Some of my favorite documentaries of all time have been portraits of the artist and now finally Toronto has it's very own festival the Reel Artist Film Festival which showcases documentary work about some of the world's most amazing visual artists.

My picks would definetly include "Annie Pootoogook" a portrait by Marcia Connolly of the up and coming contemporary Canadian Inuit artist who recently wowed people with her show at Toronto's Powerplant and who won the $50,000 Sobey Art Award. Also check out "Jack Smith and the Destruction of Atlantis" a doc about the legendary underground queer filmmaker dubbed "Irresistible" by Time Magazine.

As an added treat the festival also includes a documentary about Matthew Barney called Matthew Barney: No Restraint by Alison Chernick. I'm a huge fan of Barney's work and look forward to any insight into his new film Drawing Restraint 9 that he made with wifey Bjork that will finally make it's Toronto premiere before the festival starts on January 31st at 7pm the Bloor Cinema. Tickets are $12 in advance @ Pages and Soundscapes, $15 at the door.

The festival runs Febuary 22th to 25th at the Al Green Theatre at the corner of Spadina & Bloor with $8 advance tickets, $10 at the door or $5 with Student ID. Call (416) 368-8854, ext. 102 to order while they're still hot.