# 2008 Toronto International Film Festival

The 2008 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) was held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. This 33rd annual festival was from September 4 to September 13, 2008. The opening night gala was the World War I romantic epic Passchendaele from Canadian director Paul Gross.

## About the 2008 Festival

The 2008 festival was heavy on Canadian fare as well as featuring prominent indie films and worldwide as well as North American debuts including: Adoration directed by Canada's own Atom Egoyan, Appaloosa the second film from Ed Harris (who directed Pollock), Blindness from screenwriter-director, Fernando Meirelles, Iraq war thriller The Hurt Locker directed by Kathryn Bigelow, and veteran filmmaker Barbet Schroeder's Inju, la bête dans l'ombre. Scheduled is The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond (directed by Jodie Markell), based on a "rediscovered" Tennessee Williams screenplay. TIFF screened 312 films from 64 countries. These include 249 features, most of which were North American and/or world premieres.
Neil Burger (director of The Illusionist) world premiered The Lucky Ones a character study of U.S. soldiers on an unplanned road trip, starring Tim Robbins.
Also featured was Me and Orson Welles helmed by American "slacker" Richard Linklater, the Spike Lee-directed World War II film, Miracle at St. Anna as well as the Jonathan Demme directed film Rachel Getting Married. Other festival highlights are screenwriter Charlie Kaufman's first film, Synecdoche, New York, a slice of experimental filmmaker James Benning's Americana RR was featured in the "Wavelengths" avant-garde showcase, the four-hour-long Steven Soderbergh epic Che (playing in two parts), as well as The Wrestler lensed by Darren Aronofsky. The Brits are also well represented with Happy-Go-Lucky directed by Mike Leigh and Slumdog Millionaire directed by Danny Boyle.
Despite showing fewer films than last year, among the 249 features, 116 are premieres and 61 are first features. Films from as many as 64 countries were screened, with more than 340,000 admissions expected.
"Canadian Open Vault", which always highlights a restored Canadian film, focused on Quebec filmmaker François Girard's 32 Short Films About Glenn Gould made in 1993.
Actors Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Benicio del Toro, Ethan Hawke, Laura Linney and film directors Julian Schnabel, Kathryn Bigelow and Steven Soderbergh are among the celebs the festival has invited on its 500-plus guest list, thus completing its lineup.
The festival closed on September 13, 2008 with the North American premiere of Stone of Destiny written and directed by Charles Martin Smith, the true story of four Glasgow university students who try to restore the 300-pound Stone of Scone to its rightful Scottish home.
With the film Fifty Dead Men Walking, Rose McGowan expressed support for the cause of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), with the reports of her comments being released into the media on September 11, 2008. After starring in Fifty Dead Men Walking, she was quoted as saying "I imagine had I grown up in Belfast, I would 100% have been in the IRA. My heart just broke for the cause. Violence is not to be played out daily and provide an answer to problems, but I understand it." Her comments were attacked by the original author Martin McCartlend. McCartland had general objections against the film, but approved of an out of court settlement, believed to be in the region of £20,000 (US$35,000 in summer 2008).

## Awards

| Award | Film | Director |
| People's Choice Award | Slumdog Millionaire | Danny Boyle |
| People's Choice Award First Runner Up | More Than a Game | Kristopher Belman |
| People's Choice Award Second Runner Up | The Stoning of Soraya M. | Cyrus Nowrasteh |
| Discovery Award | Hunger | Steve McQueen |
| Best Canadian Feature Film | Lost Song | Rodrigue Jean |
| Best Canadian Feature Film – Special Jury Citation | Adoration | Atom Egoyan |
| Best Canadian First Feature Film | Before Tomorrow (Le Jour avant le lendemain) | Madeline Ivalu & Marie-Hélène Cousineau |
| Best Canadian First Feature Film – Special Jury Citation | Borderline | Lyne Charlebois |
| Best Canadian Short Film | Block B | Chris Chong Chan Fui |
| Best Canadian Short Film – Special Jury Citation | Next Floor | Denis Villeneuve |
| FIPRESCI Discovery | Lymelife | Derick Martini |
| FIPRESCI Special Presentations | Disgrace | Steve Jacobs |

