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Emotional win at film festival Hilda Hashempour became teary-eyed when she stood before the audience and accepted the award for best documentary at the 2006 Toronto Film School Festival of Film. Her 15-minute doc, titled Mine is the Sky, was a poignant account of her mother's fight with breast cancer, and earned the young filmmaker one of her school's top honours. LAUREN BRESLIN

[ 2006-02-22 ] Send to a friend Print

"It was a great experience for me as a new filmmaker," Hashempour says. "But it was also hard to enjoy something you suffered from so much."

Personal journey

Hashempour, who has one more term to go before graduating from the school's Film and TV Production program, decided to embark on a very personal, and indeed, emotional journey for her final project.

"For me it was an effort to illustrate my deep, invisible sufferings," she said. "After the screening I met lots of people who liked the movie because they found it very close to themselves. So I am happy for winning the award and making this impression on people."

And she did leave quite the impression. The director of the Toronto Film School, John Foote, called her film "one of the best documentaries I've seen the students produce. It was very, very moving."

The Festival of Film, now in its fourth and largest year to date, took place Feb. 10 at the Glenn Gould Studio. It was a day-long presentation of the students' best work, and wrapped up with an awards ceremony in the evening.

"I think the quality of the filmmaking has improved dramatically since the festival began," Foote says. "They're just pushing the envelope more than they ever have before."

The film submissions are usually less than 18 minutes in length, and are sent to a panel of faculty members who pre-screen them for quality and eligibility. This year there were 105 entries, but only 35 films were named official selections.

"We make a decision on which films are better than others," Foote explains. "Meaning which films have superior production values, story structure, writing and directing -- and which films actually deserve to be there."

Most entries come from the school's Film Production program, but the festival also accepts animated films from the Computer Animation students. "Some of the other programs within the Toronto Film School work on the films, too," Foote says. "The Digital Editing students work with the Film Production kids on their projects, as do the Sound Technology students. Everybody eventually is involved."

Indeed, students have total reign over all aspects of their production. And, like mainstream cinema, some of the films may include adult content -- if done in good taste. One of the films screened this year was called The First-Timers, a story about a middle-aged couple attending their first orgy. "There is certainly nudity and harsh language," Foote says. "We don't act as a censor board for the kids at all. If something is done with integrity and doesn't take away anybody's dignity, we will let it go."

While the school does offer an acting program, many of the students use professional actors in their films. "We have an agreement with ACTRA, and many of the actors in the films are unionized actors or ACTRA apprentices," Foote says. "That's exciting for the kids because they're working with actors who really care about their craft."

Candid footage

Documentaries, obviously, are a different story. In Hashempour's film, the principal cast is herself, her mother and the nurses at the hospital. She shot more than 15 hours worth of candid footage over a 10-week period, and then spent roughly two months editing it down to 15 minutes.

"It was a very difficult process," Hashempour says. "It was all about manipulating different sides of my soul and feelings."

The Toronto Film School, part of the International Academy of Design and Technology, offers students a unique curriculum that balances classroom learning and hands-on filmmaking. Students have 24-hour access to the school's facilities, including film studios, cameras and equipment.

"I love the Toronto Film School," Hashempour says. "I believe it's is the best place for people who are really passionate about filmmaking. They really know how to teach you and also how to inspire you, which is very important."

The school also enjoys lots of industry support. In fact, one of their biggest supporters is Bill Marshall, co-founder of the Toronto International Film Festival and the Academy of Canadian Cinema, and former president of the Canadian Association of Motion Picture Producers.

"Bill's a good friend of ours," Foote says. "He's called us the best film school in the world. I certainly think we're the best in Canada, and I think we're headed towards being the best in North America."

The 2006 Toronto Film School Festival of Film was made possible by the support of its official media sponsor, the Toronto Sun. Check out the website at www.tfsf2006.com for a chance to view this year's winning films.

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