RABBIT HOLE (John Cameron Mitchell, USA)

With just a month left until the Toronto International Film Festival, the largest film event in North America and one of the premiere film summits of the year, the shape of the event is coming into closer view. With independent and international cinema showing some pulse at the box office after a disasterous two years, all eyes will be turning to Canada in the coming weeks for a crystal ball peak at what should be some of the big end-of-year films (and possible Oscar contenders).

At last week's Press Conference, some of the big titles that will grace the Festival were announced. The lastest films from such celebrated directors as Robert Redford, Michael Winterbottom, Julian Schnabel, Darren Aronofsky, Francois Ozon, John Cameron Mitchell and Mark Romanek will unspool at the Festival's 35th edition (running from September 9 to 19).

The Festival will host the World and North American premieres of such highly anticipated titles as Darren Aronofsky’s “Black Swan,” Robert Redford’s “The Conspirator,” John Madden’s “The Debt,” Im Sang-Soo’s “The Housemaid,” Tom Hooper’s “The King’s Speech,” Guillaume Canet’s “Little White Lies,” Francois Ozon’s “Potiche,” Ben Affleck’s “The Town,” Mike Mills’ “Beginners,” Rowan Joffe’s “Brighton Rock,” Tony Goldwyn’s “Conviction,” Susanne Bier’s “In A Better World,” Ryan Fleck & Anna Boden’s “It’s Kind of a Funny Story,” Alain Corneau’s “Love Crime,” Julian Schnabel’s “Miral,” Mark Romanek’s “Never Let Me Go,” John Cameron Mitchell’s “Rabbit Hole,” and Michael Winterbottom’s “The Trip”.

While TIFF has not created an official market sidebar (as has Berlin and Cannes), the who's who of the international film business will descend on Toronto in early September. Official market or not, Toronto is a place to do business and to catch early critical buzz for films that will certainly figure in the end-of-year awards sweepstakes. This blog site will dutifully report on all aspects of the Festival and the city that hosts North America's most elaborate (and satisfying) film party.

Sandy Mandelberger, Festival Dailies Editor 

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