Toronto Film Festival Awards 2008
by Andre Soares
2008 Toronto Film Festival Awards
2008 Toronto Film Festival: September 4–13, 2008
The fantastic story of a teenager from the slums of Mumbai told in flashback after his arrest on suspicion of cheating at India’s version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire received the People’s Choice Award at the 2008 Toronto Film Festival — and is already being touted as one of the top contenders for the 2009 Oscars.
Runners-up in the audience award category were Kristopher Belman’s More Than a Game and Cyrus Nowrasteh’s The Stoning of Soraya M. The former film is a documentary about five high-school basketball players from Akron, Ohio, one of whom (LeBron James) becomes a NBA star; based on a true story and on Freidoune Sahebjam’s bestseller (co-adapted by Cyrus and Betsy Giffen Nowrasteh), the latter film stars Shohreh Aghdashloo as a woman from a small Iranian village who recounts the tragic story of her friend Soraya (Mozhan Marnò) — a victim of human viciousness and religious intolerance — to a stranded French journalist (Jim Caviezel).
Other 2008 Toronto Film Festival winners:
- Rodrigue Jean’s Lost Song follows a couple (Suzie LeBlanc, Patrick Goyette) whose lives take a drastic turn for the worse after they move to an isolated area north of Montreal;
- Based on Jørn Riel’s novel, Marie-Hélène Cousineau and Madeline Piujuq Ivalu’s Before Tomorrow depicts the fight for survival of an Inuit woman and her grandson after they’re trapped on a remote island;
- Set in 1970s Long Island, Derick Martini’s Lymelife revolves around a 15-year-old (Rory Culkin) and his family (Alec Baldwin, Jill Hennessy) whose world is turned upside down after an outbreak of Lyme disease hits their suburban community, spreading illness and paranoia. Also in the cast: Timothy Hutton, Cynthia Nixon, and Kieran Culkin;
- and based on J. M. Coetzee’s novel, Steve Jacobs‘ Disgrace is about a Cape Town University professor (John Malkovich), who, following a scandalous affair with a student, seeks refuge at a farm belonging to his daughter (Jessica Haines) — where trouble follows him.
Toronto Film Festival 2008 Winners
CADILLAC PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD: Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire
Runners-up: Kristopher Belman’s More Than a Game , Cyrus Nowrasteh’s The Stoning of Soraya M. (above)
CITY OF TORONTO-CITYTV AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN FEATURE FILM: Rodrigue Jean’s Lost Song
Special Citation: Atom Egoyan’s Adoration
CITYTV AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN FIRST FEATURE FILM: Marie-Hélène Cousineau and Madeline Piujuq Ivalu’s Before Tomorrow
Special Citation: Lyne Charlebois’ Borderline
AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN SHORT FILM: Chris Chong Chan Fui’s Block B
Special Citation: Denis Villeneuve’s Next Floor
DIESEL DISCOVERY AWARD: Steve McQueen’s Hunger
International Critics (FIPRESCI) Prize for Discovery: Derick Martini’s Lymelife
International Critics (FIPRESCI) Prize for Special Presentations: Steve Jacobs’ Disgrace
CANADIAN FEATURE FILM AWARDS JURY:
Filmmaker Ann Marie Fleming, filmmaker and actor Sarah Polley, programmer for the Locarno Film Festival Vincenzo Bugno, and producer Michael Burns
SHORT FILM JURY: Filmmakers Louise Archambault and Min Sook Lee, and Rotterdam International Film Festival programmer Peter van Hoof
FIPRESCI JURY:
Jonathan Rosenbaum, freelance - USA - Jury President
Nick Roddick, London Evening Standard - United Kingdom
Elie Castiel, Séquences - Canada
Ranjita Biswas, The Hindu - India
Kim Linekin, CBC Radio - Canada
Pablo Scholz, Clarin - Argentina
Toronto International Film Festival Site
Toronto Film Festival Awards: 2005 2006 2007 2008
Film Awards: 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Oscar 2009: SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE, Anne Hathaway, Mickey Rourke at Toronto 2008
Venice Film Festival Awards 2008
Oscar 2009: Documentary Submissions Deadline
Oscar 2009: WORLDS APART Is Denmark’s Submission
Miami Film Festival Awards 2008
Oscar 2009: Scientific and Technical Achievement Awards Deadline
Jerusalem Film Festival Awards 2008
Gotham Awards Open for Submissions
Moscow Film Festival Awards 2008
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