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NATIONAL CANADIAN FILM DAY MAKES HISTORY: On April 29, 2015, EVERY CANADIAN WILL WATCH A CANADIAN FILM!

(Okay, maybe not every Canadian will – but thanks to REEL , every Canadian can.) Over 150 screenings across EVERY province & territory and dozens of online and broadcast options will make Canadian film accessible to all on April 29, 2015

Toronto ON, 9 April, 2015: The wait is nearly over! On April 29, REEL CANADA will ensure that every Canadian can watch a great Canadian film, no matter what part of the country they reside in. But we are not doing it alone: We have the help of cinema lovers and unapologetically proud Canadians across the country – including theatre owners, major broadcasters, film distributors, film festivals, libraries, retailers, and online partners of every conceivable stripe.

The second annual National Canadian Film Day (NCFD) is poised to be way, way bigger than last year’s inaugural event, featuring:

➢ Over 150 public and private screening events (more than double last year’s total) taking place across Canada in every province and territory, featuring a wide range of films – from recent faves to well-loved classics. Distributor Entertainment One has generously made available a variety of its most popular Canadian films.

➢ 14 of REEL CANADA’s trademark high school festivals across six provinces.

➢ New Canadian releases on screens generously provided by Cineplex Entertainment and .

➢ Offerings on most major broadcast outlets, including Bell Media, Shaw Media, , Corus, , and APTN.

➢ Free online offerings at canadianfilmday.ca, cbc.ca, nfb.ca, canadascreens.ca, cfccreates.com and cfmdc.org

“It’s a bit un-Canadian to boast about it, but the sheer volume of participation is ridonculous!” said REEL CANADA Executive Director Jack Blum, “and we’re inviting everyone to join the party!” Added Sharon Corder, Artistic Director, “Canadians are having a lot of fun exposing themselves … to Canadian film! Helping everyone gain

access to great cinema that they might not otherwise have a chance to see is one of the highlights of this day for me.”

PARTICIPATING COMMUNITIES

The full list of communities where Canadian films will be screened is below:

Annapolis Valley/Bay of Fundy Barrie, ON Brookfield, NS Calgary, AB Campbellton, NB Campbell River, BC Cape Breton, NS Carmacks, YT Charlottetown, PE Chilliwack, BC Courtenay, BC Cranbrook, BC Dawson City, YT Edmonton, AB Edmundston, AB Elgin County, ON Faro, YT Flin Flon, MB Florenceville-Bristol, NB Fogo Island, NL Fort McMurray, AB Fredericton, NB Guelph, ON Halifax, NS Hamilton, ON Hearst, ON Indian Head, SK Iqaluit, NU Jasper, AB Kanata, ON Kamloops, BC Kelowna, BC Kingston, ON Lennox Island, PE London, ON Merritt, BC Midland, ON Moncton, NB Montague, PE Montreal, QC Nanaimo, BC Nelson, BC New Westminster, BC Oakville, ON Old Crow, YT Ottawa, ON Penticton, BC Peterborough, ON Pictou-Antigonish, NS Red Lake, ON Regina, SK Saint John, NB Salisbury, NB Sarnia, ON , SK South Shore, NS St. Andrews, NB St. Catharines, ON St. John’s, NL Stratford, PE Sudbury, ON , ON Trenton, ON Turner Valley, AB Vancouver, BC Victoria, BC Wasaga Beach, ON Waterloo, ON Whistler, BC Whitby, ON Whitehorse, YT , MB Yarmouth, NS Yellowknife, NT Yorkton, SK

For a full list of programme offerings and to see what’s on in your community, please visit http://canadianfilmday.ca/events

EVENTS IN MAJOR CENTRES

TORONTO: Twenty-nine events big and small will take place across the city, including a special screening of DR. CABBIE at the CBC Atrium (presented by the film’s star Vinay Virmani), a screening at the Royal Cinema of a new HD version of Atom Egoyan’s CALENDAR with the director in attendance, and a screening of CORNER GAS: THE MOVIE at Riverdale Collegiate with cast members Eric Peterson and Tara Spencer-Nairn in

attendance. The HOT DOCS film festival will feature thirteen Canadian documentaries as part of its programming on that day.

MONTREAL: Events include a programme of aboriginal work at Excentris and a special screening presented by Annexe Communications, Telefilm Canada and Cineplex featuring the winner of a movie-goers poll for the Canadian film Montrealers most want to see. Also, director Michael Dowse will present THE F-WORD to students of Heritage Regional High in Chambly.

VANCOUVER: Events include screenings at UBC, Vancouver Community College, and an entire day of great Canadian films presented at the VanCity Theatre by The Vancouver International Film Festival with several filmmaker guests in attendance.

CALGARY: A special 15th Anniversary screening of Gary Burns’ classic satire of office life, WAYDOWNTOWN, with the director in attendance, will be presented by the Calgary Underground Film Festival.

HALIFAX: A screening of THE GRAND SEDUCTION at the city’s new Central Library will be presented by the Atlantic Film Festival. SCENE is also presenting a special screening for its members who will vote for the Canadian movie of their choice.

For full event listings: http://canadianfilmday.ca/events

WATCH ON THE BIG SCREEN Cineplex and Landmark Cinemas have generously donated screens for National Canadian Film Day, as have various repertory theatres, film societies and selected members of TIFF Film Circuit. A full list of in-theatre screenings can be found here: http://canadianfilmday.ca/events

WATCH ONLINE Canadian Film Centre will stream a special 20th anniversary edition of RUDE at cfccreates.com; Academy Award nominated ME AND MY MOULTON will be available for free at NFB.ca. Additional free online offerings will be available on the day at cbc.ca, canadascreens.ca and cfmdc.org. To help Canadians join the fun online, REEL CANADA has compiled an extensive list of Canadian film offerings available at Cineplex.com, Google Play, iTunes, , Rogers and Xbox Video. You can access the list here: http://www.canadianfilmday.ca/online/

WATCH ON TV Broadcast partners Bell Media, Hollywood Suite, Corus, Shaw Media, Shomi, Hollywood Suite and APTN are also joining the party by dedicating a portion of their programming day on April 29 to Canadian content. Check out your local cable listings or view here: http://www.canadianfilmday.ca/films-on-tv/

Generously supported by , CBC and Cineplex Entertainment, National Canadian Film Day is kicking off with a month-long campaign to raise awareness of the achievements of Canadian filmmakers and increase access to great Canadian film, so that no Canadian is left behind (meaning: without an easy way to watch one on April 29).

Members of REEL CANADA’s Board and Advisory committees, including Atom Egoyan, Colm Feore, Patricia Rozema, Don McKellar, Paul Gross, Tara Spencer-Nairn, and Eric Peterson are available for interviews in support of NCFD.

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For more information or to book an interview please contact: Cara McCutcheon | 416-557-2139 | [email protected]

ABOUT NATIONAL CANADIAN FILM DAY National Canadian Film Day (NCFD) is an initiative of REEL CANADA, an organization that has put on nearly 1,000 festivals of Canadian films for over 280,000 high school students and new Canadians across the country since 2005. NCFD was created to establish a new way to celebrate this great nation, embrace Canadian cinema, and have some fun. Find NCFD on Twitter @canfilmday on and at http://www.canadianfilmday.ca