Rock Stars, Blind Mountain Climbers And Iraqi Prisoners Featured In Powerful Line-Up Of International Docs

Toronto - 22 films will join five previously announced documentary titles screening as part of Real to Reel at the 31st Toronto International Film Festival. Among these compelling selections, 13 films will see their world premiere, 3 their international premiere, 3 their North American premiere, and 3 their Canadian premiere. The films announced today join Real to Reel, a showcase of the best non-fiction cinema from around the world. World premieres include Asger Leth's GHOSTS OF CITÉ SOLEIL; Lucy Walker's BLINDSIGHT; AJ Schnack's KURT COBAIN ABOUT A SON...

Petra Epperlein and Michael Tucker's THE PRISONER OR HOW I PLANNED TO KILL TONY BLAIR; Tony Kaye's LAKE OF FIRE; Davide Ferrario's PRIMO LEVI'S JOURNEY; and Macky Alston's THE KILLER WITHIN. Festival Passes and Coupon Books are now on sale. For more information call 416-968-FILM or click, bell.ca/filmfest.

"These remarkable films cover a wide spectrum," says Thom Powers, International Documentary Programmer, "from war and justice, to music, humour, and the art of filmmaking itself. Audiences will discover complex and inspiring characters. I am delighted by the rich line-up of documentaries coming to Toronto for my first year with the Festival."

A number of films delve into the cultural riches of music. Legendary musician and father of grunge Kurt Cobain himself provides the narration in AJ Schnack's KURT COBAIN ABOUT A SON (USA, world premiere), which intimately traces the rock star's life from his hometown of Aberdeen to his famed days with Nirvana in Seattle. Drawing on over 25 hours of previously unreleased audio interviews, Schnack attempts to rediscover the man behind the myth. Filmmakers David Leaf and John Scheinfeld trace John Lennon's transformation from revolutionary musician to anti-war activist and promoter of peace in the riveting THE U.S. VS. JOHN LENNON (USA, North American premiere), a film that reveals the truth behind how and why the U.S. government tried to silence him. In MADE IN JAMAICA (France/USA, world premiere), filmmaker Jerome Laperrousaz weaves beautiful and uplifting music with authentic images of Jamaican life, recounting the personal stories and struggles of reggae and dance hall artists who have made it out of their native ghetto and into the global spotlight. Paul Rachman's AMERICAN HARDCORE (USA, Canadian premiere) explores how the vibrant hardcore punk rock scene of the early 1980s gave birth to much of the rock music and culture to follow, only to become a lost subculture.

Other titles offer an intimate glimpse into the lives of fascinating characters facing extraordinary situations. Asger Leth's gripping GHOSTS OF CITÉ SOLEIL (Denmark/Haiti/USA, world premiere) profiles two brothers, both leaders in Haiti's secret army of slum gangs during the last months of Aristide's presidency, and features the music and presence of Wyclef Jean. Lucy Walker's epic BLINDSIGHT (UK, world premiere) chronicles the astonishing journey of an endearing group of blind Tibetan teenagers as they attempt to climb a section of Mount Everest, led by famed blind climber Erik Weihenmayer. In Macky Alston's THE KILLER WITHIN (USA, world premiere), respected psychology professor Bob Bechtel shares a dark secret of his past - an attempted murderous shooting spree in his college dorm 50 years prior. The film follows his daughter Carrah as she tries to cope with this information. Well-known to street dwellers as an infamous prostitute for over 50 years who painted her face white and lived on the streets, no one came to know the real name of YOKOHAMA MARY (Japan, international premiere). A real-life MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA, Takayuki Nakamura's film looks into the mysterious disappearance of this eccentric old woman as one man scrambles to find her before he dies of cancer.

