning to actually review a couple of films from this festival. Cinéfranco is Toronto’s festival of films in the French language. The 11th edition is running from March 28-April 6 at the Royal Cinema at 608 College Street West, featuring films from all over the French-speaking world, with a particular focus on Québec and, for this edition, Morocco. All films are subtitled in English, and tickets are available at the cinema for $10 each.
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cinefranco
A few months back, I had an idea for a post. I wanted to know what the plans were for indie and documentary filmmakers to release their work in a high-definition format. I sent queries out to my list of contacts and got precisely ZERO responses. In hindsight, I realize why. Before the format war had been settled, it was simply too expensive for indies and docs to consider releasing on both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray format. It’s expensive enough to release just on one. But now that the dust has cleared in the Red vs. Blu(e) battle, it appears that a few brave souls are stepping up with some HD goodness for us. Though stuff like Planet Earth and Sharkwater have both come out in Blu-Ray already, those are backed by large studios and distributors. The first smaller film (to my knowledge) to appear in Blu-Ray is Gary Hustwit’s stunning font doc Helvetica (review). Released by Plexifilm (which Hustwit founded, by the way), the new Helvetica will feature the same bonus features as the SD (standard definition) release but will boast twice the resolution. All the better since the film was shot natively in high definition, which is actually true of quite a few documentaries and independent productions these days.
It’s probably not worth it to upgrade if you already have the film, but if not, I’m sure the gorgeous visuals will pop even more if you have a Blu-Ray player. Kudos to Plexifilm and here’s hoping this is just the beginning.
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blu-ray
Toronto’s own world-class documentary film festival, Hot Docs, has released its full 2008 schedule. This year’s festival takes place from April 17–27 and features more than 170 films from 36 countries. Reasonably-priced tickets and downright cheap passes are already on sale. In my opinion, this is the best film festival in the city. No celebrities or red carpets, just smart films about real things. I’m excited by a number of films and will be talking about them in the weeks to come, but if you’re able to be in Toronto for Hot Docs, don’t miss it!
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#hotdocs08
Here is the complete list of winners at the first annual Cinema Eye Honors, which were presented tonight in New York:
Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Filmmaking
Manda Bala (Director: Jason Kohn) (review)
Outstanding Achievement in an International Feature
The Monastery: Mr. Vig and the Nun (Director: Pernille Rose Grønkjær) (review)
Outstanding Achievement in a Debut Feature
Billy the Kid (Director: Jennifer Venditti) (review)
Outstanding Achievement in Direction
Taxi to the Dark Side (Director: Alex Gibney)
Outstanding Achievement in Production
Ghosts of Cité Soleil (Producers: George Hickenlooper, Wyclef Jean, Seth Kanegis, Jerry “Wonder” Duplessis)
Outstanding Achievement in Editing
Manda Bala (Editors: Doug Abel, Jenny Golden, Andy Grieve) (review)
Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography
Manda Bala (Cinematographer: Heloísa Passos) (review)
Outstanding Achievement in Graphics and Animation
Chicago 10 (Director of Animation: Joao Amorim)
Audience Choice Award
The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters (Director: Seth Gordon) (review)
Congratulations to all the winners and to the nominees as well. I know you’re all enjoying a well-deserved celebration of your achievements tonight!
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cinemaeyehonors
