Well, this is a first. Next year's Victoria Film Festival is going to open with a biker flick.
OK, maybe One Week won't be mistaken for Easy Rider, but it does feature a dude on a motorcycle trip.
The film, from Michael McGowan, the Canadian writer-director whose Saint Ralph was featured at the fest three years ago, stars Joshua Jackson as a failed novelist-turned-English teacher who buys a motorcycle after being diagnosed with cancer. One Week charts his impulsive journey of self-discovery from Toronto to Tofino, with stops at various Canadian landmarks.
While the full lineup of films and peripheral events won't be unveiled until the festival's launch at Lucky Bar on Jan. 8, director Kathy Kay has confirmed the inclusion of One Week and a handful of other films likely to become hot tickets.
A big one is Hunger, British visual artist Steve McQueen's dramatic directorial debut, and winner of the Camera d'Or this year in Cannes, where it got a standing ovation. It focuses on Irish Republican Army prisoner Bobby Sands's hunger strike in 1981.
Another Irish entry is Fifty Dead Men Walking, Canadian director Kari Skogland's intense drama starring Jim Sturgess as Martin McGartland, the Northern Ireland street hustler recruited by the British government to infiltrate and spy on the IRA.
Other highlights: Inside Hana's Suitcase, Larry Weinstein's feature about a group of Japanese students eager to learn more about a Jewish girl who owned the battered suitcase they received from Auschwitz; Tuya's Marriage, a visually striking tale of a woman's struggle for survival in Inner Mongolia; and Stone of Destiny, Charles Martin Smith's feature recalling how three Glaswegian patriots broke into Westminster Abbey to reclaim the Stone of Scone, a symbol of Scottish sovereignty, in 1950.
Organizers have also released the names of the 20 promising Canadian filmmakers to be highlighted at the 10-day festival that starts Jan. 31 as part of Springboard, its new initiative designed to give talented artists a "springboard" to success.
The list includes established filmmakers such as Sarah Polley, Andrew Currie, Rob Merilees, Richie Mehta and Michael McGowan, as well as up-and-comers such as Cree filmmaker Kevin Lee Burton and Broken Social Scene singer Kevin Drew.
Other invitees include YouTube filmmaker and funnyman Nathan Fielder, producer Floyd Kane, animation team Flemish Beauty, co-directors Marie-Helene Cousineau and Madeline Piujuq Ivalu (Before Tomorrow), documentary filmmaker Brett Gaylor, Quebec director Philippe Falardeau and emerging feature filmmaker Garfield Lindsay Miller.
Also selected were Eli Goree; local digital magician Scott Dewis (Lost, Fringe); Simone Urdl and Jennifer Weiss, founders of Film Farm, the production company behind Away from Her and Brian de Palma's Redacted; and director Martin Gero, whose Young People F--king prompted the Conservatives to introduce the contro- versial Bill C-10 amendment.
Festival director Kay says she's excited about being able to shine the spotlight on such a cross-section of talent. They were chosen from 50 nominees suggested by a jury that included yours truly, Maclean's film critic Brian D. Johnson, Canwest's Jay Stone and Katherine Monk, director Bruce McDonald (Hard Core Logo) and producer Michael Donovan (Bowling for Columbine.)
"That's why we went across the country to find our jurors," Kay said. "It's hard to know from here what's going on in Halifax."
She expects to hear back from the invitees this week.
"I'd be delighted if they all said yes," Kay said. "I think this will be fascinating and make you understand why you love film."
Advance tickets and Christmas gift vouchers for festival films can be purchased by calling 250-389-0444, or at the festival office, 1215 Blanshard St. You will also soon be able to purchase them online at www.victoriafilmfestival.com.
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