## Program
### Gala Presentations

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Burn After Reading | Burn After Reading | Joel Coen, Ethan Coen | United States |
| Dean Spanley | Dean Spanley | Toa Fraser | United Kingdom |
| The Duchess | The Duchess | Saul Dibb | France, Italy, United Kingdom, United States |
| Fifty Dead Men Walking | Fifty Dead Men Walking | Kari Skogland | Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland |
| The Girl from Monaco | La Fille de Monaco | Anne Fontaine | France |
| The Good, the Bad, the Weird | 좋은 놈, 나쁜 놈, 이상한 놈 | Kim Jee-woon | South Korea |
| The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond | The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond | Jodie Markell | United States |
| The Lucky Ones | The Lucky Ones | Neil Burger | United States |
| Mesrine: Public Enemy No. One | Mesrine: Public Enemy No. One | Jean-François Richet | France |
| Nothing But the Truth | Nothing But the Truth | Rod Lurie | United States |
| One Week | One Week | Michael McGowan | Canada |
| The Other Man | The Other Man | Richard Eyre | United Kingdom, United States |
| Passchendaele | Passchendaele | Paul Gross | Canada |
| Pride and Glory | Pride and Glory | Gavin O'Connor | Germany, United States |
| Rachel Getting Married | Rachel Getting Married | Jonathan Demme | United States |
| The Secret Life of Bees | The Secret Life of Bees | Gina Prince-Bythewood | United States |
| Singh Is Kinng | Singh Is Kinng | Anees Bazmee | India |
| Stone of Destiny | Stone of Destiny | Charles Martin Smith | Canada, United Kingdom |
| Who Do You Love? | Who Do You Love? | Jerry Zaks | United States |
| A Year Ago in Winter | Im Winter ein Jahr | Caroline Link | Germany |

### Special Presentations

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| 35 Shots of Rum | 35 Rhums | Claire Denis | France, Germany |
| Adoration | Adoration | Atom Egoyan | Canada |
| Appaloosa | Appaloosa | Ed Harris | United States |
| Ashes of Time Redux | Ashes of Time Redux | Wong Kar-wai | Hong Kong |
| Blindness | Blindness | Fernando Meirelles | Brazil, Canada, Japan |
| The Brothers Bloom | The Brothers Bloom | Rian Johnson | United States |
| The Burning Plain | The Burning Plain | Guillermo Arriaga | United States |
| Che | Che | Steven Soderbergh | Spain, Germany, France, United States |
| A Christmas Tale | Un conte de Noël | Arnaud Desplechin | France |
| The Class | Entre les murs | Laurent Cantet | France |
| Disgrace | Disgrace | Steve Jacobs | Australia |
| Il Divo | Il Divo | Paolo Sorrentino | Italy, France |
| Easy Virtue | Easy Virtue | Stephan Elliott | United Kingdom |
| Empty Nest | El nido vacío | Daniel Burman | Argentina, France, Italy, Spain |
| Every Little Step | Every Little Step | James Stern, Adam Del Deo | United States |
| Flash of Genius | Flash of Genius | Marc Abraham | United States |
| Genova | Genova | Michael Winterbottom | United Kingdom |
| Ghost Town | Ghost Town | David Koepp | United States |
| Gomorrah | Gomorrah | Matteo Garrone | Italy |
| Good | Good | Vincente Amorim | United Kingdom, Germany, Hungary |
| Happy-Go-Lucky | Happy-Go-Lucky | Mike Leigh | United Kingdom |
| Heaven on Earth | Heaven on Earth | Deepa Mehta | Canada, India |
| The Hurt Locker | The Hurt Locker | Kathryn Bigelow | United States |
| I've Loved You So Long | Il y a longtemps que je t'aime | Philippe Claudel | France, Germany |
| Inju: The Beast in the Shadow | Inju, la bête dans l'ombre | Barbet Schroeder | France |
| Is Anybody There? | Is Anybody There? | John Crowley | United Kingdom |
| It's Not Me, I Swear! | C'est pas moi, je le jure! | Philippe Falardeau | Canada |
| Kanchivaram | Kanchivaram | Priyadarshan | India |
| Last Stop 174 | Última Parada 174 | Bruno Barreto | Brazil |
| Management | Management | Stephen Belber | United States |
| Me and Orson Welles | Me and Orson Welles | Richard Linklater | United States |
| Miracle at St. Anna | Miracle at St. Anna | Spike Lee | United States |
| New York, I Love You | New York, I Love You | Fatih Akin, Yvan Attal, Randy Balsmeyer, Allen Hughes, Shunji Iwai, Scarlett Johansson, Shekhar Kapur, Joshua Marston, Mira Nair, Natalie Portman, Brett Ratner, Jiang Wen, Andrey Zvyagintsev | United States |
| Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist | Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist | Peter Sollett | United States |
| Paris 36 | Faubourg 36 | Christophe Barratier | France |
| A Perfect Day | Un giorno perfetto | Ferzan Özpetek | Italy |
| Plastic City | Dangkou | Yu Lik-wai | Brazil, Hong Kong, China, Japan |
| One Day You Will Understand | Plus tard, tu comprendras | Amos Gitai | France, Germany |
| Religulous | Religulous | Larry Charles | United States |
| RocknRolla | RocknRolla | Guy Ritchie | United Kingdom, United States, France |
| The Sea Wall | Un Barrage contre le Pacifique | Rithy Panh | France, Cambodia, Belgium |
| Séraphine | Séraphine | Martin Provost | France, Belgium |
| Slumdog Millionaire | Slumdog Millionaire | Danny Boyle | United Kingdom |
| Still Walking | Aruitemo aruitemo | Hirokazu Kore-eda | Japan |
| Synecdoche, New York | Synecdoche, New York | Charlie Kaufman | United States |
| Valentino: The Last Emperor | Valentino: The Last Emperor | Matt Tyrnauer | United States |
| Waltz with Bashir | Vals im Bashir | Ari Folman | Israel |
| With a Little Help from Myself | Aide-toi et le ciel t'aidera | François Dupeyron | France |
| A Woman in Berlin | Anonyma – Eine Frau in Berlin | Max Färberböck | Germany, Poland |
| The Wrestler | The Wrestler | Darren Aronofsky | United States |
| Youssou N'Dour: I Bring What I Love | Youssou N'Dour: I Bring What I Love | Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi | United States |
| Zack and Miri Make a Porno | Zack and Miri Make a Porno | Kevin Smith | United States |

