The Toronto True Crime Film Festival (TTCFF) will have its first annual edition this week, June 8 – 9, 2018 at The Royal Cinema and Monarch Tavern in Toronto. The inaugural lineup includes five film screenings and three symposium events, with 15% of all pass and ticket sales being donated to charity.
As a true crime fan, I am quite interested in attending a few screenings and events at TTCFF. Below are a few of my personal picks!
Film Picks
Friday, June 8, 7:00pm
Abducted In Plain Sight
Dir. Skye Borgman
This is a stranger-than-fiction documentary about the Brobergs; a naïve, church-going Idaho family that fell under the spell of a sociopathic neighbor who would stop at nothing to be with their twelve-year-old daughter. You will not believe how bizarre this true tale of obsession gets! Screens with short film Maybe If It Were A Nice Room (Dir. Alicia K. Harris).
Friday, June 8, 9:30pm
My Name Is Myeisha
Dir. Gus Krieger
This award-winning Slamdance hit is a hip-hop musical inspired by the 1998 police shooting of California teen Tyisha Miller (as well as countless other acts of police brutality against African American citizens) and adapted from the internationally acclaimed play, Dreamscape. Screens with Oscar-nominated short film Traffic Stop (Dir. Kate Davis).
Saturday, June 9, 9:30pm
Closing Night Film – Hostages
Dir. Rezo Gigineishvili
Hostages is a tension-filled drama based on the true story of seven Georgian youth who attempted to escape the Soviet Union by hijacking an airplane in 1983. Screens with the short film Don’t Be A Hero (Dir. Pete Lee).
TTCFF’s Symposium Picks
“Why Do Women Love True Crime?”
Saturday, June 9, 11:00am
This panel will look at womens’ historical engagement with true crime fandom, from the Victorian era to today.
“L.A. Despair: Chasing Death with John Gilmore”
Saturday, June 9, 12:45pm
This is a multimedia presentation exploring the life and work of the late Noir and true crime writer John Gilmore that is a meditation on the relationship between pop-cultural crime landmarks of the past century and celebrity iconography viewed amidst the landscape of the tragedies he chronicled.
TTCFF is organized by Lisa Gallagher (programmer at Saskatoon Fantastic Film Festival), Steven Landry (Programming Director at Saskatoon Fantastic Film Festival), Kier-La Janisse (owner/artistic director of Spectacular Optical Publications,), Gina Rim (staff at imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival), and Jeff Wright (founder of Refocus film series). Elizabeth Munro and Claire Bonduro round out the festival team as staff with academic backgrounds in justice services, victims advocacy, and criminology.
All of TTCFF’s film screenings take place at The Royal Cinema. The symposium events take place at the Monarch Tavern. Both venues are in close proximity, so be sure to check out all the festival’s happenings. For full schedule, listings, and tickets, please visit the festival’s website.
