#Tiff
Trailer Watch: A Doctor Takes on Local Politics — and Sexism — in “The Perfect Candidate”
The protagonist of Haifaa Al-Mansour’s “The Perfect Candidate,” a young female doctor in Saudi Arabia, is getting fed up. She’s not receiving the funding she needs at her...
Trailer Watch: Tilda Swinton Rewrites Cinematic History in “Women Make Film”
Women’s contributions to cinema have gone unacknowledged for far too long. “Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema” aims to educate and enlighten audiences, illustrating...
Trailer Watch: A Female-Led Team of Medical Professionals Save Lives in Syria in “The Cave”
A trailer has dropped for “The Cave,” an upcoming National Geographic documentary that pays tribute to medical professionals working under the most harrowing circumstances imaginable. Led...
Trailer Watch: Natalie Portman Spirals After Space in “Lucy in the Sky”
“I saw my house from space — not literally, but my life,” says Natalie Portman in a new trailer for “Lucy in the Sky.” The Oscar winner plays Lucy, an astronaut...
Mati Diop to Receive Inaugural Mary Pickford Award at TIFF 2019
Mati Diop made history at Cannes this year as the first black female filmmaker to screen a feature in competition at the fest, where she took home the Grand Prix for “Atlantics,” her feature...
“Blow the Man Down” Acquired by Amazon Studios Ahead of TIFF Premiere
The 2019 Toronto International Film Festival is still a few weeks away, but one of its titles has already found a home. According to a press release, Amazon Studios has snagged the worldwide rights...
Apply Now: TIFF’s Inaugural Media Mentorship Program
TIFF’s Media Inclusion Initiative (MII) is now accepting applications for its inaugural Media Mentorship Program. Launched in conjunction with last year’s Share Her Journey campaign and...
TIFF 2019 Adds More Galas and Special Presentations, Reveals World Cinema Lineup
The Toronto Film Fest has announced the lineups for more programs — including Contemporary World Cinema, Masters, and Wavelengths — and added additional titles to its Gala Presentations...
TIFF 2019 Announces Discovery Titles and Docs, Ellen Page and Barbara Kopple Among Directors
Ellen Page, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Barbara Kopple are just a few of the directors who will be screening films at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival. TIFF 2019 has unveiled the...
Sarah Gavron’s Latest to Open TIFF’s Platform Program, Lineup Is 40% Women-Directed
The Toronto International Film Festival has announced the lineup for its Platform section, a juried program spotlighting trailblazing directors from around the world. “Rocks,” from...
Meryl Streep to Be Honored with the TIFF Tribute Actor Award
Meryl Streep is saying goodbye to “Big Little Lies” and hello to yet another statuette. Just days after the Season 2 finale of “Big Little Lies” comes word that Streep will...
TIFF’s 2019 Gala Lineup Is 50 Percent Women-Directed
The Toronto International Film Festival has started unrolling its 2019 lineup. The fest’s Galas slate is composed of 18 titles, nine of which are directed or co-directed by women — a...
“Fig Tree’s” Aäläm-Wärqe Davidian Wins Audentia Award for Best Female Director at TIFF
Aäläm-Wärqe Davidian is taking home a major honor from the Toronto International Film Festival. She has been named as the winner of the third edition of the Audentia Award for Best Female...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Paprika Steen – “That Time of Year”
Paprika Steen is an award-winning Scandinavian actress and director. She made her directorial debut in 2004 with the tragedy-drama “Aftermath” and followed it up with 2007’s...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Pella Kågerman – “Aniara”
Pella Kågerman was educated at the Royal Institute of Art. She co-wrote Hugo Lilja’s film “The Unliving,” which won prizes at Berlinale, Stockholm Festival, and Clermont-Ferrand....
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Eva Husson — “Girls of the Sun”
Eva Husson is a writer and a director. Her short “Hope to Die” gained international recognition, including nominations at the Student Academy Awards, the American Society of...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Maryam Keshavarz – “Viper Club”
Maryam Keshavarz is an Iranian-American writer and director. While pursuing her MFA at NYU, Keshavarz’s short film “The Day I Died” won the Gold Teddy and Jury Special Mention Prize at the...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Caroline Poggi – “Jessica Forever”
Caroline Poggi’s credits include “Toys on Fire” and “Chiens.” With Jonathan Vinel, her credits include “After School Knife Fight” and “As Long As...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Veena Sud – “The Lie”
Veena Sud created “The Killing,” which was nominated for six Emmys. She also created “Seven Seconds,” an ensemble drama centered around the hit and run of a young black teenager by a...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Dominga Sotomayor – “Too Late to Die Young”
Dominga Sotomayor’s first feature, “Thursday Till Sunday,” was screened at over a hundred festivals, and won the Tiger Award at the International Film Festival Rotterdam in 2012. In 2013 she...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Nicole Holofcener – “The Land of Steady Habits”
Nicole Holofcener has written and directed six feature films including “Enough Said”and “Friends with Money.” She also co-wrote Marielle Heller’s “Can You Ever Forgive...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Chanya Button – “Vita & Virginia”
Chanya Button is a director, writer, and producer whose diverse work spans film and theater. Her debut feature, “Burn Burn Burn,” was nominated for the BIFA Discovery award. Her shorts...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Michal Aviad – “Working Woman”
Born in Jerusalem, Michal Aviad is an award-winning feminist filmmaker. Her films include “Acting Our Age,” “Jenny and Jenny,” “Invisible,” and “Dimona...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Astra Taylor – “What Is Democracy?”