### Contemporary World Cinema

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| 33 Scenes from Life | 33 sceny z życia | Małgorzata Szumowska | Poland |
| Acne | Acné | Federico Veiroj | Uruguay, Argentina, Mexico, Spain |
| Adela | Adela | Adolfo Alix Jr. | Philippines |
| Adhen | Dernier maquis | Rabah Ameur-Zaïmeche | France, Algeria |
| All Around Us | Gururi no koto | Ryōsuke Hashiguchi | Japan |
| The Blind Sunflowers | Los girasoles ciegos | José Luis Cuerda | Spain |
| Cloud 9 | Wolke Neun | Andreas Dresen | Germany |
| The Country Teacher | Venkovský učitel | Bohdan Sláma | Czechia |
| Country Wedding | Sveitabrúðkaup | Valdís Óskarsdóttir | Iceland |
| Fear Me Not | Den du frygter | Kristian Levring | Denmark |
| A Film with Me in It | A Film with Me in It | Ian Fitzgibbon | Ireland |
| Firaaq | Firaaq | Nandita Das | India |
| Five Dollars a Day | Five Dollars a Day | Nigel Cole | United States |
| Flame & Citron | Flammen & Citronen | Ole Christian Madsen | Denmark |
| The Ghost | Domovoi | Karen Oganesyan | Russia |
| Goodbye Solo | Goodbye Solo | Ramin Bahrani | United States |
| El Greco | El Greco | Yannis Smaragdis | Greece |
| Horn of Plenty | El cuerno de la abundancia | Juan Carlos Tabío | Cuba, Spain |
| In the Shadow of the Naga | Nak prok | Phawat Panangkasiri | Thailand |
| Jerichow | Jerichow | Christian Petzold | Germany |
| Katia's Sister | Het zusje van Katia | Mijke de Jong | Netherlands |
| Khamsa | Khamsa | Karim Dridi | France, Germany, Tunisia |
| Knitting | Niú lán zhī nǔ | Yin Lichuan | China |
| Laila's Birthday | Eid Milad Laila | Rashid Masharawi | Palestine, Tunisia, Netherlands |
| Linha de Passe | Linha de Passe | Walter Salles, Daniela Thomas | Brazil |
| Lion's Den | Leonera | Pablo Trapero | Argentina, South Korea, Brazil, Spain |
| Lost Song | Lost Song | Rodrigue Jean | Canada |
| Machan | Machan | Uberto Pasolini | Italy, Sri Lanka |
| Mark of an Angel | L'Empreinte de l'ange | Safy Nebbou | France |
| Mommy Is at the Hairdresser's | Maman est chez le coiffeur | Léa Pool | Canada |
| Middle of Nowhere | Middle of Nowhere | John Stockwell | United States |
| Mothers & Daughters | Mothers & Daughters | Carl Bessai | Canada |
| My Mother, My Bride and I | Die zweite Frau | Hans Steinbichler | Germany |
| The Narrows | The Narrows | François Velle | United States |
| Native Dancer | Baksy | Gulshat Omarova | Kazakhstan, Russia, France, Germany |
| A No-Hit No-Run Summer | Un été sans point ni coup sûr | Francis Leclerc | Canada |
| O' Horten | O' Horten | Bent Hamer | Norway, France, Germany, Denmark |
| Once Upon a Time in Rio | Era uma Vez... | Breno Silveira | Brazil |
| Pandora's Box | Pandora'nın Kutusu | Yeşim Ustaoğlu | Turkey |
| Patrik, Age 1.5 | Patrik 1,5 | Ella Lemhagen | Sweden |
| Pedro | Pedro | Nicholas Oceano | United States |
