The Toronto International Film Festival on Tuesday announced seven days of industry programming, which will feature 140 international guest speakers.

The seven-day Industry Conference will cover topics including emerging filmmakers, financing, coproduction, marketing, creative process, distribution and transmedia, split into daily themes.

Those discussions will include one-on-one Moguls sessions with Imax toppers Greg Foster and Rich Gelfond, and Industry Dialogues focused on the current and future state of the film industry, featuring Kickstarter and Indiegogo execs, major players from European funding agencies and private capital companies, and direct distribution company execs from Yekra, Syndicado and Vimeo.

Additionally, as the company’s The Fifth Estate opens the festival with its world premiere, Participant Media’s Jeff Skoll and Jim Berk will participate in a keynote conversation about the North American and international film business and the company’s expansion into new territories with its recently-launched Pivot TV channel and TakePart.com digital site.

Industry programming highlights are as follows:

Moguls

Greg Foster and Rich Gelfond

This session offers an in-depth conversation with IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond and Greg Foster, CEO IMAX Entertainment and Senior Executive Vice President, IMAX Corp., who will discuss the Canadian company’s strategy for global success.

Dede Gardner

TIFF Industry proudly presents a conversation with Academy-Award nominee Dede Gardner, President of Plan B Entertainment, the production company helmed by Brad Pitt. Gardner has produced box-office hits such as Eat, Pray, Love and World War Z, as well as art-house favourites like The Tree of Life and Killing Them Softly, and is currently at the Festival with Steve McQueen’s highly anticipated 12 Years A Slave.

Alison Thompson

This conversation features one of the leading executives in independent film sales, Alison Thompson, Co-President of Focus Features International. Overseeing sales, distribution, marketing, publicity and aspects of European production and acquisitions, she has represented such prominent titles as Blue Jasmine, Brokeback Mountain, Cloud Atlas, Into the Wild, Moonrise Kingdom, Somewhere and Volver – among many others – during her illustrious career.

Industry Dialogues

Engaging Filmmakers and Audiences: A Keynote Conversation with Participant Media

Since its inception 10 years ago, Participant Media has made a significant impact in the industry by developing socially relevant and commercially viable feature films, documentaries and television. Against the backdrop of the highly anticipated world premiere of The Fifth Estate and North American premiere of The Unknown Known at the Festival, Founder and Chairman Jeff Skoll and CEO Jim Berk hit the stage for a conversation about their vision and the day-to-day realities of the film business in North America and around the world. They will be joined by a number of key industry figures as they discuss their successes and lessons learned from the company’s expansion into new territories: the recently-launched TV channel Pivot, and digital site TakePart.com

TIFF 101

Whether you’re a Festival first-timer or veteran; a filmmaker or industry delegate, this TIFF Industry breakfast will be an invaluable resource. In addition to offering an insider’s look at maximizing time and taking advantage of resources available, it’s also a great way to meet colleagues and TIFF decision-makers in an informal environment. TIFF 101 features TIFF staffers Justin Cutler (Senior Manager, TIFF Industry Office), Christoph Straub (Manager, Industry Programming) and Hayet Benkara (Industry Project Manager, STUDIO).

Nurturing Emerging Talent

Meet the influencers, advocates and new talent leading the way in creative production. Panellists will share their experiences in the global film industry as they develop opportunities for emerging filmmakers. Panellists:

• Steven Markovitz, Suka! Productions

• Josh Penn, Producer, Beasts of the Southern Wild

• Neerja Narayanan, Fox Star Studios India

• Moderator: Wendy Mitchell, Screen International

Alternate Financing: The Road Less Travelled

Expert speakers discuss the advantages and limitations of different types of financing structures available to those who choose a non-traditional route to project-funding. Panellists:

• Elisabeth Holm, Kickstarter

• Vida Rizq, Aflamnah

• Catalina Briceno, Canada Media Fund

• Moderator: John Galway, The Harold Greenberg Fund

Micro-Budget Realities

As producers and content creators are increasingly expected to do more with less, this panel will deconstruct what it takes for micro-budget ($100,000 and under) success via a case study. Panellists:

• Katriel Schory, Israeli Film Fund

• Enrique Lopez, Producer, Gente in Sitios

Big Money: Private and Equity Financing

Insiders provide a window on how financing decisions are made in order to help demystify the role of private capital and its relationship with the film industry, and point producers to methods of unlocking these resources. Panellists:

