Seven first-time directors who stole the show

Due to its drastically reduced size, the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) had significantly fewer “Discovery” titles this year than usual. But for those looking to unearth the gems of directors for the first time, there was a series of debuts exciting enough to savor, led by Regina King’s “ One Night in Miami … ” one of the films. the best rated of the festival. On that list of seven new directors we’d love to see more of, up to five are women and three are actors who have stepped behind the camera to reveal another side of their creativity.

David Oyelowo, Water man

The directorial debut of Anglo-American actor of Nigerian descent David Oyelowo, Water man, which screened at the 45th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) as a special event, is marked by fairytale simplicity and a deep sense of humanity. Co-produced by Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Films and New York-based Shivani Rawat’s Shivhans Pictures, the family drama fits into the classic mold. It revolves around a sensitive and artistically inclined boy (Lonnie Chavis) whose mother (Rosario Dawson) is seriously ill. He adores his mother but doesn’t particularly like his father, played by Oyelowo himself. One day, the boy disappears into a forest in search of the Water Man, a dark figure believed to have the power to ensure immortality. Water man celebrates the power of innocence, hope and “the blessing of loving each other every day that we have”. Oyelowo (who played Martin Luther King Jr in Ava DuVernay’s Selma and Ugandan chess coach in Mira Nair’s Queen of Katwe), decided to lead Water man when the original director retired at the eleventh hour. With everything else in place, Water man just had to be done. Nothing in the film, however, suggests that it was directed by an accidental director.

Halle Berry, Bruised

Screened as a work-in-progress in TIFF 2020, Halle Berry’s directorial debut, Bruised takes place in the world of mixed martial arts (MMA). The Oscar-winning actress, much like David Oyelowo in the case of The Water Man, took the reins of the film after all other options were exhausted. Bruised tells the story of a former MMA fighter who must return to the heart of the action in search of redemption as a professional and a mother. The character is on the street of the Oscar winner. Berry has built a thriving career around fractured women who struggle to stay tall, thick and thin. Both as an actor and a director, she brings a lot of weight to this story of a woman who mint in the face of obstacles and continues. The film, whose post-production was slowed down by the pandemic, has struck a deal with a leading streaming platform and is expected to be available to viewers around the world soon.

Cathy Brady, Fires

First-time writer-director Cathy Brady, who has short films and TV outings behind her, gives a refreshing feminine face to an intense drama involving two struggling siblings who find themselves in a town in Ireland North. These stories usually revolve around grumpy young men prone to violence. Fires is all about two women. One of them takes a ferry across the Irish Sea to meet his married sister. Once reunited, the two find themselves struggling with memories of past trauma and worsening mental turmoil. The film is dedicated to Nika McGuigan, who delivers a singing performance, as an impulsive homeless woman. She succumbed to cancer after production ended last year. The other sister is played just as powerfully by Nora-Jane Noone. The backdrop of Northern Ireland’s bloody political history takes on urgency given the current wave of troubled relations with the UK. Cathy Brady is clearly a filmmaker to watch.

Suzanne Lindon, Spring blossom

Suzanne Lindon, 20, daughter of French stars Vincent Lindon and Sandrine Kiberlain, demonstrates impressive writing and directing skills in this delightfully terrifying romance involving a bored 16-year-old college student with her peer group and a woman from 35 years. theater actor tired of a role he plays every night. The debutante is wrong in presenting herself as the protagonist, but Arnaud Valois, the frontman of the 2017 film 120 BPM, delivers a measured performance. The way Lindon orchestrates the tender moments between the two main characters suggests a keen, mellow sense of the effects of unlikely love, inevitable grief, and the pains of awakening to reality. A very French film directed by a director who brings a delicate touch to a difficult theme.

Wang Jing, The best is yet to come

Chinese author Jia Zhangke’s assistant on films such as A touch of sin, The mountains can go and Ash is the purest white, Newbie Wang Jing delivers a wonderfully crafted character study that is also an insightful account of journalism in China. The film, produced by Zhang-ke and photographed by its cinematographer Yu Lik-wai, tells the story of a high school dropout who moves to Beijing in hopes of finding a foothold in the media industry by as a journalist and writer. He landed the job of intern in a mass-circulation newspaper, and after reporting on a mining disaster in Shanxi, he stumbled upon an illegal blood business which, while promising to boost his young career, opened a box of worms on the professional and personal fronts. “Emotions don’t make the news, only facts do,” a senior told him. Finding the balance between the two is the challenge the young man faces. Wang Jing is up to the task of portraying wrestling in a way that is both deeply touching and technically competent.

Farnoosh Samadi, 180◦ Rule

First feature film by Farnoosh Samadi, trained at the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome 180◦ Rule presents a strong female protagonist who, unfortunately, has to pay the price for being a volunteer in a conservative society. Samadi’s short film The Silence (co-directed with Ali Asgari) was in Competition at Cannes in 2016. She also co-wrote Asgari’s first feature film Disappearance, which was developed in the Cinefondation residence. Her first narrative feature, despite its inconsistencies, offers insight into Samadi’s understanding of the medium and her understanding of the place of women in Iran. A married woman, behind her husband’s back, goes to a family wedding, where tragedy turns her life upside down. She makes bad choices as she desperately tries to cover her tracks. The film evokes empathy but fails to satisfy the audience’s desire to see the woman emerge from a difficult situation. Isn’t it often the fate of women who dare to be themselves?

Nora Martirosyan, If the wind drops

Screened as part of TIFF Industry Selects, the first feature film by Franco-Armenian artist of Yerevan origin Nora Martirosyan, which bears the stamp of the official Cannes 2020 selection, has a strong impact thanks to its sober but extremely effective. The screenplay (written jointly by Martirosyan and novelist Emmanuelle Pagan0) follows Alain, an international auditor who arrives in a South Caucasian republic to inspect the local airport and clear it for its reopening. The engineer must enlist the help of Edgar, a local boy who runs a makeshift business at the airport, as he goes to extend whatever assistance the remote area needs. The role of Alain is played by French star Grégoire Colin. Martirosyan has an eye for detail and the spontaneous flair of a self-taught filmmaker.