| Radio Love | Radio Love | Leonardo de Armas | Spain |
| The Rest of the Night | Il Resto della notte | Francesco Munzi | Italy |
| Restless | Restless | Amos Kollek | Israel, France, Canada, Germany, Belgium |
| Return to Hansala | Retorno a Hansala | Chus Gutiérrez | Spain |
| Revanche | Revanche | Götz Spielmann | Austria |
| Skin | Skin | Anthony Fabian | South Africa, United Kingdom |
| Summer Hours | L'Heure d'été | Olivier Assayas | France |
| Sugar | Sugar | Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck | United States |
| Teza | Teza | Haile Gerima | Ethiopia |
| Three Wise Men | Kolme viisasta miestä | Mika Kaurismäki | Finland |
| Toronto Stories | Toronto Stories | David Weaver, Sudz Sutherland, Aaron Woodley, Sook-Yin Lee | Canada |
| Treeless Mountain | Namueopneun San | So Yong Kim | South Korea |
| Two-legged Horse | Asbe du-pa | Samira Makhmalbaf | Iran |
| Under the Tree | Di Bawah Pohon | Garin Nugroho | Indonesia |
| Wendy and Lucy | Wendy and Lucy | Kelly Reichardt | United States |
| White Night Wedding | Brúðguminn | Baltasar Kormákur | Iceland |
| The Window | La Ventana | Carlos Sorin | Argentina, Spain |

### Discovery

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| $9.99 | $9.99 | Tatia Rosenthal | Australia |
| Apron Strings | Apron Strings | Sima Urale | New Zealand |
| Better Things | Better Things | Duane Hopkins | United Kingdom |
| Cold Lunch | Lønsj | Eva Sørhaug | Norway |
| Daytime Drinking | Najsul | Young-seok Noh | South Korea |
| Delta | Delta | Kornél Mundruczó | Hungary |
| Gigantic | Gigantic | Matt Aselton | United States |
| Hooked | Hooked | Adrian Sitaru | Romania |
| Hunger | Hunger | Steve McQueen | Ireland, United Kingdom |
| Kabuli Kid | Kabuli Kid | Barmak Akram | France, Afghanistan |
| Lovely, Still | Lovely, Still | Nik Fackler | United States |
| Lymelife | Lymelife | Derick Martini, Steve Martini | United States |
| Medicine for Melancholy | Medicine for Melancholy | Barry Jenkins | United States |
| The Paranoids | Los paranoicos | Gabriel Medina | Argentina |
| Parc | Parc | Arnaud des Pallières | France |
| Rain | Rain | Maria Govan | Bahamas |
| Snow | Snijeg | Aida Begić | Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, France, Iran |
| The Stoning of Soraya M. | Sangsār-e Sorayā M. | Cyrus Nowrasteh | United States |
| Tale 52 | Istoria 52 | Alexis Alexiou | Greece |
| Three Blind Mice | Three Blind Mice | Matthew Newton | Australia |
| Tony Manero | Tony Manero | Pablo Larraín | Chile |
| Tulpan | Tulpan | Sergey Dvortsevoy | Kazakhstan, Germany |
| Vacation | Kyuka | Hajime Kadoi | Japan |
| What Doesn't Kill You | What Doesn't Kill You | Brian Goodman | United States |
| Winds of September | 九降風 | Tom Lin Shu-yu | Taiwan |
| Zift | Dzift | Javor Gardev | Bulgaria |

