By Justin Waldman for Mr. Will Wong

The Toronto Animation Arts Festival International (TAAFI) kicks off today with a slew of incredible workshops, talks and new Animated Movies to be screened. The Festival starts Friday, April 22, 2016 and goes until Monday April 25, 2016. With a diverse and incredible line up of talks, workshops and film premieres there is plenty of things to do and excite oneself with at TAAFI this year.

Starting right off on Friday morning is a workshop with the cartoonist from the Hanna-Barbera era which would be an incredibly-fun workshop as Hanna-Barbera created most of the cartoons embraced by a generation of kids in the ’70s and ’80s. These series including the likes of The Flinstones, Jetsons, Tom and Jerry and so forth  now are viewed widely as classics by generations to follow. Later on in the day there is another workshop with Michael Rianda titled the Big Dipper workshop as he talks for 3 hours about how to get your story off the ground and seen by the world. He has worked on such shows as Gravity Falls and works with Sony Animation, so animators this would be a great workshop to attend. Wrapping-up the opening day there’s a screening of Spark directed by Aaron Woodley and voiced by Jessica Biel, Susan Sarandon, Hilary Swank and Patrick Stewart. Following the Film there is a Q&A and opening ceremonies.

On Saturday there is the TAAFI Animation Arts Maarket all day but there are several talks and workshops that are also incredibly interesting. The Hanna-Barbera era, Confessions of an Animaniac, The Inside-Outs of Pixar Animating all sound exquisite and discussions about the world of animation while the workshops of SHED/SideFX: Outside behind the scenes, Pipeline Studios: Vision Talent & Skill, as well as Super Science Friends from Kickstarter to YouTube all are engaging workshops about how to get a project off the ground and into cinema or online, and having them. To end Friday night there are two screenings of Nova and Possessed and an event called Nelvana Bouncing Ball, all of which provide are sure to provide a night of incredible fun.

Moving towards Sunday, the Maarket continues to run all day while there are Shorts, Talks, and Workshops to fulfill the rest of the day. There is a selection of student Shorts later on in the day on Sunday which to me always seems the most interesting because it showcases the work of the students who are just mastering their craft and gives us a glimpse at the potential future of Animated Films. As well, there are panels and talks subjected around Eric Goldberg, animator at Disney on projects like Aladdin on animating Genie, and co-director of Pocahontas. Also a talk with Laika + Kubo The Two Strings: Behind the Scenes which would be an incredibly engaging conversation as Laika changed the animation world in a way we have not seen in years in the mainstream when they first hit the scene.

Lastly, to wrap up on Monday there are three back-to-back workshops that encompass talent from Eric Goldberg as he talks about the classical animation craft, Richard Arroyo: Plusing story through animation talking about the creative process and best ways to tackle a project, and lastly but certainly not least Samantha Youssef: Movement and Form discussing how to draw and make it look natural.

With all of the great talks, workshops, panels, and screenings TAAFI is certainly the place to be this weekend as everything happens in rather one convenient location of George Brown College Waterfront campus.

More info on TAAFI here.

We love a good Thriller. Bestseller THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN is about to hit the big screen and from this first look, we think we’re gonna love it.

Synopsis:

Each day, Rachel Watson takes the train to work in the city, heading past the town of Witney. The train passes her old house where her ex-husband, Tom, and his new wife, Anna, live. She can also see the home of another married couple a few houses down. Rachel becomes endeared to this couple, whom Rachel nicknames ‘Jess and Jason‘. They appear to have the perfect life, and Rachel is both envious and happy for them. One day while passing their house, Rachel witnesses something that changes everything she thought about the couple. Then Jess goes missing, and Rachel wonders if she is somehow connected to her disappearance.

THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN stars Emily Blunt, Haley Bennett, Rebecca Ferguson, Justin Theroux, luke Evans, Lisa Kudrow, Laura Prepon, Allison Janney and Edgar Ramirez.

See the Trailer:

Universal Pictures release THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN Friday, October 7, 2016.

TIFF ’16 anyone?

(Photo/video credit: Universal Pictures)

People LOVE Nina Dobrev. Believe us, she legit has a People’s Choice Award to prove it. The beautiful Scarborough native has been in and out of the City the past couple months working on xXx: The Return of Xander Cage, in which she stars as Becky. Known best for her work as Elena Gilbert on The CW‘s The Vampire Diaries, she just came back to Toronto after a wild weekend at Coachella partying it up with the likes of Scott Eastwood and Josh Hutcherson – the former just in Toronto visiting Vin Diesel as they begin work on Furious 8.

