Spring Means Filming in Toronto—Hear What Our Film Production Grads Are Working On: Christopher Lane
Spring is always the beginning of a very busy summer shooting season as many television and film productions return to Toronto to film. This Year, again, looks to be another record-breaking year for feature film, television, and commercial production in the city. Make sure to keep your ear to the ground for a few of the many opportunities that will be available for our students.
Recently I’ve been asked to crew and suggest students for several Canadian Film Center (CFC) projects. In the month of February alone we crewed 10 CFC projects. Since then I’ve received rave reviews about the talent and dedication of the students that volunteered, and our own recent graduate Alexa Mitchell received a favourable write-up in the CFC’s newsletter as volunteer of the month. You can see the article here. https://cfccreates.com/news/485-march-volunteer-spotlight
Many of our alumni continue to make us proud. Prasanna Paul has been tearing it up at Ogilvy & Mather where he has been the lead on many commercials including the recently wrapped BMW and Tim Horton’s productions.
Alumnus Matthew Sartori has just been picked up to work on My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2, one of this summers upcoming productions.
Graduate Salar Pashtoonyar just secured a position at Hamilton Mehta Productions, which is the famed director Deepa Mehta’s own production company. Thanks to TFS’ own Dusty Mancinelli for making this happen.
Alumnus Christiaan Collette and his wildly successful drone company Flying Fish Productions just wrapped season 3 of Orphan Black. Keep your eyes on the various bulletin boards for a presentation and Drone demonstration with Christiaan and Flying Fish Productions in the next little while.
Congratulations to Alumni Martin Wojtunik for his nomination as Cinematographer at this year’s prestigious CSC Awards for his work on Unusually Thicke.
I want to personally thank Cinematography Instructor, Doug Reid for helping to facilitate a fun trip to ARRI and William F White International. Also a huge thank you to all our instructors for all your hard work and dedication.
I’m always a little sad when the Higher Learning events that take place at the TIFF Bell Lightbox come to an end as they do just as TIFF ramps up for the Toronto International Film Festival. Our students have certainly benefited from attending these fantastic lectures and various other events we have been invited to attend. These events, attended by dozens and dozens of our enthusiastic students, included a lecture by Henry Hobson the graphic artist and title designer on many of the biggest motion pictures of the past few years and was recently the title designer for this year’s Oscars broadcast. I’ve been reassured that they’ll be back next fall and there will even be a few surprise events over the next few months. Please look for postings on the bulletin boards around campus.
Keep in mind our very own Toronto Film School Festival of Film will be coming back this September. Stay tuned for details and keep your eyes on the bulletin boards website and social media for dates and submission information.
Lastly this April 29, 2015 is National Canadian Film Day (https://www.canadianfilmday.ca/) an amazing initiative hosted by Reel Canada that puts Canadian Films in theatres across this great country of ours as well as television and other outlets so the whole country can come together and celebrate the incredible stories and story tellers and diversity and awe inspiring landscapes that make up Canadian Cinema. We have been invited to celebrate and attend, I will post info were you can attend soon.
Christopher Lane is a Film Production Program Instructor at Toronto Film School.