### Canada First

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Before Tomorrow | Le jour avant le lendemain | Marie-Hélène Cousineau, Madeline Ivalu | Canada |
| Borderline | Borderline | Lyne Charlebois | Canada |
| Control Alt Delete | Control Alt Delete | Cameron Labine | Canada |
| Coopers' Camera | Coopers' Camera | Warren P. Sonoda | Canada |
| Down to the Dirt | Down to the Dirt | Justin Simms | Canada |
| Edison and Leo | Edison and Leo | Neil Burns | Canada |
| Nurse.Fighter.Boy | Nurse.Fighter.Boy | Charles Officer | Canada |
| Only | Only | Ingrid Veninger, Simon Reynolds | Canada |
| Real Time | Real Time | Randall Cole | Canada |
| When Life Was Good | When Life Was Good | Terry Miles | Canada |

### Real to Reel

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| 7915 KM | 7915 KM | Nikolaus Geyrhalter | Austria |
| American Swing | American Swing | Mathew Kaufman | United States |
| At the Edge of the World | At the Edge of the World | Dan Stone | United States |
| The Biggest Chinese Restaurant in the World | The Biggest Chinese Restaurant in the World | Weijun Chen | United Kingdom, Denmark, Netherlands |
| Blind Loves | Slepe lásky | Juraj Lehotsky | Slovakia |
| Citizen Juling | Polamuang Juling | Kraisak Choonhavan, Manit Sriwanichpoom, Ing K | Thailand |
| The Dungeon Masters | The Dungeon Masters | Keven McAlester | United States |
| Examined Life | Examined Life | Astra Taylor | Canada |
| Food, Inc. | Food, Inc. | Robert Kenner | United States |
| From Mother to Daughter | Di madre in figlia | Andrea Zambelli | Italy |
| Harvard Beats Yale 29–29 | Harvard Beats Yale 29–29 | Kevin Rafferty | United States |
| The Heart of Jenin | Das Herz von Jenin | Leon Geller, Marcus Vetter | Germany |
| It Might Get Loud | It Might Get Loud | Davis Guggenheim | United States |
| Killing Kasztner | Killing Kasztner | Gaylen Ross | United States |
| The Memories of Angels | La mémoire des anges | Luc Bourdon | Canada |
| More Than a Game | More Than a Game | Kristopher Belman | United States |
| Paris, Not France | Paris, Not France | Adria Petty | United States |
| Peace Mission | Peace Mission | Dorothee Wenner | Germany |
| The Real Shaolin | The Real Shaolin | Alexander Sebastien Lee | United States, China |
| Sea Point Days | Sea Point Days | François Verster | South Africa |
| Shakespeare and Victor Hugo's Intimacies | Intimidades de Shakespeare y Víctor Hugo | Yulene Olaizola | Mexico |
| Shooting Robert King | Shooting Robert King | Richard Parry | United Kingdom |
| Soul Power | Soul Power | Jeff Levy-Hinte | United States |
| Sounds Like Teen Spirit | Sounds Like Teen Spirit | Jamie Jay Johnson | United Kingdom |
| Under Rich Earth | Bajo Suelos Ricos | Malcolm Rogge | Canada |
| Unmistaken Child | Unmistaken Child | Nati Baratz | Israel |
| Unwanted Witness | Sin Tregua | Juan José Lozano | Switzerland, France |
| Upstream Battle | Upstream Battle | Ben Kempas | Germany |
| Witch Hunt | Witch Hunt | Dana Nachman, Don Hardy | United States |
| Yes Madam, Sir | Yes Madam, Sir | Megan Doneman | Australia, India |

