Mike Fleming

Sure, the Toronto International Film Festival is about the jockeying of high-profile pics that starts Oscar season, but hey, it is held in Canada. The September 9 opener? The world premiere gala presentation of Score: A Hockey Musical, a film about a teen hockey phenom who realizes the Canadian dream by being discovered on the ice, and gaining overnight fame. Michael McGowan wrote and directed, and Olivia Newton-John, Marc Jordan, Noah Reid and Allie MacDonald are in the cast, as are Canadian music, broadcast and hockey stars.

“Score: A Hockey Musical captures key elements of Canadian identity – our passion for our national pastime, our unique musical style and our special brand of humour,” says Piers Handling, Director and CEO of TIFF. “We’re pleased to welcome back Michael McGowan to the Festival to help us kick off 11 days of exciting programming.”