The Cast of xXx prepared to send-off Diesel today as they filmed in Hamilton near the Port Authority. A party was thrown for him this past weekend although Co-Star Ruby Rose and Dobrev were away at Coachella.  The pair also have been spending much time together during production hanging on weekends among other things, playing archery tag and also pranking one another invading the other’s trailer on-set. They even both don beanies by Puppies Make Me Happy as a symbol of their friendship. Don’t believe us? See what Rose was wearing when we met her here.

Dobrev was visited on-set by her mother and a female friend, Lane Cheek, today and they spent some quality time together following a long day on-set.

Dobrev was amazingly sweet to pose for a Selfie with me, complimenting my Samsung S7, “That camera takes amazing photos!”. Thank you, Nina! You have amazing taste.

We have met Dobrev a few times over the past few years and she always is a sweetheart. She next can be seen in Crash Pad and also Arrivals. Our sources say she also was in the running to star in Baywatch but that didn’t happen sadly.

With Diesel wrapping on xXx: The Return of Xander Cage and Ice Cube just arriving to begin work, production continues on the January 2017 Paramount Pictures release through May.

See our Snap!

With the v. sweet and beautiful #NinaDobrev, in town filming #xXx: #XanderCageReturns. She was out with her mom tonight. 😄 #SamsungS7

A photo posted by Mr. Will Wong 📸 (@mrwillwong) on Apr 19, 2016 at 9:26pm PDT

(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong/Cosmopolitan)

Elevation Pictures + Mr. Will want to take Readers to an Advance Screening of Garry Marshall’s star-studded opus, MOTHER’S DAY!  Bring your Mom, bring a friend!! Screenings take place in Halifax (Scotiabank), Victoria (Tilicum), Ottawa (Cineplex), Vancouver (Scotiabank), Toronto (Scotiabank), Winnipeg (St. Vital), Calgary (Sunridge Spectrum) and Edmonton (North Edmonton) on April 27, 2016.

MOTHER’S DAY stars Britt Robertson, Jennifer Aniston, Julia Roberts, Timothy Olyphant, Kate Hudson, Jason Sudeikis and is directed by Garry Marshall.

See the Trailer:

Artwork:

To enter to win, simply click “like” on this Post at MR. WILL ON FACEBOOK and indicate your City. For an extra chance you may click “share” from there or Tweet out the below:

http://www.mrwillwong.com/mothersday @MRWILLW wants us to #win Advance Screening Passes to see #MOTHERSDAY. Out 4.29.

G’luck.

Elevation Pictures release MOTHER’S DAY Friday, April 29, 2016.

(Photo/video credit: Elevation Pictures)

It was a crazy weekend for star-spotting in Toronto – but with temperatures rising to 20°C, you’d be silly to stay in and not enjoy this well-deserved weather if you were a Celeb!  We spotted cast members from xXx: The Return of Xander Cage, The Expanse, American Gods and Orphan Black. ALL IN THE SPAN OF 90 MINUTES!

xXx: THE RETURN OF XANDER CAGE

With much of filming taking place in Hamilton of late for this Blockbuster starring Vin Diesel, we’re still seeing additions to the Cast roll into the City. With MMA star Conor McGregor dropping out last month to focus on training, fellow Brit and middleweight fighter Michael Bisping more than ably fills the role of Hawk, arriving recently to begin work from L.A. He was amazingly nice to stop today for a Snap while heading out to run errands. No jacket required, indeed. We love that he even “liked” our Selfie!

With #MMA star #MikeBisping, in town for #xXx: #XanderCageReturns. Great bloke!

A photo posted by Mr. Will Wong 📸 (@mrwillwong) on Apr 17, 2016 at 1:29pm PDT

This next sighting we know you’ll be REALLY excited about. We basically made the news allover the papers in India back in February when spotting her boyfriend and fellow Bollywood megastar Ranveer Singh, who flew-in to spend Valentine’s Day with her and also enjoy he NBA All Star Weekend! Deepika Padukone needs no introduction in her native India, but soon she will garner fans all around the world with her starring role as Serena in xXx: The Return of Xander Cage in which she stars opposite Diesel. She was out and about with her parents today and after we spotted her arriving back at her place, she was more than nice to stop for Selfies with her Mom giving her the “okay”! It was quick though as she head back into her building after a few snaps only, giving a gracious wave. We love her. Read about that time we met Ranveer here.  We’ve had pretty good luck with most of the Cast, although we’re still holding out on that Selfie with Diesel! January 2017, guys!! Can’t wait.

The undisputed queen of #Bollywood, #DeepikaPadukone. She plays the female lead in #xXx: #XanderCageReturns opposite #VinDiesel.

