Cinefranco is Toronto’s French language film festival, providing an opportunity for Francophones and foreign film buffs to catch a variety of flicks that may be the only time they will be screened in a theatre here in the city. 

Ricardo Trogi, a regular that Cinéfranco audiences love, opens the festival with his tremendous success, 1995, and François Ozon marks the closing of the festival with his film, When Fall is Coming.

Fascinating historical cases including the story of Clémentine Delait, “the Bearded Woman” (Rosalie), or Anne/Jean-Baptiste Grandjean, an eighteenth-century intersex person (Girl for a Day), or that of the Salpêtrière women in Party of Fools, and Brother, Marie-Victorin and Marcelle Gauvreau’s magnificent love.

There are also comedies like Riviera Revenge, Open Season, and Meet the Leroys, as well as many other films, including the independent French-Canadian filmmakers from the FRIC such as Jim Donovan (3 Seasons), Marie-Claire Marcotte (Neon Dreaming), Phil Comeau and Zachary Richard, (Toujours Batailleur), and Josiane Blanc (Haut et Fortes), to name but a few.

Additionally, there’s Léa Pool (Hôtel Silence) and Bachir Bensaddek (The Hidden Woman) from Quebec, Karolyne Natasha (Broken Waters) from Ontario, and also Robert Guédiguian (And the Party Goes On!) from France. As well, Yvan Attal (Breaking Point) weaves a web of melodramas full of humanity, sensitivity and intrigue.

Finally, French international and French-Canadian short films are the pride of the program through their originality, their richness, and their social, environmental, spiritual and creative impact.

Be sure to catch some of these features and shorts, as it maybe your only opportunity to watch them on the big screen, or at all.

Cinefranco – Nov 1 to 10, 2024 – Carlton Cinemas, 20 Carlton St, Toronto

Tickets are $10 for adults, $8 for seniors. The screening of  Zachary Richard Toujours Batailleur is free to attend, as are all the shorts programming. Full program, schedule, and tickets are available here.

About the Author

Bryen Dunn is a freelance journalist with a focus on travel, lifestyle, entertainment and hospitality. He has an extensive portfolio of celebrity interviews with musicians, actors and other public personalities. He enjoys discovering delicious eats, tasting spirited treats, and being mesmerized by musical beats.