Seeing Double: Interview with Zack Russell

Christie Pits Film Festival presents an evening of doppelgängers on August 18th as part of its summer-long Dynamic Duos programme, with the sci-fi cult classic Gattaca. The film takes place in a world where advanced genetic manipulation technology has created a society in which those conceived without the technology, called in-valids, are considered inferior to those with pre-selected traits. Vincent (Ethan Hawke), an in-valid, dreams of space travel but his genetics bar him from the opportunity. In an attempt to pursue his dreams, he impersonates another man who is part of the privileged class. Paired with Gattaca is the short film She Stoops to Conquer, directed by Zack Russell and making its second appearance at TOPS (it screened alongside Cabaret at Corktown Common in 2018). In the short, a woman meets her drag king persona’s double at an after-hours club.

Love in a Minor Key: Interview with Pazit Cahlon and Hector Herrera

An updated take on the 1940s screwball comedy, Nora Ephron’s classic rom-com You’ve Got Mail screens August 15th at Bell Manor Park as part of Toronto Outdoor Picture Show’s summer-long Dynamic Duos series. You’ve Got Mail depicts the relationship between Kathleen (Meg Ryan), the owner of an independent bookstore, and Frank (Tom Hanks), the executive of a big bookstore chain that aims to put Kathleen’s store out of business. The two make enemies of each other as soon as they first meet, but unbeknownst to either of them, they are online pen pals - who are beginning to fall for each other. Paired with You’ve Got Mail is the animated short Typesetter Blues, directed by Pazit Cahlon and Hector Herrera. Featuring narration by Gordon Pinsent, the short portrays the unrequited love story between two cartoon monsters who work together as typesetters.