The Toronto International Film Festival announced the films slated for the 2017 TIFF Cinematheque program. In light of Canada’s sesquicentennial, this year’s program celebrates homegrown filmmakers and their works by revisiting and restoring landmarks of Canada’s cinematic history. This all-Canadian lineup consists of titles culled from TIFF’s Canada on Screen list of essential Canadian moving-image works.

TIFF Cinematheque will be a FREE program for all to enjoy as part of Canada on Screen.

Highlights include the debuts of three new digital restorations done under the supervision of the films’ directors. Featured titles are Clement Virgo’s Rude (95), the first Canadian dramatic feature to be written, directed and produced by an all-black team; Patricia Rozema’s Cannes Prix de la jeunesse–winning I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing (87); and Peter Mettler’s poetic essay film Picture of Light (94). Showcasing iconic films dealing with themes still relevant and prevalent today, this year’s program underscores the endurance of Canada’s legacy on screen.

“At TIFF we’re proud to continue our commitment to the preservation and restoration of Canada’s filmic history,” said Jesse Wente, Head, TIFF Cinematheque. “These groundbreaking works from the 1980s and 1990s demonstrate our country’s long history of celebrating directors who push boundaries with their personal visions. We look forward to bringing them back to audiences via these beautiful digital restorations.”

“I am delighted that this year’s Toronto International Film Festival will showcase several digitally restored classics of Canadian cinema,” said the Honorable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage. “As we celebrate Canada 150, I invite you all to participate, and to experience these films that reveal the richness of our cinematic heritage.”

Also featured as part of the Cinematheque lineup are larger-than-life screenings of Graeme Ferguson’s North of Superior (71), at Cinesphere, the world’s first permanent IMAX cinema, presented in collaboration with Ontario Place. As the first film commissioned for and screened at Cinesphere at its 1971 grand opening, North of Superior is the film that helped put the IMAX format on the map.

The 42nd Toronto International Film Festival runs from September 7 to 17, 2017.

Films screening as part of the TIFF Cinematheque program include:

2017 TIFF Cinematheque

I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing
Patricia Rozema, Canada, 1987
*New digital restoration: Work carried out at Technicolor, Toronto and Montreal under the supervision of Director Patricia Rozema.

Picture of Light
Peter Mettler, Canada, 1994
*New digital restoration: Work carried out at Technicolor, Toronto and Montreal, with soundtrack restoration by Lou Solakofski of
Tattersall Sound and Picture, and Peter Bräker sound design, Switzerland, under the supervision of Director Peter Mettler.

Rude
Clement Virgo, Canada, 1995
*New digital restoration: Work carried out at Technicolor, Toronto and Montreal under the supervision of Director Clement Virgo and
Producer Damon D’Oliveira.

North of Superior
Graeme Ferguson, Canada, 1971
*Special IMAX screening at Cinesphere