Colin is a stud. Stew, not so much. They’ve been virtually inseparable since college. But now Colin has fallen for a much younger man.

West of Brooklyn takes us on a heartfelt and often humorous journey from Brooklyn, New York to Hollywood, California. “Sebi” is a young Italian American man, a simple street kid and a secret beat poet, who after the death of his mother escapes Brooklyn to join his crew of friends who recently relocated to L.A. These colorful characters from New York are truly fish out of water in L.A. and Sebi longs to find a place he can feel at home. Sebi’s friends, a beautiful rich girl from Beverly Hills named “Matty”, and his idol, a famous Bronx poet named “Gaetano D’Amico” bring Sebi face to face with his identity and help him find the courage to be exactly who he was all along. Written by Ronnie Marmo

Marisa Ventura is a struggling single mom who works at a posh Manhattan hotel and dreams of a better life for her and her young son. One fateful day, hotel guest and senatorial candidate Christopher Marshall meets Marisa and mistakes her for a wealthy socialite. After an enchanting evening together, the two fall madly in love. But when Marisa’s true identity is revealed, issues of class and social status threaten to separate them. Can two people from very different worlds overcome their differences and live happily ever after?

I’m Still Here is a portrayal of a tumultuous year in the life of actor Joaquin Phoenix. With remarkable access, the film follows the Oscar-nominee as he announces his retirement from a successful film career in the fall of 2008 and sets off to reinvent himself as a hip-hop musician. The film is a portrait of an artist at a crossroads and explores notions of courage and creative reinvention, as well as the ramifications of a life spent in the public eye.

From Spike Lee comes this vibrant semi-autobiographical portrait of a school-teacher, her stubborn jazz-musician husband and their five kids living in ’70s Brooklyn.

This twisted Iranian narrative follows a mysterious couple from Tehran as they distribute large bags of money in an impoverished mountain border town. Beginning as a black comedy, the film’s mood transforms as the games played by Kaveh (director Mani Haghighi) and Leyla (Taraneh Alidoosti) become increasingly perverse, as they find inventive ways of humiliating the recipients of the cash. The immorality of the central characters is at times sickening, and their chain of lies is often as puzzling to us as they are to the townsfolk depicted onscreen. What is the relationship between the pair and why are they giving away money to the needy? Modest Reception has no easy answers nor pat resolutions – instead Haghighi takes the viewer on an intriguing ride into the dark recesses of the human spirit.

When a possessed pair of jeans begins to kill the staff of a trendy clothing store, it is up to Libby, an idealistic young salesclerk, to stop its bloody rampage.

A prince from Europe meets a charming waitress when he travels to America during the Christmas holiday to escape an arranged marriage.

Eevi works in a beauty parlor, leading a humdrum life in the suburbs of Helsinki with his husband Kari, a wannabe rocker. After the jackpot, the couple agrees to carry on with their lives as before, without telling anyone about the stroke of luck. But the money is burning holes in their pockets and that’s hard to hide. Their opinions about themselves and their relationship are put to the test. Everyone seems now to have a strange attitude towards them – although they try to pretend to be the same people as before. Do the millions bring happiness after all?

When James met Penelope at a club, it took all of three weeks before they were married. But after the marriage, other women became attracted to James and he kept getting promoted, which took him away from Penelope. So Penelope puts on a disguise and robs her husband’s bank. Her psychiatrist, Greg, believes that this condition is caused by James being over worked and under romantic with Penelope. She also tells Greg that she robs the business associates of James. But Greg is in love with Penelope – in fact everyone likes her. The problem is when she confesses to her crimes, no one believes her.

In 1983, a naive man is detained by Australian Federal Police with lethal narcotics hidden in his stomach. After being apprehended, ‘The Mule’ makes a desperate choice… to defy his bodily functions and withhold the evidence – literally.

A hyper-repressed and schlubby accountant (Jonas Chernick) strikes a deal with a worldly but disorganized stripper (Emily Hampshire): he’ll help her with her crushing debt if she helps him become a better lover. Sharp direction by the versatile Sean Garrity and a very funny script by Chernick ensure for an uproarious — and surprisingly educational — sex comedy. (TIFF)