A photo posted by Mr. Will Wong 📸 (@mrwillwong) on Apr 17, 2016 at 1:36pm PDT

AMERICAN GODS

We adore Brit import Ricky Whittle and are thrilled that things are on the up-and-up for him after his sudden exit from The CW‘s The 100. He begins work on Starz‘s American Gods and although we hear he just found himself a house for his stay while filming the upcoming series, he was really nice to stop today and spend a good 10 minutes with Fans, doing Snaps, Selfies and Autographs, genuinely absorbing all the love. We love the Snap he did with us, which he Tweeted to his amazing Fans!

#Snapchat with the amazing #RickyWhittle!! #AmericanGods (Thank you @kenzis)

A photo posted by Mr. Will Wong 📸 (@mrwillwong) on Apr 17, 2016 at 1:40pm PDT

With the gracious @rickywhittle!! 💯 #RickyWhittle

A video posted by Mr. Will Wong 📸 (@mrwillwong) on Apr 17, 2016 at 11:36am PDT

THE EXPANSE

You definitely recognize him from The Hunger Games and The Help, and Georgia native Wes Chatham is back in town to film the second season of SyFy’s The Expanse in the role of Amos Burton. He was spotted doing a quick read-through with British Co-Star Dominique Tipper (Vampire Academy) over lunch.  The latter stars as Naomi Nagata and the series has a pretty stacked Cast including Thomas Jane, Shohreh Aghdashloo and more.

With #TheExpanse star #WesChatham. You recognize him from #TheHungerGames and #TheHelp.

A photo posted by Mr. Will Wong 📸 (@mrwillwong) on Apr 17, 2016 at 1:32pm PDT

With #DominiqueTipper, in town filming #TheExpanse.

A photo posted by Mr. Will Wong 📸 (@mrwillwong) on Apr 17, 2016 at 1:34pm PDT

ORPHAN BLACK
Although he’s no longer on internationally-acclaimed Orphan Black as Paul Dierden, which just wrapped recently in the City, Dylan Bruce was spotted around town on some down time. It appears that he’s next working on a TV Film called Midnight, Texas. Despite being caught off guard a bit, he was awesome to accommodate Selfies! We met him a couple years back at Soho House and remember him being just as cool!

With #OrphanBlack’s #DylanBruce.

A photo posted by Mr. Will Wong 📸 (@mrwillwong) on Apr 17, 2016 at 1:33pm PDT

(Photo/video credit: Mr. Will Wong)

THE JUNGLE BOOK charms its way to the hearts of Moviegoers with $88 million from 4,028 theatres for Disney in its debut. This makes the Live Action Adaptation of Rudyard Kipling‘s beloved story the highest debut ever in April for a Film. Critics and Audiences both agree the Film is outstanding with an A CinemaScore and a 95% on the Tomatometer.

BARBERSHOP: THE NEXT CUT, the third Film in the Franchise, debuts in second with a solid $22 million for Warner Bros., from 2,661 theatres.  It earns a B- CinemaScore and a superb 91% on the Tomatometer, gaining Fans with its statement about gun control.

THE BOSS continues to perform healthily at the Box Office with $10 million in its second week out for Universal Pictures. Thus far domestically it has made $40 million.

BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE sits in fourth this weekend for Warner Bros. with $8.5 million. Thus far it has grossed $310 million over four weeks.

ZOOTOPIA in its seventh week out earns $7.7 million for Disney, surpassing $306 million.

CRIMINAL debuts in sixth with $6.3 million in 2,683 theatres for VVS Films/Lionsgate Films. The Thriller starring Kevin Costner and Ryan Reynolds gets a 25% on the Tomatometer and much more favourable B- CinemaScore from Audiences.

MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING 2 isn’t doing too shabby at all in seventh with $3.3 million for Universal Pictures, just passing $52 million in its fourth week out.

EYE IN THE SKY rounds-out the Top Ten with $1.5 million for eOne Films/Bleecker Street now in its sixth week out.

Universal Pictures Canada + Mr. Will want to take Readers to see hysterical new Comedy, POPSTAR: NEVER STOP NEVER STOPPING. The Screening takes place on Wednesday, June 1, 2016 in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary.

Synopsis:
Universal Pictures’ POPSTAR: NEVER STOP NEVER STOPPING is headlined by musical digital-shorts superstars Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone, collectively known as The Lonely Island. The comedy goes behind the scenes as singer/rapper Conner4Real (Samberg) faces a crisis of popularity after his sophomore album flops, leaving his fans, sycophants and rivals all wondering what to do when he’s no longer the dopest star of all.

See the Trailer:

Artwork:

To enter to win, click “like” on this Post at MR. WILL ON FACEBOOK. Indicate your city and tell me your favourite “one hit/album wonder”. Click “share” from there for an extra chance or Tweet the below:

http://www.mrwillwong.com/popstar @MRWILLW wants us to #win Advance Passes to see #POPSTARMovie. Out 6.3.

G’luck Willionaire$!

