Cinesiege 2003

CineSiege 2003 is a juried showcase screening of outstanding productions of 2002-2003 by talented young filmmakers in AMPD’s Department of Cinema and Media Arts.

The program featured seven short films, selected from a shortlist of 19 productions by five leading lights of the Canadian film scene.

Jurors:
Liz Braun, film critic, Toronto Sun
Eugene Levy, comic actor and screenwriter (American Pie, Best in Show, A Mighty Wind)
Larry Weinstein, director, producer andscreenwriter, Rhombus Media (The War Symphonies: Shostakovich against Stalin, Ravel’s Brain, Stormy Weather: The Music of Harold Arlen)
Patricia Rozema, feature film director (Mansfield Park, The White Room, I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing)
Geoff Pevere, movie critic, Toronto Star; co-host, “Reel to Real”, Rogers Television.

News Release

CineSiege is made possible through the generous support of

Jury

	Liz Braun has been a film and entertainment writer for 18 years. With Brian Johnson, she co-hosted the original incarnation of “On The Arts”, CBC-TV’s national entertainment program. Currently the film critic for the Toronto Sun, she has worked at CBC Radio and Television, CHUM FM and for various Canadian magazines. She is also a book reviewer.
	One of Canada’s leading comic actors and screenwriters, Eugene Levy launched his career on stage with the improv comedy troupe Second City in Toronto. With colleagues John Candy and Joe Flaherty, he subsequently founded its television offshoot SCTV, winning two Emmys as a member of the writing team for the show. Roles on episodic tv and hit movies such as American Pie, American Pie 2 and American Wedding have made Levy a household name across North America. His numerous credits include several highly successful collaborations with Christopher Guest, with whom he co-wrote and starred in the mockumentary Waiting for Guffman; the satirical comedy Best in Show, which received a Best Screenplay nomination from the Writers Guild of America; and most recently, the acclaimed mockumentary A Mighty Wind.
	A partner at Rhombus Media since 1979, Larry Weinstein has become Canada’s pre-eminent director of films on musical subjects. Many of his productions document the lives and musical creation of 20th century composers, among them Ravel; The Radical Romantic: John Weinzweig; My War Years: Arnold Schoenberg; and The War Symphonies: Shostakovich against Stalin. Weinstein has worked with leading cultural broadcasters throughout North America, Europe, Asia and South America. His films have been televised in over 40 countries and screened at major festivals throughout the world, taking top awards in Toronto, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Paris, San Sebastian, Prague, Melbourne and others. He has won numerous International Emmy and Gemini Awards, and an Oscar nomination for Making Overtures – The Story of a Community Orchestra. In 1998, Solidarity Song: The Hanns Eisler Story won the Louvre’s Classique en Images award as the world’s best film on the arts over a three-year span. Weinstein’s most recent productions include Andrea Bocelli – Tuscan Skies and Stormy Weather: The Music of Harold Arlen. He is currently developing Beethoven’s Hair, a musical/pathological/historical film for television, and co-scripting a feature film based on the artistic, political and sexual life of conductor Arturo Toscanini. Weinstein is a graduate of York University’s Film & Video program.
	In 1987, writer-director Patricia Rozema’s debut feature I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing, starring Sheila McCarthy, was selected for the Director’s Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival and was awarded the Prix de la Jeunesse. The film received both enormous commercial and critical success and was recently selected as one of the top ten Canadian films of the century. Rozema’s next two feature films were the dark and ambitious White Room (1991) and the lesbian love story When Night is Falling (1995). She won a Primetime Emmy for her 1997 film Six Gestures, part of the Rhombus Media series Yo-Yo Ma: Inspired by Bach. In 1999, Rozema completed writing and directing the Miramax/HAL production of Mansfield Park, a compelling adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel. In 2000, she directed a filmed version of Samuel Beckett’s play Happy Days for the Beckett film project. Rozema is currently developing another project with Miramax.
	Geoff Pevere has been writing, broadcasting and teaching about movies, media and popular culture for over twenty years. As a critic, his work has appeared in numerous international publications, periodicals and anthologies. The first program coordinator of the Toronto International Film Festival’s Perspective Canada program, Pevere was also the host of CBC Radio’s Prime Time pop culture radio program, the host of TVOntario’s Film International and for twelve years the movie critic on CTV’s Canada AM. He is also the co-author of the national bestseller Mondo Canuck: A Canadian Pop Culture Odyssey. Currently, he is a movie critic with the Toronto Star and co-host of Reel to Real on Rogers Television.

