Top 20 Alternative Picks for TIFF 2013: Penny Panayotopoulou’s September

September – Penny Panayotopoulou

Section: City to City

Dates: Sunday 8th, Monday 9th

Buzz: Penny Panayotopoulou’s debut film Hard Goodbyes: My Father was warmly received at TIFF in 2002. She returns to the festival with September, which supposedly subverts what Panayotopoulou perceives to be the cynicism of contemporary cinema. Hopefully those optimistic that the skilled filmmaker has perfected her craft during the eleven-year hiatus will be rewarded by this promising sophomore feature – it certainly appears to be the case with solid grades from THR and Screen Daily in Karlovy Vary.

The Gist: Anna, a taciturn 30-something, lives in a small flat with her dog Manu, who means everything to her. After a distressing incident which disrupts her carefully guarded, secluded life, Anna attaches herself to the family of Sofia, a happily married woman and mother of two children.