### Masters

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Achilles and the Tortoise | Akiresu to Kame | Takeshi Kitano | Japan |
| Adam Resurrected | Adam Ben Kelev | Paul Schrader | Germany, Israel, United States |
| The Beaches of Agnès | Les Plages d'Agnès | Agnès Varda | France |
| Everlasting Moments | Maria Larssons eviga ögonblick | Jan Troell | Sweden |
| Four Nights with Anna | Cztery noce z Anną | Jerzy Skolimowski | Poland, France |
| Lorna's Silence | Le Silence de Lorna | Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne | Belgium, Italy, Germany |
| Of Time and the City | Of Time and the City | Terence Davies | United Kingdom |
| This Night | Nuit de chien | Werner Schroeter | Portugal, Germany, France |
| Three Monkeys | Üç Maymun | Nuri Bilge Ceylan | Turkey |
| Tokyo Sonata | Tokyo Sonata | Kiyoshi Kurosawa | Japan |

### Mavericks

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| The People Speak | The People Speak | Howard Zinn, Chris Moore, Anthony Arnove | United States |
| Picasso and Braque Go to the Movies | Picasso and Braque Go to the Movies | Arne Glimcher | United States |
| A Time to Stir | A Time to Stir | Paul Cronin | United Kingdom, United States |

### Canadian Open Vault

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould | Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould | François Girard | Canada |

### Vanguard

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Afterwards | Et après | Gilles Bourdos | Canada, France |
| Behind Me | Derrière moi | Rafaël Ouellet | Canada |
| Gods | Dioses | Josué Méndez | Peru |
| I'm Gonna Explode | Voy a Explotar | Gerardo Naranjo | Mexico |
| Kisses | Kisses | Lance Daly | Ireland |
| Ocean Flame | Yíbàn Haǐshuǐ, Yíbàn Huǒyàn | Liu Fendou | Hong Kong |
| Pa-ra-da | Pa-ra-da | Marco Pontecorvo | Italy, France, Romania |
| Pontypool | Pontypool | Bruce McDonald | Canada |
| Sauna | Sauna | Antti-Jussi Annila | Finland |
| Service | Serbis | Brillante Mendoza | Philippines |
| Tears for Sale | Čarlston za Ognjenku | Uroš Stojanović | Serbia |
| Universalove | Universalove | Thomas Woschitz | Austria |

### Visions

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| 24 City | 二十四城记 | Jia Zhangke | China |
| Birdsong | El cant dels ocells | Albert Serra | Spain |
| I Want to See | Je veux voir | Joana Hadjithomas, Khalil Joreige | France, Lebanon |
| Liverpool | Liverpool | Lisandro Alonso | Argentina, France, Netherlands, Germany, Spain |
| Milk | Süt | Semih Kaplanoğlu | Turkey |
| Salamander | Salamandra | Pablo Agüero | France, Germany |
| The Sky Crawlers | Sukai Kurora | Mamoru Oshii | Japan |
| Uncertainty | Uncertainty | Scott McGehee, David Siegel | United States |
| Unspoken | Non-dit | Fien Troch | Belgium |
| Vinyan | Vinyan | Fabrice du Welz | France, Australia, Belgium, United Kingdom |

### Midnight Madness

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Acolytes | Acolytes | Jon Hewitt | Australia |
| The Burrowers | The Burrowers | J. T. Petty | United States |
| Chocolate | Chocolate | Prachya Pinkaew | Thailand |
| Deadgirl | Deadgirl | Marcel Sarmiento, Gadi Harel | United States |
| Detroit Metal City | Detoroito Metaru Shiti | Toshio Lee | Japan |
| Eden Log | Eden Log | Franck Vestiel | France |
| JCVD | JCVD | Mabrouk El Mechri | Belgium, France, Luxembourg |
| Martyrs | Martyrs | Pascal Laugier | France, Canada |
| Not Quite Hollywood | Not Quite Hollywood | Mark Hartley | Australia, United States |
| Sexykiller | Sexykiller, morirás por ella | Miguel Martí | Spain |

