The Toronto International Film Festival got real with their latest press release, announcing a cache of 26 documentaries in several programs, including a feature on legendary director Agnès Varda (Les Plages d’Agnès) under the Masters heading and profiles of African music star Youssou Ndour and designer Valentino in Special Presentations.
Subjects covered in the docs-only Reel to Real program range from combat photography (Richard Parry’s Blood Trail), Canadian eco-warrior Paul Watson (At the Edge of the World) and the dirty business of globalized food production (Food, Inc.) to rock-guitar heroism (An Inconvenient Truth director Davis Guggenheim’s It Might Get Loud), the musical element of 1974’s Rumble in the Jungle (Soul Power) and kung-fu study (The Real Shaolin). Typically, we’re most stoked about The Dungeon Master, Keven McAlester’s D&D exposé, with score by Blonde Redhead. It’s all about priorities, kids. TIFF runs Sept. 4-13. Go to www.tiff08.ca for more titles and info.