It’s official. The Reel World Film festival is back
for the second year.

Director Anais Granofsky, acting veteran of Degrassi High,
made it to the press conference at the Paramount despite stomach flu. Her
movie, On Their Knees, will be screening in the opening night gala.

Her movie is about two sisters whose grandmother has just died. She
plays one of the sisters.

“We travel with her dead body out to the east coast of Canada,”
says Granofsky. “It’s about a journey, about crazy women. It’s about
Canada.”

Recognizing Canadian talent is one reason Tonya Lee Williams, who
plays Dr. Olivia Barber on The Young And The Restless,
founded Reel World.

“I’ve lived it myself,” she says. “There was no place for me here.
As I get older I see young people asking me how to make it across the
border. I was really disturbed that after 15 years this is still
happening.”

It’s not a feel-good thing either.

“It makes economic sense to build our own industry rather than
relying on our close neighbours to shoot their projects here. There is an
industry here but we have to be diligent to develop it.”

Williams thinks Reel World, which also features seminars and live
interviews with actors, will be a force to reckon with in the next years.

“We have distribution companies like Fine Line and Miramax who are
coming to us,” she says. “Distributors are coming from South Africa,
buyers from the Caribbean Islands. This is product they want to buy.”

The festival runs April 4-8 at Famous Player’s Silvercity Empress
Walk. For more information check out http://www.reelworldfilmfest.com./