Toronto Independent Film Festival -- Sept 11 - 14, 2019

Toronto Independent Film Festival -- Sept 11 - 14, 2019

Toronto Independent Film Festival -- Sept 11 - 14, 2019

By: Jovin Tardif

Yesterday marked the 10th annual Toronto Indie Film Festival at Carlton Cinema (Imagine Cinemas). The event was sold out. We were invited by a friend of my wife from middle school, Jessica Danov, in her short film debut. We were so blessed to be able to be in this moment with her.

Tonight, we were here to see 8 shorts block.

*Bad Vegan: The Original Recipe by Jessica Danov told the tale of one girl poking fun at another girl who happened to be a "good" vegan.  It was good versus bad.  The audience enjoyed this nice rivalry.

*Clown College by Wendy Keeling took us into a dark world with beautiful colours and bizarre characters. I found it quite amusing and stylish.

*Past Partum by Wendy Keeling was a dark comedy about a family tree. A child was trying to study his past and learned more than what he bargained for. I really admired the dark colours in this short film. 

*Fish Out of Water by Alyssa Asaro showed you through the eyes of a child with Cerebral Palsy. You felt the emotions of what he was feeling. I appreciated all the blue colours in this short film.

*J Burg by Matthew Gouveia was a great short comedy that you would have to see in order to understand the humour of the situation. Everyone had a great chuckle at this piece.

*Blood Brothers by Mitchell Verigin taught the audience not to always trust their partner in crime. A very comedic performance that got the crowd very engaged.

*What Colour Do You See As Blue by Reza Salsany told the story of an unfortunate circumstance that brought an orphan child with a new mother. This piece was very artistic that made you go through a roller coaster of emotions.

*The Last Day by Michael Moser told the sad tale of a man losing someone he loved. It was a touching story with an incredible monologue at the end. 

My wife and I had a wonderful experience. We were so thrilled to meet a few filmmakers in the lounge after the show.   As I was taking pictures of different posters, I was first approached by Wendy Keeling. We had a wonderful conversation about her two presentations that evening.  If you can see her work, you would appreciate her dark comedy and artistic vision.

My second interaction was with Jessica Danov. I see big things in her future. She is a very talented actress, writer, producer, and founder of Fresh Pressed Films. It was great listening to my wife and Jessica talk about old memories together growing up and discussing the future of film and movies.

I went out of my way to shake the hand of Mitchell Verigin from Twisted Wizards Productions. I really appreciated the comedic style of their short film 'Blood Brothers'. We had a nice conversation together about how you never know who you are talking to.  I am hoping to see more of his work in the future.  Unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to speak to Chris Thompson. I wanted to say congratulations.

At the TIFF street festival, they had a large display that focused on women in film with the hashtag 'Share her journey'. Share her journey is not just a hashtag. It is living proof that women deserve to be recognized for their talent. At the beginning of the evening, at TOIFF, the festival director, Steve Veale, asks the filmmakers to stand. I was touched to see that the majority of the talent that got up were women.  I was extremely proud of this moment and I hope to see more of this in the future.

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