Canada's Top Ten is an annual honour, compiled by the Toronto International Film Festival to identify and promote the year's best Canadian films.[1] The list was first introduced in 2001 as an initiative to help publicize Canadian films.[1] Normally announced in December each year, the 2024 list was not announced until early January 2025.[2]
The list is determined by tabulating votes from film festival programmers and film critics across Canada.[3] Films must have premiered, either in general theatrical release or on the film festival circuit, within the calendar year; although TIFF organizes the vote, films do not have to have been screened specifically at TIFF to be eligible.
Originally, only a single list of 10 films was released. Although both short and feature films were eligible, the list was dominated primarily by feature films. Accordingly, in 2007 TIFF expanded the program, instituting separate Top Ten lists for feature films and short films.[4] However, both lists remain inclusive of both narrative fiction and documentary films.
In a 2022 article, Barry Hertz of The Globe and Mail praised the program as a diverse overview of the creative risk-taking in Canadian cinema, and a worthwhile contrast to the limited scope of conventional commercial film distribution.[5] Conversely, in 2025, Pat Mullen of Point of View criticized the program for seemingly ignoring documentary films, with only one feature and two short documentaries highlighted in that year's list.[6]
Screening series
editEach year's list was formerly screened as a Canada's Top Ten minifestival, held in January of the following year.[7] Prior to 2010, the films were screened at the Art Gallery of Ontario's Jackman Theatre as part of TIFF's Cinematheque Ontario program;[8] following the opening of the TIFF Bell Lightbox in 2010, the festival was staged at that venue thereafter. For the 2014 festival, TIFF introduced a People's Choice Award for the feature film program, modeled on the existing Toronto International Film Festival People's Choice Award and conducted in the same manner.[9]
In 2018, TIFF dropped the January festival, instead introducing a new model in which each film receives its own standalone theatrical run at the Lightbox in the following year.[10] They subsequently dropped this model, and returned to screening the honored films at a dedicated Canada's Top Ten screening series in the winter programming season,[11] although the series has not reintroduced a People's Choice award as of 2024.
Other activities
editIn 2024, following the death of influential Canadian film director Charles Officer in fall 2023, TIFF and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation also announced the creation of the Charles Officer Legacy Award, to be presented at the Canada's Top Ten reception to a filmmaker whose body of work is reflective of Officer's values, artistry and vision.[12]
Once per decade, TIFF also polls Canadian film critics and festival programmers to determine a list of the Top 10 Canadian Films of All Time, separately from the annual Canada's Top Ten survey.
Unified list (2000-2006)
editFeature films (2007-present)
edit2000s
edit2010s
editFilms highlighted in yellow below were the winners of the People's Choice award at the Canada's Top Ten minifestival.
2020s
editShort films (2007-present)
edit2000s
edit2010s
edit2020s
editCharles Officer Award
edit- 2025 - Miryam Charles[37]
References
edit- ^ a b "Canada's Top Ten awards will honour excellence in Canadian cinema". Welland Tribune, November 23, 2001.
- ^ a b c Carlos Diaz, "Canada’s Top Ten: TIFF Celebrates the Best in Cinema for 2024". That Shelf, January 8, 2025.
- ^ "TIFF strategically trades champagne for screen time for Canada’s Top Ten movies". Toronto Star, December 6, 2018.
- ^ a b c "Cronenberg, Arcand make Hogtown film festival's top Canadian movies list". Daily Gleaner, December 12, 2007.
- ^ Barry Hertz, "Want a moviegoing future beyond Batman? TIFF’s Canada’s Top Ten series is essential". The Globe and Mail, March 9, 2022.
- ^ Pat Mullen, "Canada’s Top Ten Has a Documentary Problem". Point of View, January 8, 2025.
- ^ a b c "TIFF announces lineup for Canada's Top 10 Film Festival". CBC News, December 7, 2016.
- ^ a b c "TIFF's Top Ten". Vancouver Sun, December 17, 2008.
- ^ "TIFF’s Top Ten Film Festival: Spotlight on Canadian film". Toronto Star, December 1, 2014.
- ^ "TIFF scraps popular Canada's Top Ten Film Festival". Now, November 7, 2018.
- ^ Andrew Parker, "TIFF’s Latest Edition of Canada’s Top Ten Crosses Boundaries and Borders". TheGATE.ca, January 24, 2024.
- ^ "CBC and Toronto International Film Festival honour Charles Officer with new award". The Globe and Mail, January 25, 2024.
- ^ "Lists, lists and lists: Tops in video". Peterborough Examiner, December 20, 2001.
- ^ "Canada's Top Ten 2002". Film Studies Association of Canada, January 21, 2003.
- ^ "Canada's Top 10 films". Peterborough Examiner, December 18, 2003.
- ^ "Best films tells diverse stories; Top Ten Canadian movies honoured New filmmakers being recognized". Toronto Star, December 15, 2004.
- ^ "Veterans and newcomers alike make annual Top Ten Canadian film list". Whitehorse Star, December 19, 2005.
- ^ "'Away From Her' makes list of Top 10 Canadian films of 2006". Times & Transcript, December 15, 2006.
- ^ a b "Dolan, Nadda films among Canada's best of the year". Waterloo Region Record, December 26, 2009.
- ^ a b "Canada's Top Ten for 2010". Now, December 15, 2010.
- ^ a b "The Festival group releases Canada's annual top ten". Postmedia News, December 7, 2011.
- ^ a b "Rebelle, Goon, Cosmopolis among Canada's Top Ten: Honoured film titles will be shown at Lightbox from Jan. 4 to 13". Toronto Star, December 5, 2012.
- ^ a b "TIFF selects top 10 Canadian films". Screen International, December 3, 2013.
- ^ Linda Barnard, "Monsoon Canada’s Top Ten people’s choice winner". Toronto Star, January 12, 2015.
- ^ a b "TIFF announces its top 10 Canadian films of 2014". CBC News, December 2, 2014.
- ^ Charles-Henri Ramond, "Le député Guibord élu par le public". Films du Québec, January 18, 2016.
- ^ a b Bruce Kirkland, "TIFF announces its top 10 films of 2015". Toronto Sun, December 8, 2015.
- ^ "'Angry Inuk' wins people's choice award at Canada's Top Ten Film Festival". National Post, January 22, 2017.
- ^ Jordan Pinto, "Unarmed Verses wins Canada’s Top Ten People’s Choice Award". Playback, January 22, 2018.
- ^ a b Norman Wilner, "Canada’s Top Ten has some glaring omissions". Now, December 6, 2017.
- ^ a b "TIFF's Canada's Top Ten list skews a lot younger this year". Now, December 5, 2018.
- ^ a b Norman Wilner, "TIFF announces Canada's top 10 films of 2019". Now, December 11, 2019.
- ^ a b Victoria Ahearn, "Toronto International Film Festival releases Top Ten lists for 2020" Archived 2021-01-04 at the Wayback Machine. Squamish Chief, December 9, 2020.
- ^ a b Norman Wilner, "TIFF announces Canada’s Top Ten films of 2021" Archived 2021-12-06 at the Wayback Machine. Now, December 6, 2021.
- ^ a b Pat Mullen, "Three Feature Docs Make Canada’s Top Ten". Point of View, December 8, 2022.
- ^ a b Pat Mullen, "TIFF’s Canada’s Top Ten Includes BlackBerry, Solo, Humanist Vampire". That Shelf, December 6, 2023.
- ^ Jamie Casemore, "Miryam Charles receives inaugural Charles Officer award". Playback, February 6, 2025.