The Toronto International Film Festival, running September 10 through 20, announced its slate of documentaries this week. The festival will screen a total of 17 docs, the bulk of which are programmed in the Real to Reel strand, but you can also find nonfiction fare in Vanguard, Special Presentations and Sprockets Family Zone.
"This year's documentaries have a sense of immediacy like never before," said Thom Powers, the festival's documentary programmer, in a statement. "Current events are getting a fresh perspective in films about the post-crash economy, Iran, Berlusconi, surrogate mothers, US Army veterans and more. These films are sure to generate a lot of debate."
Powers also over sees the Doc Blog, a running feature of the festival, in which both programmers and filmmakers will offer their insights.
And here's the lineup:
Vanguard
The White Stripes Under Great White Northern Lights (Dir.: Emmett Malloy; USA)
World Premiere
An intimate look inside The White Stripes' cross-Canada tour, as Jack and Meg White touch down in remote northern communities and surprising city venues.
Real to Reel
The Art of the Steal
(Dir.: Don Argott; USA )
World Premiere
This art-world whodunit investigates what happened to the Barnes collection of Post-Impressionist paintings--valued in the billions--that fell prey to a power struggle after the death of owner Albert Barnes.
Bassidji (Dir.: Mehran Tamadon, Iran/France/Switzerland)
International Premiere
For three years, Mehran Tamadon immersed himself into the very heart of the most extremist supporters of the Islamic republic of Iran (the Bassidjis) to understand their ideas.
Cleanflix (Dirs.: Andrew James, Joshua Ligairi; USA )
World Premiere
The Mormon religion preaches against the content of R-rated films, so several Utah-based entrepreneurs started offering "clean" versions of Hollywood movies at specialty DVD stores. But the thriving industry runs into legal problems and its own sex scandal.
Collapse (Dir.: Chris Smith; USA )
World Premiere
From the acclaimed director of American Movie, this portrait of radical thinker Michael Ruppert explores his apocalyptic vision of the future, spanning the crises in economics, energy, environment and more.
Colony (Dirs.: Carter Gunn, Ross McDonnell; Ireland)
World Premiere
Several beekeepers around the US cope with colony collapse disorder--the phenomenon that has caused millions of bees to mysteriously disappear--in this beautifully shot debut from a gifted directing duo.
Google Baby (Dir.: Zippi Brand Frank; Israel)
International Premiere
In India, the latest form of outsourcing is surrogate mothers who carry embryos for couples who can't have a child. Director Zippi Brand Frank follows an entrepreneur who proposes a new service--baby production for western customers.
How to Fold a Flag (Dirs.: Michael Tucker, Petra Epperlein; USA)
World Premiere
The makers of Gunner Palace follow US soldiers as they create new lives post-Iraq--from a Congressional candidate in Buffalo to a cage fighter in Louisiana--set against the backdrop of the 2008 election.
L'Enfer de Henri-Georges Clouzot (Dirs.: Serge Bromberg, Ruxandra
Medrea; France)
North American Premiere
Film archivist Serge Bromberg uncovers a treasure trove of imagery from an unfinished film called L'Enfer starring Romy Schneider and directed by the French master Henri-Georges Clouzot, known for Wages of Fear and Diabolique.
The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers
(Dirs.: Judith Ehrlich, Rick Goldsmith; USA)
World Premiere
Daniel Ellsberg was a valued strategist inside the American government until he leaked the Pentagon Papers and exposed the lies of the Vietnam War. This thrilling documentary chronicles this momentous chapter in history and how Richard Nixon's obsession over the case brought down his own government.
Presumed Guilty (Dirs.: Roberto Hernández, Geoffrey Smith; Mexico)
World Premiere
Two young Mexican attorneys attempt to exonerate a wrongly convicted man by making a documentary. In the process, they expose the contradictions of a judicial system that presumes suspects guilty until proven innocent.
Schmatta: Rags to Riches to Rags (Dir.: Marc Levin; USA)
World Premiere
Veteran filmmaker Mark Levin (Slam) looks at the past and present of New York's garment district, from its heyday as a base for immigrant labor and unions to its recent decline.
Snowblind (Dir.: Vikram Jayanti; USA/United Kingdom)
International Premiere
Rachael Scdoris, a blind 23-year-old, doesn't let her disability stop her from competing in one of the most gruelling endurance contests in the world: the Iditarod dogsled race traversing 1,100 miles of Alaska's most rugged terrain. But being blind is only the start of her challenges.
The Topp Twins (Dir.: Leanne Pooley; New Zealand)
North American Premiere
Fun, disarming and musically provocative, the Topp Twins are New Zealand's finest lesbian country-and-western singers and the country's greatest export since rack of lamb and the Lord of the Rings movie trilogy.
Videocracy (Dir.: Erik Gandini; Sweden)
North American Premiere
This penetrating look at the media empire of Italy's prime minister Silvio Berlusconi reveals how his reality TV shows full of bikini-clad women enriched his friends and beguiled a nation.
Special Presentation
Good Hair (Dir.: Jeff Stilson; USA)
Canadian Premiere
Rendered speechless by his daughter's question,"Daddy, how come I don't have good hair?" comedian Chris Rock embarks on a quest to understand African-American hair culture.
Sprockets Family Zone
Turtle: The Incredible Journey (Dir.: Nick Stringer; United
Kingdom/Austria/Germany)
Canadian Premiere
Join a logger-heard turtle on an extraordinary journey through the fascinating underwater world and witness how changes in the oceans are affecting marine life in this beautiful and spectacular ocean adventure.