This year, a total of 28 German films and German-international co-productions are being presented at the 29th Toronto International Film Festival (9-18 September 2004),

DOWNFALL (DER UNTERGANG) by Oliver Hirschbiegel will have its international premiere in Toronto as a Gala Screening. This section will also feature the co-productions BEYOND THE SEA by Kevin Spacey, IMAGINARY HEROES by Dan Harris and MODIGLIANI by Mick Davis.

Two German Oscar prize-winners will present their new films in Toronto: Florian Gallenberger's first feature-length film SHADOWS OF TIME (SCHATTEN DER ZEIT) will be shown as a world premiere in the sidebar Special Presentations. Volker Schloendorff's THE NINTH DAY (DER NEUNTE TAG) has been invited to screen in the Masters sidebar.
This section will also present LAND OF PLENTY by Wim Wenders as well as the co-production SALVADOR ALLENDE by Patricio Guzmán.

Contemporary World Cinema will show the German-international co-productions LE CHIAVI DI CASA by Gianni Amelio, FAMILIA RODANTE by
Pablo Trapero, HOTEL by Jessica Hausner, INCONSCIENTES by Joaquín Oristrell, NICELAND by Fridrik Thór Fridriksson, SCHIZO by Guka Omarova
and WHISKY by Juan Pablo Rebella and Pablo Stoll.

Discovery, which is reserved for first and second films, has no less than three films from young up-and-coming German filmmakers this year: THE FOREST FOR THE TREES (DER WALD VOR LAUTER BAEUMEN) by Maren Ade, OFF BEAT (KAMMERFLIMMERN) by Hendrik Hoelzemann and SUMMER STORM (SOMMERSTURM) by Marco Kreuzpaintner; in addition, the co-production BUFFALO BOY by Minh Nguyen-Vo.

The documentary sidebar Real to Reel will include TOUCH THE SOUND by Thomas Riedelsheimer as well as the co-production GUNNER PALACE by Michael Tucker and Petra Epperlein.

Midnight Madness will present THE RASPBERRY REICH by Bruce LaBruce and the co-production CREEP by Christopher Smith.

Wavelengths will be showing the three shorts MIRROR, PHANTOM and PLAY by Christoph Girardet and Matthias Mueller, Visions the co-production TROPICAL MALADY by Apichatpong Weerasethakul, and National Cinema: South Africa the co-production ZULU LOVE LETTERS by Ramadan Suleman.

European Film Promotion (EFP) will have its own stand in the Industry Center to represent more than 120 European films which have been invited to Toronto. Moreover, Florian Gallenberger will be one of seven European directors introduced to the international press at EFP's annual European Directors Panel on 13th September.

The Toronto Film Festival consciously makes do without an official competition since FIAPF rules for the most important international festivals specify that only premieres are allowed to be presented. This enables Toronto as a "festival of festivals" to offer its audience a selection of the most interesting films from the competition programmes of the international A festivals as well as present its own new discoveries. It is regarded as the "entrance to the American market" and one of the most important industry gatherings worldwide.