These film festivals will excite even the buffiest of film buffs…
Sick of watching the same films over and over? Here are 6 film festivals at which you can experience something new and exciting.
1. Toronto Black Film Festival, February 12-17
This festival is dedicated to bringing audiences a more diverse and nuanced experience of cinema. There are also workshops and talks. They also have Spike Lee as an honourary guest this year, which is just unbelievable.
It’s a big festival that garners a lot of attention and you can find out more about it on the website.
2. Toronto Irish Film Festival, February 28-March 1
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the festival, which celebrates Irish cinema and brings it to Canadian audiences. Showcasing films from Irish directors and directors of Irish heritage, the festival screens some Gaelic language films and has always taken place on the first weekend in March. It takes place at The TIFF Bell Lightbox and tickets will be on sale on the website from February 14th.
3. Canadian Film Fest, March 24-28
The Canadian Film Festival showcases talented film-makers from within Canada. Films of all genres feature here and there is an awards ceremony to celebrate the best of Canadian cinema.
This year’s programme has not yet been announced but you can find updates on the event on their website.
4. Hot Docs Festival, April 30-May 10
This year the popular documentary festival will be honoring well-known documentary maker Raymonde Provencher, with showings of her work. She has focussed on many social and political issues, using deep investigation to expose the truth of phenomena from across the world.
The Irish Film Festival organizers are also presenting films from Northern Ireland. Every year this part of the festival has focussed on a different location in the world so if you have seen all of the documentaries that Netflix currently has to offer, this would be a great place to get your fix.
5. Toronto International Film Festival, September 10-20
Any fan of cinema will be familiar with this world-renowned festival. The programme won’t be announced until August 25 but plenty of films have premiered here in the past and there is always a lot of excitement surrounding the event.
You can find out more as it’s announced on their website.
6. Toronto After Dark Film Festival, October 15-23
Situated at Scotiabank Theatre, this festival is a celebration of horror, action and sci-fi films. After the screenings, there is also a social event named ‘Pub After Dark’, which is just a visit to the pub with other attendees – sounds great!
Tickets are not yet on sale but you can find out more about the event on their website.