To the surprise of few, Atom Egoyan’s Felicia’s Journey will be the opening night gala at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival.

The film, produced by Bruce Davey and Robert Lantos, debuted to much acclaim at Cannes in May and will be making its North America premiere at the festival, which runs Sept. 9-18. Starring Bob Hoskins and Elaine Cassidy, Felicia’s Journey takes an intense look at the experiences of a pregnant Irish teenager living in England. Alliance Atlantis Releasing is handling Canadian distribution, Artisan Entertainment is taking care of the u.s. and ICON International is distributing worldwide.

Five additional galas were also recently announced, each covering history, politics or love gone awry. The lineup includes Academy Award nominee Scott Hicks’ Snow Falling On Cedars, Istvan Szabo’s Sunshine, Ang Lee’s Ride With the Devil, Carlos Diegues’ Orfeu, and Academy Award winner Fernando Trueba’s The Girl of Your Dreams.

Also, this year’s National Cinema Programme, entitled Indiscreet Charms: New Spanish Cinema, features the works of some of Spain’s most provocative filmmakers.

The Director’s Spotlight focuses on Japanese director Kiyoshi Kurosawa.