I must admit – while I did very much miss all the usual TIFF goings-on as I sat it out last year, I certainly didn’t miss going through the hell of film selection.

To the uninitiated, most of those attending TIFF are going in with some sort of “choose-your-own” package with a set number of films (as few as 10, as many as 50). On a Tuesday in late August, you finally get to see a full rundown on every one of the 300 films playing (many of the smaller ones, while announced, often come with little details)…and the schedule for when they are playing.

You then have one week to submit your selections, insodoing figuring out which films you want to see most, and balance that out with when they are playing, what’s playing at the same time, and how long it will take you to run here and there around the city.

It sounds like hell, but given that this is my ninth go-round, I’ve pretty much got it down to a science. Here’s what has my eye…

I’ll be turning in my order Sunday morning – say a prayer to the gods of random selection for me, would ya?