The Female Eye Film Festival (FeFF), founded by Leslie Ann Coles, celebrates its 20th Anniversary June 9 to 12, 2022, Live at TIFF Bell Lightbox in Toronto, Canada. FeFF is a competitive international women’s film festival that provides an exclusive showcase for Canadian and foreign women and gender-diverse directors.
The festival will showcase an eclectic program of features, documentaries, shorts, and the Late-Night Thrills and Chills – an international program of horror, suspense, and thrillers directed by women – on Friday, June 10, and Saturday, June 11, at 10PM.
The Best In The Biz Tribute celebrates 2022 Honorary Director Valerie Buhagiar on Saturday, June 11. In Buhagiar’s latest feature, “Carmen,” based on true events, 50-year-old Carmen finds her voice and her true calling and liberates villagers in a small Maltese town.
Other notable Canadian features, include “We’re All in This Together,” a clever adaptation of the novel by Amy Jones written by, directed by, and starring Katie Boland in her debut directorial feature film; “The Kissing Game,” a passionate urban fantasy and solo performance that explores love, betrayal, friendship, and identity directed by newcomer Montreal filmmaker Véa; “Be Still,” by Elizabeth Lazebnik, an homage to Canadian photographer Hannah Maynard, who was 40 years ahead of the Surrealist movement. FeFF also celebrates Toronto media artist Edie Steiner with a film retrospective and artist talk.
Foreign film highlights include the Closing Night feature, “Romantic Guide to Lost Places,” by Golden Globe award winning filmmaker, Giorgia Farina. Starring Clive Owen and “Moonlight Shadow Wall,” directed by Shiman Ma, which tells the story of three families who reside at the foot of the ancient city of Xi’an who embrace cultural traditions while trying to embrace a new era (China); And, foreign documentaries “Mama Irene: Healer of the Andes,” directed by Elisabeth Möhlmann and Bettina Ehrhardt, a documentary that features a remarkable 84-year-old shaman from Peru who draws upon endangered Indigenous knowledge and traditions (Peru); “Independent Miss Craigie,” directed by Lizzie Thynne, which captures the extraordinary life story of Jill Craigie, one of the first women to direct documentaries in the United Kingdom, whose work has long been neglected (UK); and “Forbidden Womanhood,” directed by Maryam Zahirirmehr, a poetic and symbolic portrayal of betrayal and loss in which 12-year-old Mahi’s mother refuses to tell her how a woman gets pregnant (Iran).