“Iranian filmmakers Jafar Panahi and Mojtaba Mirtahmasb’s startling documentary depicts a day in Panahi’s life as he appeals his conviction for “propaganda against the system” — which carries with it a jail sentence and a twenty-year ban from writing or directing.”

Part of the masters programme, the film is free admission. Nice to see the festival putting aside its usual 22 odd bucks to serve a cause and support an artist that is forced into silence by an oppressive regime.

TIFF co-director, Cameron Bailey explained that the film was made under very special circumstances. It was smuggled out of the country on a USB key.  Its very special message has to reach as many people as possible, Bailey said.

The film is Jafar Panahi going through the day in his downtown Tehran apartment awaiting news on his upcoming trial. The ban preventing him to create weighs heavily on him. His impulse is too great and sets out to secretly make a film anyway. He calls his friend and documentarian Mojtaba Mirtahmasb and the film takes off.

With his iguana “Igi” meandering about the Persian rug and climbing a bookcase,  Panahi attempts to “tell” the film that resulted in his conviction with the help of masking tape. He creates the perimeter of the story’s location. The task gradually moves him to tears until he abandons it to watch the news, talk to a visiting neighbor, take a few more calls about his case to finally take an elevator ride down to the ground floor accompanied by an unemployed Art student taking out the trash. The story is simple. Very simple, but a rather telling portrait of his predicament.

Bailey said there was no Q&A as Mojtaba Mirtahmasb’s passport was revoked on his way to Toronto.

See description of film.

Fresh off the plane from a very successful run at San Diego’s Art Fair as well as other Southwest destinations, Montreal-based art initiative EN MASSE is best described as an ongoing exercise in irreverent, improvised collaborative drawing — a boundary-blurring cocktail of high and lowbrow culture, pop imagery fragmented like shattered glass in a spontaneous, multi-genre, black-on-white collision.

In addition to numerous pedagogical endeavours and private contracts, EN MASSE has created signature works in association with the Osheaga Festival of Arts and Music, Piknic Électronik, Festival International Montréal en Art, Under Pressure, Manifesto (Toronto), Cirque du Soleil, and Sid Lee. Early November 2011 will see an unprecedented installation at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

(mostly lifted from their website)

Man #1 and Man #2 are locked in a life long struggle between wants and needs, the rational and the desired, never fully understanding that they cannot exist without each other. Man #1 wants to quietly merge into the traffic of everyday life while Man #2 wants to cut a new path through the wilderness. This battle of ideals comes to a head with the introduction of Sonya, the latest object of interest and the metaphor for all that came before. I AM I exposes the inner workings of a dark heart and an over-worked mind, shattering any idea of a fourth wall, creating a visceral, funny and painfully honest meta-theatrical journey.

Here is Oliver Roberge and Patrick Boivin’s Fall, Finally.

Olivier Roberge et Patrick Boivin investissent Trouville-sur-Mer où leur film Enfin l’automne aura sa grande première au festival Off-courts le 4 septembre.

Directement après le visionnement, Patrick rendra son film public sur Youtube. Il le lancera sur place, en présence de l’auditoire.

Il s’agira de la toute première fois qu’un long métrage canadien sera diffusé entièrement sur YouTube.

Le film a été fait sans réel financement de la part des institutions canadiennes. Aucun distributeur n’a embarqué dans le projet non plus. Que de la sueur et du courage. Du cinéma envers et contre tous. C’est plutôt rassurant, voire salvateur de savoir qu’il y a des gars qui ne baissent pas les bras.

Nous mettrons Enfin l’automne en lien ici dès le 4 septembre prochain. Préparez-vous pour les symptômes, ce sera assez viral.

Aussi, pendant la journée, le festival présentera des courts métrages de Patrick et d’Olivier.

De plus, lors de son séjour à Trouville, Patrick réalisera un clip pour Tom Fire qui proposera un de ses premiers concerts au festival…

Tom Fire c’est un Français qui est dans le “mélange de dub, de pop, d’électro et de tant d’autres choses qui donnent cette couleur si particulière…”

Ça promet!