Professional Motion Picture Production and Distribution NEWS

TIFF Programmer Colin Geddes donates more than 400 films and trailers from Hong Kong and Taiwan

(Toronto) The Special Collections Archive of the Media Commons at the University of Toronto has received a substantial collection of over 400 35mm Hong Kong and Taiwanese films and trailers from Colin Geddes, a film archivist, curator, and international film programmer for the Toronto International Film Festival®.

The Colin Geddes Collection includes approximately 200 feature films and 225 trailers on 35mm film spanning the 1970’s though the 1990’s and includes some of the rare early work of critically-acclaimed and award-winning directors such as Wong Kar-wai, Tsui Hark, Hou Hsiao-Hsien, Ronny Yu Yan-Tai, Ringo Lam, John Woo and others.

“To have a collection of this range and quality safely preserved in the Special Collections Archive of the Media Commons, is a true gift to students, faculty and film fans,” said Charlie Keil, Director, Cinema Studies Institute, University of Toronto. “Many of the donated titles are unavailable elsewhere in North America and in certain instances these reels are some of the last surviving prints anywhere in the world.”

“I feel very strongly that the collection should stay in Toronto as every title seemed like an orphan sent far from home to be appreciated by our city’s audiences,” said Colin Geddes. “I am pleased to know that the archive in good hands at the University of Toronto and that many new generations of film students will be able to access and study these incredible films.”

Compiled over 15 years, the Colin Geddes Collection includes reels procured from various Toronto Chinatown cinemas that were closed during this period of time and, in some cases, were rescued from the garbage. “The collection was born out of a recognition that these films represent a valuable piece of international cinematic history that would be impossible to replace if ever lost,” said Geddes.

The collection will be made available through the Media Commons for use by students and film scholars. Forming an integral part of select Cinema Studies Institute courses, it is hoped that the collection will prove invaluable as a resource for those researching Hong Kong and Taiwanese film production.

About Media Commons at the University of Toronto

Media Commons is the repository of audiovisual scholarly resources. Established in 2003, it contains both published and unpublished, primary and secondary materials, and is the largest repository for these resources in a Canadian educational institution. It consists of three basic components: a film/video/DVD lending library with over 12,000 titles, microform holdings of over 1.6 million newspaper, periodical, rare book and manuscript materials, and an expanding holding of archival and special collections related to Canadian film, broadcasting, television and new media.

The mandate of Media Commons is to support the curriculum and research possibilities in all the disciplines taught at the University of Toronto through the use of and study of these audiovisual resources. It serves primarily the faculty, staff, students and alumni, as well as the general public. Students in the sciences, literature, sociology, psychology, business, law, musicology, cinema studies and many other disciplines use these primary research resources.

Media Commons is located in Robarts Library on the St. George campus in downtown Toronto. Robarts Library is also home to the premier humanities and social sciences textual collection at the University of Toronto – one of the finest in the world. The synergies between the many types of collections are opening up new areas of research. U of T’s Media Commons also houses film donations by Alliance Atlantis, Robert Lantos-Serendipity Point Films, and Lionsgate. www.library.utoronto.ca/mediacommons

About Colin Geddes

Colin Geddes is a Toronto-based film archivist, curator, and consultant, well known for his role as one of the international programmers at the Toronto International Film Festival. At TIFF he has introduced new talent and hosted the premieres of films including Miike Takashi’s Ichi The Killer; Johnnie To’s Full Time Killer; and Pratchya Pinkaew’s Ong Bak: Muay Thai Warrior. In addition, Geddes has one of North America's largest collections of Hong Kong cinema promotional materials, posters, and lobby cards and in July 2008, held an exhibit of fifty posters from the collection at the Cinémathèque Québécoise.

About TIFF

TIFF is a not-for-profit cultural organization whose mission is to transform the way people see the world through film. Its vision is to lead the world in creative and cultural discovery through the moving image. TIFF generates an annual economic impact of $135 million CAD and currently employs more than 100 full-time staff and 500 part-time and seasonal staff, and counts upon the largesse of over 2,000 volunteers year-round. www.tiff.net

About TIFF Bell Lightbox

Currently under construction, TIFF Bell Lightbox, a breathtaking five-storey complex located in downtown Toronto, will provide a permanent home for film lovers to celebrate cinema from around the world and will propel TIFF forward as an international leader in film culture. Designed by innovative architecture firm KPMB, TIFF Bell Lightbox’s fluid structure encourages exploration, movement and play. The campaign to build TIFF Bell Lightbox is generously supported by founding sponsor Bell, the Province of Ontario, the Government of Canada, the King and John Festival Corporation – consisting of the Reitman family and the Daniels Corporation – RBC as major sponsor and official bank, Visa†, the Copyright Collective of Canada, the Slaight Family Foundation, NBC Universal Canada, the Brian Linehan Charitable Foundation, the Harbinger Foundation, CIBC and BMO. The Board of Directors, staff and many generous individuals and corporations have also contributed to the campaign. For more information on the TIFF Bell Lightbox campaign, visit belllightbox.ca.