### Short Cuts Canada

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| 106 | 106 | Candice Day | Canada |
| The Amendment | The Amendment | Kevin Papatie | Canada |
| Baghdad Twist | Baghdad Twist | Joe Balass | Canada |
| Bedroom | Bedroom | Jordan Canning | Canada |
| Belonging | Belonging | Elizabeth Lazebnik | Canada |
| Beyond the Walls | La Battue | Guy Édoin | Canada |
| The Catsitter | The Catsitter | Tim Hamilton | Canada |
| Cattle Call | Cattle Call | Matthew Rankin, Mike Maryniuk | Canada |
| The Earring | The Earring | Nicholas Pye, Sheila Pye | Canada |
| Forty Men for the Yukon | Forty Men for the Yukon | Tony Massil | Canada |
| Gilles | Gilles | Constant Mentzas | Canada |
| Green Door | Green Door | Semi Chellas | Canada |
| Hers at Last | Hers at Last | Helen Lee | Canada |
| How Are You? | How Are You? | Susan Coyne, Martha Burns | Canada |
| Hungu | Hungu | Nicolas Brault | Canada |
| Lobotomobile | Lobotomobile | Sara St. Onge | Canada |
| Machine with Wishbone | Machine with Wishbone | Randall Okita | Canada |
| My Name Is Victor Gazon | Mon nom est Victor Gazon | Patrick Gazé | Canada |
| Next Floor | Next Floor | Denis Villeneuve | Canada |
| Night Vision | Night Vision | Philip Barker | Canada |
| Noon | Midi | Dan Popa | Canada |
| Passage | Passage | Karl Lemieux | Canada |
| Passages | Passages | Marie-Josée Saint-Pierre | Canada |
| Pat's First Kiss | Pat's First Kiss | Pat Mills | Canada |
| Pierce, Crush, Escape: Notes on the Boreal | Pierce, Crush, Escape: Notes on the Boreal | Susan Turcot | Canada |
| Princess Margaret Blvd. | Princess Margaret Blvd. | Kazik Radwanski | Canada |
| Pudge | Pudge | Annie Bradley | Canada |
| Rosa Rosa | Rosa Rosa | Félix Dufour-Laperrière | Canada |
| Running (Heart, Body, Mind, Spirit) | Running (Heart, Body, Mind, Spirit) | Ann Marie Fleming | Canada |
| A Small Thing | A Small Thing | Adam Garnet Jones | Canada |
| Spoiled | Spoiled | Sherry White | Canada |
| Sunday | Sunday | Jamie M. Dagg | Canada |
| Synthesizer | Synthétiseur | Sarah Fortin | Canada |
| Uniform Material | Uniform Material | Chris McCarroll | Canada |
| Us Chickens | Us Chickens | Mark Van de Ven | Canada |
| What I've Lost | What I've Lost | Duraid Munajim | Canada |
| Whitmore Park | Whitmore Park | Brian Stockton | Canada |
| The Workout | The Workout | Sami Khan | Canada |

### Sprockets Family Zone

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Krabat | Krabat | Marco Kreuzpaintner | Germany |
| Mia and the Migoo | Mia et le Migou | Jacques-Rémy Girerd | France, Italy |
| The Secret of Moonacre | The Secret of Moonacre | Gábor Csupó | France, Australia, Hungary, United Kingdom, United States |
| Sunshine Barry & The Disco Worms | Disco ormene | Thomas Borch Nielsen | Denmark, Germany |

