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Meet the man trying to turn Toronto into an indie film hub

What New York City is to Woody Allen, what Boston is to Ben Affleck, the city of Toronto is to 27-year-old independent filmmaker Curt Jaimungal.

“I really. really like Toronto – like, a ton,” says Jaimungal, whose comedy I’m Okay is set to make its debut Tuesday at TIFF Bell Lightbox. “Everybody has a travel bug, everybody wants to go to Paris, to New York. I just feel like I haven’t explored Toronto enough.”

It’s that same passion for the city that led Jaimungal to form indiefilmTO — an independent filmmaker’s community encouraging the city’s visual artists to learn the art of moviemaking on a shoestring.

The indiefilmTO website offers tips for securing funding and lets other aspiring filmmakers network and learn from one another.

‘The biggest roadblock facing Toronto filmmakers is their own limiting beliefs,” Jaimungal said, adding many artists he meets have films in their backpocket but procrastinate because of a lack of funding or training.

“This is why I made ‘I’m Okay’, to show them that you can do it with very little budget. Look what you can do if you just put in the time,” he said.

Working with a mere $25,000, Jaimungal’s feature about a relationship on its last legs is both a jab at modern romance and a love letter to Toronto.

“It’s the most ‘Toronto’ film that’s ever been made,” he said. “The TTC, the street names — Toronto is almost a character in the film.”

And with his next project already in motion, the young filmmaker isn’t shy to set his sights on a future in the spotlight.

“My next film is going to be one of the best films that have ever been made,” he said.

Source: Metro