Nominees

	We’re Capitalists 5:10 min. Director : Michael Tersigni Videographer : Andrew Kronby Sound : Brad McGregor Editor : Matthew CrandallA dramatic, in-depth look at the moral fabric of contemporary society seen through the eyes of a simple city boy. Couched within the theatrical tradition and set to the principles of the musical video genre, audiences are bound to dance in the aisles and fall in love with the four nameless yet provocative fat cats. To sum up these five minutes of cinematic splendor, we turn to the words imparted upon us by the great Celine Dion: “nature is only an immense ruin”.
	Today 3:40 min. Director : Tricia Lee Cinematographer : Anice Wong Sound : Will Tetley Editor : Wendi MarchioniA film about the simple pleasures of childhood.
	Three Corners 18 min. Director / Writer : Steve Carey Producer : Karyn Sullivan Cinematographer : Benjamin Lichty Sound : Eliza Billes Editor : Valesca CerskiAfter being away from home for seven years, Stewart Brown returns to his hometown for his father’s funeral. In an attempt to rekindle his friendship with his younger brother, Stewart confronts the mistakes of his past and rediscovers the importance of a lost brotherhood.
	Synthetic Aurora 3:10 min. Director : Josh Bonnetta Videographers : Hugh Gibson & Jean-Paul Tibensky
	Prince Solitaire 18:03 min. Director : Matthew Crandall Writers : Matthew Crandall & Stephen Mullins Cinematographer : Pavel Patriki Sound : Elisabeth Martin-Cavalcante Editor : Corey BrownEveryone in Fairytale land was getting lucky… everyone except Prince Solitaire.
	Post Secondary Dreams 13:35 min. Director : Aaron Van Borek Assistant Director : Mariana Predovic Videographers : Mark Toller & Catherine Howe Sound : Catherine Howe Editor : Jacob Templin“Dreams really do come true. With a post-secondary degree anything is possible!” An exploration of the value, trials and tribulations involved in the pursuit of a post-secondary education.
	Only the Waves 11:25 min. Director / Writer : Morgan Passi Cinematography : Queena Chan Sound : Brad McGregor Editor : Stephanie DaCostaA film about a young girl’s first lessons in friendship, love and revenge
	Now Watch Me 4:30 min. Director : J. Lauren Johnson Videographer : Queena Chan Sound : Conall Pendergast Editor : Elise CousineauA young girl dances in her living room; a woman walking by outside stops to watch. This film calls into question the impact of pop culture images on the phenomenon of exhibitionism and the female experience.
	My Body 2:15 min. Director : J. Lauren Johnson Videographer : Anice Wong Sound : May Chew Editor : Samantha StokellAn intimate critique of the relationship between herself and her body, this film highlights the filmmaker’s struggle between how she feels and what she thinks.
	Make Some F#%king Noise: The World of Free Tekno Toronto 4:25 min. Director : Brad McGregor Videographer : Carl Elster Sound : Meagan McAteer Editor : Pavel PatrikiTestaments of Toronto’s most underground party promoters as they break into buildings, reclaim public space and take a stance against the system. A video about dissent and the reasons for being FREE.
	Chasing Chinese 11:05 min. Directors : May Chew & Anice Wong Videographer : Anice Wong Sound : Ramona Pringle Editor : Renee DesjardinsA young person’s struggle to reinitiate herself back into an estranged culture.
	Brine 7 min. Director : Jesse Elliott Cinematographer : Emmanuel Mutsune Sound & Lighting : Farhad Farazmand Editor : Melissa BergA man covets a foot in a pickle jar.

Jury’s Selections

	Tracks 17 min. Director : Alison Bulger Writer / Producer : Magali Boccaccio Cinematographer : Kavita Gill Sound : Joel Sutherland Editor : Magali Boccaccio
	Small Blue Thing 6:50 min. Writers : Lara Mrkoci, Jacqui Okum Cinematographer : Jacqui Okum Editor : Aaron Van Borek Animation : Tess Girard & Aaron Van Borek Sound : Tess GirardA small blue thing wants to experience the world but is instead trapped in an unfriendly toy store and put up for sale. Attempting to escape, small blue thing gets more than he bargained for.
	In Winter 8:45 min. Director : Elise Cousineau Writer : Bill Taylor Sound : Andrew Kronby Cinematographer : Christine Jeoffroy Editor : Samantha StokellA story about two people trying to turn their physical attraction into an emotional connection. A young man and woman drive to a barren field and have sex for the first time, thinking it will bring them closer together. They realize too late that their actions have only magnified the emotional distance between them.
	Fireman’s Blues 16 min. Director / Writer : Mike Montanera Cinematographer : Matt Lennox Sound : Carly Gray Editor : Melissa BrennerSusan Edwards works the night shift in a warehouse. Her son, Nick, works the day shift. Dirk Edwards is the youngest and they’re depending on him to become a fireman. When Dirk decides on another career path the family begins to come apart at the seams. After all, nobody works in the warehouse because they want to.
	Definitions 12:05 min. Director : Pete Adams Videographer : Morgan Passi Sound : Brodie McNeill Editors : Morgan Passi & Pete AdamsThe search for a man’s gay identity begins at home.
	Days 2:45 min. Director / Editor : Meagan McAteer Videographer : Mike Montanera Sound : Carly GrayWhat happens when everything that can go wrong does? Who do you turn to when everyone turns away? What will be left when this day is done…?