Spanish-Language and Asian Titles Added to TIFF'08 Line Up

Today is a good day for fans of international cinema as numerous Asian titles and Spanish-language films have been added to the line up for the Toronto International Film Festival 2008.

Out of the films announced it is a trio of Japanese films that have caught my attention right off the bat: Achilles and the Tortoise, Still Walking and The Sky Crawlers. I had been wondering recently if Takeshi Kitano would have an entry this year and her sure does with Achilles and the Tortoise which is the third film in his self-reflective trilogy. This one goes on my must see list for sure, after spending two chilly first Fridays of TIFF at the Ryerson theatre watching Takeshi's and Glory to the Filmmaker! spending that morning with Takeshi films has become an odd but compelling ritual. Other must see's are Still Walking by Hirokazu Kore-eda (Hana) which is a look at a dysfunctional yet reconnected family in one day time frame. Also on the list is The Sky Crawlers is an animated film by Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell) that looks captivating and has an alarming stillness to a film set in a world of endless war. Want to know more? Check out The Sky Crawlers trailer over at Twitch.

An unlikely juxtaposition is created in In the Shadow of the Naga Phawat from director Panangkasiri involving hidden money and robbers who need to become ordained monks. Sounds crazy and that is good enough for me! If family dramas are more your thing check out Treeless Mountain from director So Yong Kim, a South Korean film where two sisters are left with their aunt for the summer as their Mom goes to look for estranged father. More paternity issues arise for three women in the Indonesian Under the Tree by director Garin Nugroh.

If romance is on your film horizon there are selections with characters young and old. Empty Nest is a comedy centred on a married couple after the children have all moved out from director Daniel Burman. Curious to what those kids the up to? Young romance collides with politics in Gerardo Naranjo's Voy a Explotar.

The selection of films just gets better and better. Here is the list of newly added titles alphabetically by program.

Contemporary World Cinema

Adela
Dir: Adolfo Alix Jr.
Philippines

All Around Us
Dir: Ryosuke Hashiguchi
Japan

Blind Sunflowers
Dir: José Luis Cuerda
Spain

Firaaq
Dir: Nandita Das
India

Horn of Plenty
Dir: Juan Carlos Tabío
Spain/Cuba

In the Shadow of the Naga Phawat
Dir: Panangkasiri
Thailand

Machan
Dir: Uberto Pasolini
United Kingdom/Italy/Germany/Sri Lanka

Radio Love
Dir: Leonardo de Armas
Spain

Return to Hansala
Dir: Chus Gutiérre
Spain

Treeless Mountain
Dir: So Yong Kim
South Korea

Under the Tree
Dir: Garin Nugroh
Indonesia

The Window
Dir: Carlos Sorin
Spain/Argentina

Galas

Empty Nest
Dir: Daniel Burman
Argentina/Spain/France/Italy

Masters

Achilles and the Tortoise
Dir: Takeshi Kitano (Glory to the Filmmaker!)
Japan

Real to Reel

Témoin indésirable
Dir: Juan Jose Lozano
Switzerland/France

Special Presentations

Kanchivaram
Dir: Priyadarshan
India

Plastic City
Dir: Yu Lik-wai
Brazil/China

Still Walking
Dir: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Japan

Visions

Birdsong
Dir: Albert Serra
Spain

The Sky Crawlers
Dir: Mamoru Oshii
Japan

Vanguard

Dioses
Dir: Josué Méndez
Peru

Ocean Flame
Dir: Liu Fendou
Hong Kong/China

Voy a Explotar
Dir: Gerardo Naranjo
Mexico

The Toronto International Film Festival 2008 runs from September 4-13/08 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.