Around the world in 35mm

Autumn in Toronto is largely synonymous with film, and this year, despite the seemingly innumerable challenges, has been no different. This Sunday, October 25, five different international film festivals will collide on screens in homes, making it possible for one intrepid couch potato to travel to Macedonia, Israel, Brazil, Bolivia and Greece in the course of one day. 

Here is a round-up of some of the many film programs and festivals bringing the world to us:

The Toronto Food Film Festival, on through October 25, reminds us to Watch. Learn. Eat, with a curated selection of documentaries, shorts and scripted films from around the world. Top contenders: Raw Milk, a surreal thriller about a woman's search for unpasteurized milk to cure her brother’s allergies and The Taste of Pho, a documentary from Poland about a Vietnamese cook's struggle for acceptance. 

One of this city's hallmark events, the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival runs until October 25. Each year, imagineNATIVE presents a selection of film, video, audio, digital media and exhibitions created by Indigenous artists from Canada and around the world. Top pick: Métis filmmaker Rhayne Vermette’s short film Tricks are for Kiddo, made in response to Winnipeg director Guy Maddin’s statement “it’s impossible to collage a film!”

The Macedonian Film Festival returns for its fifteenth year on October 24 and 25. The festival is screening two films; including Academy Award-nominated director Milcho Manchevski’s latest film, WILLOW (Bp6a), a story of three mothers across time.

A showcase for Latin-American directors, the 20th annual Alucin Latin Arts and Media Film Festival runs October 21 to November 5, with a focus on Latin-Canadian women filmmakers. Top picks include Francesca Dasso’s Ruta De Fugo, a 2019 documentary about the migration of workers between Venezuela and Peru. 

The Toronto Jewish Film Festival returns October 22 with a new fall edition. This time around, the centrepiece film is the delightfully quirky documentary Army of Lovers in the Holy Land, the true story of a Swedish pop musician’s journey to discover his roots. 

Bring the blankets! The inaugural Muslim International Film Festival takes place October 29 and 30 at the new Ontario Place drive-in. Top pick:  Arsal Amir’s sci-fi comedy Aun vs. Sudrom, about a deadbeat Pakistani lawyer on the verge of losing his job. A portion of the proceeds from the festival goes to support International Development and Relief Foundation Canada. 

Bonus feature: Check out the Canadian Film Centre’s new short documentary series, CFC Blocko!, from acclaimed Toronto filmmaker Charles Officer. With new episodes dropping every Wednesday through the end of November, the series is a call to action featuring notable members of the film industry, including Norman Jewison and actor Cara Ricketts. 

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