Universal Pictures Canada release POPSTAR: NEVER STOP NEVER STOPPING Friday, June 3, 2016.

(Photo/video credit: Universal Pictures Canada)

After some major raves at Sundance including wins for the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award, we get a first official look at Nate Parker’s THE BIRTH OF A NATION, which could well be a force this coming Awards Season.

Synopsis:

Set against the antebellum South, THE BIRTH OF A NATION follows Nat Turner, a literate slave and preacher, whose financially strained owner, Samuel Turner, accepts an offer to use Nat’s preaching to subdue unruly slaves. As he witnesses countless atrocities – against himself and his fellow slaves – Nat orchestrates an uprising in the hopes of leading his people to freedom.

Nate Parker, Armie Hammer, Gabrielle Union, Colman Domigo, Aunjanue Ellis, Aja Naomi King, Penelope Ann Miller and Jackie Earle Healey star.

See the Trailer:

TIFF ’16, anyone?

Fox Searchlight release THE BIRTH OF A NATION Friday, October 7, 2016.

(Photo/video credit: Fox Searchlight)

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Canada + Mr. Will want to give Readers a chance to win a THE LADY IN THE VAN Prize Pack including the Film on DVD and also a copy of its screenplay book!

Synopsis:

An eccentric homeless woman of uncertain origins, Mary (Maggie Smith), “temporarily” parks her van in Alan’s (Alex Jennings) London driveway and proceeds to live there for the next 15 years.

Over the span of those 15 years, Alan learns that Mary’s past life isn’t quite what he expected.

See the Trailer:

Artwork:

To enter to win, simply click “like” on this Post at MR. WILL ON FACEBOOK!

G’luck.

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Canada release THE LADY IN THE VAN on DVD Tuesday, April 19, 2016.

(Photo/video credit: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Canada/Mongrel Media)

Back in December, we posted this piece pointing to some early images of Benedict Cumberbatch in the role of Doctor Strange for the upcoming Marvel Studios project of the same name. The film has flown under the radar to some extent, perhaps because we have some other superhero releases to get through first in 2016, but the argument can be made that Cumberbatch is the biggest star to take up a superhero role since Robert Downey, Jr. and Scarlett Johansson. And that should make this a pretty exciting release when the time comes.

In the meantime all we have is speculation and whatever the studio gives us. And this past week, that included a first look at the character in action! The debut trailer for Doctor Strange was uploaded to YouTube by Marvel Entertainment, and you can view it in its entirety here.

In the meantime, here are some thoughts and questions we had regarding this early look…

First, how about the distinct Christopher Nolan undertones? Upon a first watch of the trailer you may notice that in a very general sense the sounds and cinematography on display are reminiscent of Nolan’s style. But watching more closely, you might see distinct echoes of two films in particular: Batman Begins and Inception. We see Stephen Strange (Cumberbatch) in both humble rags and a tuxedo, and then seemingly training and reinventing himself in what looks to be a Far East temple of some sort very much in the image of Christian Bale’s Bruce Wayne in Batman Begins. We also see people manipulating environments and even folding cities in ways that bring Inception visuals to mind. This is by no means to suggest this film will be anything like those Nolan projects, but either way they’re certainly not bad comparisons.

The next thought that came to mind was the question of how familiar this character will be to comic fans, if at all. The truth is that the studio (and larger company) have already made some efforts to plant an image of Doctor Strange in the minds of modern fans. The character exists in multiple games online and on mobile devices, and there may even be a hint of him in a popular casino game at this site. The image for The Magician Trick Picks slot game looks suspiciously like some versions of Strange, and we know that both Marvel and DC like to advertise their characters by licensing their images out to these platforms. In this case, the game isn’t official, but it could easily have been taken as a hint of more to come. Despite all these appearances most of which fall in line with the Entertainment Weekly stills of Cumberbatch in the role that we discussed previously the trailer shows a humbler and more ordinary looking character. It may b e that for this first film we’re pretty much looking at a normal human before he transforms into a costumed hero.

And finally, it’s difficult to watch the trailer without wondering: is this a little bit too much? The imagery and Nolan-like quality are quite exciting, on their own, but the film looks to have a distinctly different tone than most of the other superhero films we’ve seen. Furthermore, it certainly appears as if the school of power that Strange is studying in has secrets that would far surpass the abilities of the other Avengers, and of the villains we’ve seen thusfar. An early review for Captain America: Civil War essentially praises the upcoming film for remaining grounded, whereas so many superhero films have focused on greater powers and enemies emerging from the skies. Frankly it’s all gotten a little bitridiculous and there has to be some concern that Doctor Strange will ramp things up in that department just a few months after Civil War brings the genre back down to Earth.

Purely as its own project, however, Doctor Strange is looking pretty interesting. Its trailer definitely makes you want to know more.