Canada's Top Ten 2010

Above: Curling

Yesterday the 10th annual Canada's Top Ten was announced, celebrating Canadian feature & short film alike. I love seeing the Canada's Top Ten list, and each year I hope that I've seen more films on the list when it's released than the year before. Not so much this year as I've sadly only seen three films so far with Last Train Home, Splice and the phenomenal Trigger. But seeing the list is a great way to hone in on some of the fantastic Canadian film that is offered every year, and it's also a great way to see some of the Québécois which sadly we don't often get to see on Ontario screens. I'm thrilled to see Denis Côté's film Curling makes the list this year as he creates uniquely beautiful films like Carcasses and Nos vies privées / Our Private Lives, and I can't wait to see Curling as well. More familiar titles include Les Amours imaginaires / Heartbeats from Xavier Dolan (J'ai tué ma mère), the compelling drama Incendies from Denis Villeneuve (Polytechnique) and just about to be released Barney's Version. And that is just a selection of the features - see full list of all the features and shorts below.

This year's panel discussion is Cast This!: The ins and outs of casting a movie offers insight into the art of casting. Panelists include Denis Côté, Deborah Chow, Ingrid Veninger, John Buchan, Jason Knight, Leonard Farlinger & Jennifer Jonas and will be moderated by Damon D’Oliveira.

Screenings of the features, shorts and a panel discussion will take place from January 20 – February 1, 2011 at TIFF Bell Lightbox in Toronto and select films will be toured in Canada in early 2011 including Pacific Cinematheque (Vancouver) and Canadian Film Institute (Ottawa). See more information on scheduling and tickets here (on sale now). The packages are a great deal and new this year you can choose buys tickets to either 9 evening screenings or day screenings plus the panel. Both packages indicate 9 screenings, is you are wondering about that 10th film it's Barney's Version which will not be screened with the Top Ten as it will be in wide release.

Canada’s Top Ten 2010 (Feature Film)

Les Amours imaginaires / Heartbeats
Dir: Xavier Dolan (J'ai tué ma mère)
Cast: Xavier Dolan, Monia Chokri, Niels Schneider
Available on DVD

Barney’s Version
Dir: Richard J. Lewis (Whale Music)
Cast: Paul Giamatti, Rosamund Pike, Minnie Driver, Dustin Hoffman, Rachelle Lefevre, Scott Speedman
Release date: December 2010

Curling
Dir: Denis Côté (Carcasses, Nos vies privées / Our Private Lives)
Cast: Emmanuel Bilodeau, Philomène Bilodeau, Sophie Desmarais
Release Date: March 2011

The High Cost of Living
Dir: Deborah Chow
Cast: Zach Braff, Isabelle Blais, Patrick Labbé
Release Date: Spring 2011

Incendies
Dir: Denis Villeneuve (Polytechnique)
Cast: Lubna Azabal, Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin, Maxim Gaudette, Rémy Girard
Release date: January 2011

Last Train Home
Dir: Lixin Fan
Documentary
DVD release February 22, 2011

MODRA
Dir: Ingrid Veninger
Cast: Mathieu Chesneau, Branislav Dugovic, Cyril Dugovic
Release Date: February 2011

Splice
Dir: Vincenzo Natali (Cube)
Cast: Sarah Polley, Adrien Brody, Delphine Chanéac
Available on DVD (see DVD review)

Trigger
Dir: Bruce McDonald (This Movie Is Broken, Pontypool, Highway 61)
Cast: Tracy Wright, Molly Parker, Don McKeller, Sarah Polly, Callum Keith Rennie

Trois temps après la mort d’Anna / Mourning for Anna
Dir: Catherine Martin
Cast: Denis Bernard, Denise Gagnon, Sheila Jaffe

Canada’s Top Ten 2010 (Short Film)

Above the Knee
Dir: Greg Atkins

Les Fleurs de l'Age
Dir: Vincent Biron

I Was a Child of Holocaust Survivors
Dir: Ann Marie Fleming

The Legend of Beaver Dam
Dir: Jerome Sable

The Little White Cloud That Cried
Dir: Guy Maddin

Lipsett Diaries
Dir: Theodore Ushev

Marius Borodine
Dir: Emanuel Hoss-Desmarais

Mokhtar
Dir: Halima Ouardiri

On the Way to the Sea
Dir: Tao Gu

Vapor
Dir: Kaveh Nabatian

Canada's Top Ten was established in 2001 by the Toronto International Film Festival Group to honour excellence Canadian film. See more information on the feature films, short films, panel discussion, ticketing and schedule.

Who chooses the films?
Films are chosen by national panels of filmmakers, journalists, programmers and industry professionals.

2010 Feature Film panel:
Liane Balaban, Linda Barnard, Matt Bissonnette, Fil Fraser, Teri Hart, Peter O'Brian, Kari Skogland, Agata Smoluch Del Sorbo, Bruce Sweeney and Kim Yutani

2010 Short Film Panel:
Deborah Chow, Philippe Gajan, John Greyson, Allison Mack and Sudz Sutherland

What films qualify?
Canada’s Top Ten lists are chosen from features, shorts, documentaries, animation and experimental films. Each film must have premiered at a major film festival or obtained a commercial theatrical release in Canada in 2010. The filmmaker must be a Canadian citizen or resident and have a history of working in Canada or on Canadian-financed films.


Above: The Little White Cloud That Cried