Astra Taylor is a filmmaker, writer, and political organizer. Her book “The People’s Platform: Taking Back Power and Culture in the Digital Age” won the American Book Award in 2015. Taylor is a...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Soudade Kaadan – “The Day I Lost My Shadow”
Soudade Kaadan is a Syrian director who was born in France. Her films have screened at several venues nationally and internationally and have received international awards. Her latest documentary,...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Tuva Novotny – “Blind Spot”
Tuva Novotny has an extensive acting background, and has appeared in films like “Eat Pray Love,” “A War,” “Borg vs McEnroe,” and “Annihilation.” “Blind Spot” is...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Karyn Kusama — “Destroyer”
Karyn Kusama broke out in 1999 with her written-and-directed debut feature film “Girlfight,” which won the Grand Jury Prize and Director’s Prize at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival, as well as...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Nino Zhvania – “Parade”
Nino Zhvania graduated from the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography in 2011. Her previous work includes shorts “Excuse Me, My Friend” and “My Friend Iliko.” “Parade” is her first...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Ritu Sarin – “The Sweet Requiem”
Ritu Sarin was born in New Delhi, and completed her MFA in Film and Video at California College of the Arts. She has directed several films with Tenzing Sonam, including “Dreaming Lhasa,”...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Darlene Naponse – “Falls Around Her”
Darlene Naponse is an Anishinaabe Kwe from Atikameksheng Anishnawbek, Northern Ontario. She is a writer, film director, and a video artist. Her previous feature, “Every Emotion Costs,”...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Lila Avilés – “The Chambermaid”
After her start as a theater actress, Lila Avilés moved into directing. Her work as a theater director includes “Gardenia Club,” “Microdermoabrasión,” “Antígona,” and “The...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Rosanne Pel – “Light as Feathers”
Rosanne Pel received her master’s degree at the Netherlands Film Academy. She directed the award-winning short films “Ult Zicht,” “Newroz,” and “Heraut.”...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Bai Xue – “The Crossing”
Bai Xue was born in China and obtained her MFA from the Beijing Film Academy. After competing in the CFDG China Youth Film Director Support Program, she made “The Crossing,” her first...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Alejandra Márquez Abella – “The Good Girls”
Alejandra Márquez Abella’s made her feature debut with 2015’s “Semana Santa.” Her other credits include shorts “5 Memories” and “Perra,” as well as the documentary...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Annabel Jankel – “Tell It to the Bees”
Annabel Jankel was born in London and began her career directing music videos for artists such as Talking Heads, Miles Davis, and Elvis Costello. Along with her partner, Rocky Morton, Jankel directed...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Laura Luchetti — “Twin Flower”
Laura Luchetti has directed short films, music videos, commercials, documentaries, and theater productions. Her first feature, “Febbre da Fieno,” has been featured at many international...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Genevieve Nnaji — “Lionheart”
Genevieve Nnaji has been a prominent fixture in the Nigerian film industry for over 20 years, primarily as an actor. Her contributions to filmmaking have received several awards and nominations over...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Shannon Service – “Ghost Fleet”
Shannon Service is an independent reporter and filmmaker whose work has appeared in The New York Times, the BBC, and The Guardian. She primarily focuses on crimes at sea, but her stories covered...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Aäläm-Wärqe Davidian — “Fig Tree”
Aäläm-Wärqe Davidian was born in Awash, Ethiopia. She has directed the short films “Transitions” and “Facing the Wall.” “Fig Tree” is her feature directorial...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Victoria Stone — “The Elephant Queen”
Director Victoria Stone has worked in Africa for over 30 years telling wildlife stories that have been shown in more than 140 countries with audiences in excess of 600 million. Her previous film,...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Sine Plambech — “Heartbound”
Sine Plambech is an anthropologist at the Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS) and Adjunct Assistant Professor at Barnard College, Columbia University. For 15 years, Plambech has worked...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Selma Vilhunen — “Stupid Young Heart”
Selma Vilhunen’s latest works as a director include the documentary “Hobbyhorse Revolution,” which premiered at the Tampere Film Festival and won the main prize in domestic...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Ash Mayfair — “The Third Wife”
Ash Mayfair was born and raised in Vietnam, and received her MFA in filmmaking from NYU. Her short films — including “The Silver Man” and “No Exit” — have been screened at...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Nandita Das — “Manto”
Nandita Das has acted in more than 40 feature films in 10 different languages. She made her directorial debut with 2008’s “Firaaq.” Das also acted, wrote, and directed the 2012 play...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Carmel Winters — “Float Like a Butterfly”
Carmel Winters is an award-winning writer and director for the screen and stage. Her debut feature “Snap” won Best Irish Feature and Best Director at the Dublin Critics’ Circle...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Marielle Heller — “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”
Marielle Heller began her career in front of the camera, appearing in shows such as “Spin City” and “Single Dads,” as well as in movies like “MacGruber” and “A Walk Among the...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Jasmin Mozaffari — “Firecrackers”
Jasmin Mozaffari’s student thesis film, “Firecrackers,” premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and went on to screen at numerous other fests across Canada and Europe....
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Carolina Hellsgård – “Ever After”
Carolina Hellsgård is a writer-director born in Sweden and based in Berlin. Her critically acclaimed debut feature film “Wanja” premiered at the Berlinale in 2015 and was nominated for...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Marija Kavtaradzė — “Summer Survivors”
Marija Kavtaradzė’s short film “I’m Twenty Something” won best student film at the Lithuanian Film Academy Awards in 2015. Kavtaradzė also co-wrote the feature film “The Saint,”...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Natalia Meschaninova — “Core of the World”
Natalia Meschaninova made her feature debut with 2014’s “Hope Factory,” a coming-of-age drama set in Russia. “Core of the World” will begin screening at the 2018 Toronto...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Carol Morley — “Out of Blue”
Carol Morley’s credits include “The Alcohol Years,” a BAFTA-nominated film about her scurrilous teenage past, “Dreams of a Life,” which went behind the anonymous newspaper headline about...