Issues surrounding war and conflict arise in several of this year's non-fiction films. Petra Epperlein and Michael Tucker (GUNNER PALACE) use a comic book motif to tell the story of an Iraqi cameraman's wrongful arrest and interrogation by American forces in THE PRISONER OR: HOW I PLANNED TO KILL TONY BLAIR (Germany/USA, world premiere), which paints a humanizing portrait of a man facing false accusations and dire situations, including a stay at Iraq's infamous Abu Ghraib prison. Screening with this film is the short film SARI'S MOTHER (USA/Iraq, world premiere) from acclaimed documentary filmmaker James Longley (IRAQ IN FRAGMENTS), which traces the journey of an Iraqi woman entering in and out of hospitals in search of help for her 10-year-old son, who is dying of AIDS. In THE SUGAR CURTAIN (France/Spain/Cuba, world premiere), filmmaker Camila Guzmán Urzúa looks back on the Cuban revolution through the eyes of those who were born and raised within it. The non-fiction road movie PRIMO LEVI'S JOURNEY (Italy, world premiere) sees director Davide Ferrario follow in the footsteps of Holocaust survivor and scholar Primo Levi, retracing Levi's return trip from Auschwitz to Torino. Exploring the reasons why one individual made his way down a path of violence and radicalism to become a terrorist is Alexander Oey's MY LIFE AS A TERRORIST: THE STORY OF HANS-JOACHIM KLEIN (Netherlands, North American premiere). The film chronicles Klein's years as a militant, during which time he was involved in the taking of hostages from the OPEC Headquarters in Vienna in 1975, an operation led by Carlos 'The Jackal.' Playing with the previously announced THESE GIRLS (Egypt) by Tahani Rached is Namir Abdel Messeeh's TOI, WAGUIH (France, Canadian premiere), about the struggling relationship between the filmmaker and his father, a former communist political prisoner in Egypt in the early 1960s.

Three films explore issues of justice, inside and outside of the courtroom. Tony Kaye (AMERICAN HISTORY X) documents the American divide on the issue of abortion in LAKE OF FIRE (USA, world premiere). Fifteen years in the making, this dramatic work weaves insightful interviews with extraordinary historical footage for an in-depth exploration of the controversial 'Right to Life' versus 'Right to Choose' debate. Mohammed Naqvi's SHAME (USA/Pakistan, world premiere) follows one Pakistani woman's break of silence against men from an upper-caste tribe. After Mukhtaran Mai is raped and publicly shamed while trying to defend her brother, she braves a trip outside her village to file a formal police complaint in hopes of bringing her more privileged assailants to justice, garnering the attention of the international media along the way. In Vincenzo Marra's THE SESSION IS OPEN (Italy, international premiere), viewers are invited to look in on the daily life of three empowered individuals, working in the Court of Naples, as they attempt to bring down a mafia-like criminal organization.

Humour plays a major role in three documentary titles. THIS FILTHY WORLD (USA, world premiere), directed by "Curb Your Enthusiasm"'s Jeff Garlin, is cult filmmaker John Waters' one-man show. A hilarious and frank look at the way he views the world, Waters leads audiences from his earliest influences, to career highlights and current battles with the mainstream. South Indian yuppies and their hard-charging American bosses are under the microscope in Liz Mermin's OFFICE TIGERS (UK, world premiere). A real-life version of "The Office," the film sees young Indian professionals working in an American-owned outsourcing company, learning the rules of corporate culture. Bradley Beesley and Sarah Price's beguiling SUMMERCAMP! (USA, Canadian premiere) follows campers aged between six and 15 as they form friendships, fight homesickness and gossip about their prescribed mood-altering medications. Featuring music by The Flaming Lips, this endearing film explores the agony and ecstasy of life in the unique and temporary communities of summer camps.

Two films survey the art, practice and culture of cinema itself. Sophie Fiennes' THE PERVERT'S GUIDE TO CINEMA (UK/Austria/Netherlands, North American premiere) indulges cinephiles with a filmic feast of sublime clips from Chaplin to BLUE VELVET, Hitchcock to THE MATRIX. Guided by philosopher and psychoanalyst Slavoj Žižek, the film explores the hidden meanings behind some of the greatest movies ever made. Nader Takmil Homayoun's IRAN: UNE RÉVOLUTION CINÉMATOGRAPHIQUE (France, international premiere) traces the modern day history of Iran through its powerful cinema. In this dazzling work, the audience is treated to interviews with Iranian directors and prominent film personalities, as well as excerpts from highly-regarded and influential films made before, during and after the revolution.