### Wavelengths

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| Artemis's Knee | Le Genou d'Artemide | Jean-Marie Straub | Italy, France |
| L'Atelier | L'Atelier | Hannes Schüpbach | Switzerland |
| Black and White Trypps Number Three | Black and White Trypps Number Three | Ben Russell | United States |
| Block B | Block B | Chris Chong Chan Fui | Canada, Malaysia |
| Dig | Dig | Robert Todd | United States |
| Encyclopaedia Britannica | Encyclopaedia Britannica | John Latham | United Kingdom |
| Flash in the Metropolitan | Flash in the Metropolitan | Rosalind Nashashibi, Lucy Skaer | United Kingdom |
| Garden/ing | Garden/ing | Eriko Sonoda | Japan |
| Horizontal Boundaries | Horizontal Boundaries | Pat O'Neill | United States |
| How to Conduct a Love Affair | How to Conduct a Love Affair | David Gatten | United States |
| Lossless #2 | Lossless #2 | Rebecca Baron, Douglas Goodwin | United States |
| Mosaik Mécanique | Mosaik Mécanique | Norbert Pfaffenbichler | Austria |
| Optra Field III-VI | Optra Field III-VI | T. Marie | United States |
| The Parable of the Tulip Painter and the Fly | The Parable of the Tulip Painter and the Fly | Charlotte Pryce | United States |
| Paricutin | Paricutin | Erika Loic | Canada |
| Public Domain | Public Domain | Jim Jennings | United States |
| Refraction Series | Refraction Series | Chris Gehman | Canada |
| Rodakis | Rodakis | Olaf Nikolai | Germany |
| RR | RR | James Benning | United States |
| Sarabande | Sarabande | Nathaniel Dorsky | United States |
| The Secret History of the Dividing Line | The Secret History of the Dividing Line | David Gatten | United States |
| Suspension | Suspension | Vanessa O'Neill | United States |
| Tell Me On Tuesday | Sag es mir Dienstag | Astrid Ofner | Austria |
| Trypps #5 (Dubai) | Trypps #5 (Dubai) | Ben Russell | United States |
| Tziporah | Tziporah | Abraham Ravett | United States |
| When It Was Blue | When It Was Blue | Jennifer Reeves | United States, Iceland |
| Winter | Winter | Nathaniel Dorsky | United States |

### Future Projections

| English title | Original title | Director(s) | Production country |
| The Butcher's Shop | The Butcher's Shop | Philip Haas | United States |
| Cathedral | Cathedral | Marco Brambilla | Canada |
| The Death of Tom | The Death of Tom | Glenn Ligon | United States |
| I'm Feeling Lucky | I'm Feeling Lucky | Samuel Chow | Canada |
| Teenager Hamlet 2006 | Teenager Hamlet 2006 | Margaux Williamson | Canada |
| Utopia Suite | Utopia Suite | Clive Holden | Canada |
| When the Gods Came Down to Earth | When the Gods Came Down to Earth | Srinivas Krishna | Canada |

### Yonge-Dundas Square

Free public events at Dundas Square, including outdoor film screenings and promotional tie-in concerts.
* Terence Blanchard
* The Celluloid Closet
* Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex, Drugs and Rock ’n’ Roll Generation Saved Hollywood
* EdgeCodes.com: The Art of Motion Picture Editing
* Great Lake Swimmers
* Emm Gryner
* Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse
* Keb' Mo'
* Youssou N'Dour
* That's Entertainment!
* Visions of Light: The Art of Cinematography

## Canada's Top Ten

TIFF's annual Canada's Top Ten list, its national critics and festival programmers poll of the ten best feature and short films of the year, was released in December 2008.

### Feature films

* Adoration — Atom Egoyan
* Before Tomorrow (Le jour avant le lendemain) — Marie-Hélène Cousineau, Madeline Ivalu
* Fifty Dead Men Walking — Kari Skogland
* Heaven on Earth — Deepa Mehta
* It's Not Me, I Swear! (C'est pas moi, je le jure) — Philippe Falardeau
* Lost Song — Rodrigue Jean
* Mommy Is at the Hairdresser's (Maman est chez le coiffeur) — Léa Pool
* The Memories of Angels (La Memoire des anges) — Luc Bourdon
* The Necessities of Life (Ce qu'il faut pour vivre) — Benoît Pilon
* Pontypool — Bruce McDonald

### Short films

* Beyond the Walls (La Battue) — Guy Édoin
* Block B — Chris Chong Chan Fui
* Drux Flux — Theodore Ushev
* Ghosts and Gravel Roads — Mike Rollo
* Green Door — Semi Chellas
* My Name Is Victor Gazon (Mon nom est Victor Gazon) — Patrick Gazé
* Next Floor — Denis Villeneuve
* Nikamowin (Song) — Kevin Lee Burton
* Passages — Marie-Josée Saint-Pierre
* Princess Margaret Blvd. — Kazik Radwanski