The next movies to be revealed were the two Canadian movies screening as Gala Presentations. The first is Fifty Dead Men Walking a promising film that tells the true story of 22-year-old Martin McGartland who was recruited by the British police to infiltrate and spy on the IRA and barely survived to tell the tale. It features Ben Kingsley, so it’s got to be good. Next came Michael McGowan’s One Week which is an Into The Wild-esque story about a young man in his 20s buying a motorcycle and embarking on a cross-Canada journey to avoid an impending life of suburban slavery. The movie gets two strikes for a tired concept and a leading role for Joshua Jackson, but can’t be completely written off because of all the promise shown in McGowan’s debut Saint Ralph.

Following the Galas festival officials announced that Francois Girard’s now classic movie 32 Short Films About Glenn Gould will be granted a special screening as part of TIFF’s ongoing Canadian Open Vault programme. The festival really couldn’t have made a better choice as Girard’s movie has proven to hold up surprisingly well a full 15 years after its initial release. The Canadian short films were announced next. 38 titles will screen this year, which sounds like a lot until you consider that 549 movies were submitted. The top short will be awarded a $10,000 prize.