The first installation of the Short Cuts Canada programme kicks off at the Toronto International Film Festival later today, and one of the films playing tonight is Us Chickens by Toronto-based filmmaker Mark Van de Ven.

I had the chance to chat with Mark for a few minutes about his movie and what it means for him to be playing at TIFF this year. Here are his thoughts in three minutes:



(Yes, it was raining outside when we filmed this. Thanks to Mark for being a great sport and not minding a few raindrops on his head.)

Day three, and the Toronto International Film Festival is already getting immense attention from local Torontonians. A big reason for that may have been the arrival of Brad Pitt yesterday for the screening of Burn After Reading. At the screening of the film, co-director Joel Coen thanked Pitt and the rest of the A-listers in his movie: "We'd like to thank the amazing cast for induging in our nonsense."

Nonsense or not, Burn After Reading was one of the most buzzworthy movies to screen yesterday — but it certainly wasn't the only story making waves.

Wednesday's gala presentation of Fifty Dead Men Walking is running in to some trouble because the former British spy who is the subject of the film has not waived his moral rights to the story. TIFF programmers are assuring the press and public that the screening will happen, and filmmakers have retained local legal counsel to make sure everything goes off without any glitches.

Looking for some tips on what to catch at the Toronto International Film Festival this weekend, or just looking to be kept in the loop on some of the big film-related talking points in the city this week?

Special guest critic Matthew Price will be chiming in from time to time to give you the scoop on some of the films playing at TIFF. Today, a review of $9.99 and Waltz with Bashir. (Plus my own quick review of Dioses.)

It's easy to get caught up in big names during TIFF. After all, with stars abound and Oscar contenders aplenty, it's easy to forget that the Toronto International Film Festival isn't just a Hollywood showcase, but also has a trove of hidden gems waiting to be found.

A good portion of those gems are hiding in the Short Cuts Canada Programme. Kicking off tomorrow and running through the entire festival, Short Cuts Canada features short films by this country's best short filmmakers and most promising talents, both old and new.

The best part of Short Cuts? You get access to a number of shorts all at once: if you don't like one film, there's another one coming just a few minutes away.

The Toronto International Film Festival has always had the reputation of a festival where big business gets done, and this year has been no different so far. Even though the festival only really officially kicked off yesterday evening, films like Serbis, Of Time and City, Pontypool, and Food, Inc. have already picked up distribution deals.

Despite it all, some industry insiders are a little alarmed that this year's festival features few, if any, leading Oscar contenders. Sure, there are some big films playing at TIFF, but most of the rumored Academy Award frontrunners have been suprisingly absent from the festival circuit.

Speaking of awards, the third annual CFTPA Producer's Award was given to producer Rob Merilees who was chosen from a list of over 30 promising and accomplished Canadian filmmakers. Congratulations to Rob, and if you get the chance, check out his film Stone of Destiny, the closing night gala at TIFF this year.

I've been waiting for this day the whole year: the Toronto International Film Festival kicks off today, bringing some of the best cinema and filmmakers to our city in a celebration of art, celebrity, and glamor.

The anticipation and excitement is high, as it would be on any festival opening day, but it wouldn't be a good festival if it didn't open with some controversy. Yesterday, Venice Film Festival artistic director Marco Mueller announced that as of 2009 the Venice fest will compete directly with Toronto's event. Venice is known to draw the bigger stars, but Toronto definitely draws the bigger business. How the competition will be resolved is yet to be seen.

But this year, Venice is wrapping up and Toronto has the international film spotlight, so let's enjoy TIFF for all its glory.