Calling movie buffs — the IFFO Screen Summit starts today

Each year, Ottawa celebrates up-and-coming films, artists, actors and producers. Dedicated to promoting local creators and addressing issues that affects Canadians, The International Film Festival of Ottawa (IFFO) is a fun and exciting event that supports local artists.

IFFO was scheduled to launch this past March, just as the pandemic hit. At the time, the festival was planned to be live but due to the amazing help of Ontario Creates, IFFO was able to shift to an online platform. While IFFO is postponed until 2021, its industry programming will move online this month for this new and exciting event.

Introducing the IFFO Screen Summit, this free event will be hosted virtually and is perfect for movie buffs.

The IFFO Screen Summit is a 5-day, event dedicated to strengthening and inspiring Ottawa's growing screen-based industries while addressing topics relevant to all Canadian industry professionals. From July 20 to 24, the IFFO Screen Summit Online will feature informative presentations, talks and networking events.

The summit is available in two viewing formats; live interactive broadcasts and video content available anytime. One-on-one meetings with funders, agencies and industry professionals require pre-registration.

IFFO Screen Summit isn’t just for people in the industry but for anyone and everyone! Featuring a talk with former Ottawa resident, Lisa Soper, the production designer behind The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina the Teenage Witch.

There will be an edition of the Canadian Film Institute's, Enlightened Screen, with Marie Clements talking to Tom McSorley about her distinguished career and the making of her first fiction feature film, Red Snow. The film is an intense war drama about a Gwich’in Indigenous Canadian soldier’s capture by the Taliban while on patrol in Afghanistan. Co-presented with the Asinabka Film & Media Arts Festival.

Also co-presented with the Asinabka Film & Media Arts Festival is a case study on Rustic Oracle. Mohawk filmmaker Sonia Bonspille-Boileau and Jason Brennan talk about their powerful feature Rustic Oracle, produced by local production company Nish Media. The film effectively raises awareness about missing and murdered Indigenous women through the story of an eight-year-old girl who searches for her missing sister with her mother.

For more information, check out IFFO’s site here!