• Kerry Barden, Casting Director

• Yewande Sadiku, Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited

• Moderator: Cassian Elwes, e2b Capital

Meet the EU Film Funders

For the first time, a selection of Europe’s biggest funding agencies will attend the Festival in official capacities. This panel introduces delegates to some of the major players and offers tips on how to access their various funding streams. Panellists:

• Cornelia Hammelmann, DFF (Germany)

• Roberto Olla, Eurimages (Italy)

• Isabel Davies, British Film Institute (UK)

• Moderator: Valerie Mouroux, Cinémas du Monde

Spotlight: Nigeria beyond Nollywood

Half of a Yellow Sun, a Festival Special Presentation, has been touted as the highest-budget film in the history of Nollywood, and was funded almost entirely by Nigerian investors. Delegates will learn about the new modes of production being explored in Nigerian cinema, and of the nation’s cinematic past, present and future. Panellists:

• Andrea Calderwood, Producer

• Biyi Bandele, Director and Screenwriter

• Kisha Cameron Dingle, Completion Films

• Moderator: Aboubakar Sanogo, Carlton University

Coproduction Case Studies

First-hand lessons in the dos and don’ts of coproduction through a closer examination of official Festival selections produced across borders. Panellists:

• Sarika Hemi Lakhani, One Fine Day Films

• Moderator, John Hadity, Entertainment Partners

The Right Marketing Strategy for the Right Film

Filmmakers are increasingly required to balance business and creativity, making marketing and business strategies something with which they must become familiar. This panel offers a primer on reaching and engaging audiences and potential partners through research, brand integration and social metrics. Panellists:

• Marc Schiller, Bond 360

• Jamie Wilkinson, VHX

Engaging Your Audience

From content sourcing the next big thing and mobilizing for screen-time in theatres to generating the ‘buy-in’ for financial involvement, experts explore innovations in engaging a savvy digital audience. Panellists:

• J Joly, Cinecoup

• Nicolas Gonda, Tugg

• John Trigonis, IndieGogo

Cinematography and Technology – 4K: Beyond RED

With the advent of 4K and new forms of media and technology, this panel provides a state of the union on the latest large-sensor cinematography. The discussion will give an overview of the latest gear and techniques, and looks at the impact of the technology from both creative and business perspectives. Panellists:

• Nick De Pencier, Cinematographer

• Moderator: David Leitner, Filmmaker Magazine

Story: From Page to Screen

A discussion of the shift from story to screenplay, and from screenplay to screen, with the expertise of high-profile authors and screenwriters associated with a range of official Festival film selections. Panellists:

• Franklin Leonard, Blcklst

• Chimimanda Ngozi Adichie, Author, Half of a Yellow Sun

Anatomy of a Trailer

Trailer guru Mark Woollen offers an intimate presentation on the anatomy of the trailer, giving insights into how the auteur-driven cutting process can captivate and engage audiences.

Global State of VoD

Change is the only constant in the global Video on Demand marketplace. This panel will provide a look at the evolution of VoD in multiple territories including Mexico, Kenya, France and China. Panellists:

• Elizabeth Louise Hopkins, Cinepolis Klic

• Pierre Alexandre-Labelle, Under the Milky Way

• Allen Zhu, Youku Inc

• Marie Lora-Mungai, BuniTV

• Moderator: Wendy Bernfeld, Rights Stuff

New Tools of Direct Distribution

Innovators and thought-leaders in the direct-distribution world share their perspectives on the evolution of the industry and how new platforms can be used to aggregate, self-distribute, market and mobilize. The panel will discuss the state of the industry and the trends and challenges of online engagement for content creators and audiences. Panellists:

• Scott Glosserman, gathr

• Lee Waterworth, Yekra

• Greg Rubidge, Syndicado

• Jeremy Boxer, Vimeo

• Moderator: Brad Pelman, Pelman Corp

Releasing Strategies: Collapse of the Window

The collapse of the traditional windows for release creates both challenges and opportunities for content creators and distributors. This panel will discuss the new reality and various release strategies. Panellists:

• Philipp Hoffmann, VOD-consulting

• Sue Bruce-Smith, Film 4.0

The Business of Transmedia

A deconstruction of the decision-making process behind various business models from across the transmedia landscape, touching on budgetary issues, wire-models, deliverables, release schedules, and cross-platform operation. Panellists:

• William Mainguy, Reelhouse

• Ben Grass, Puregrass Films

• Andy Merkin, Mirada

• Moderator: Siobhann O Flynn, Transmedia 101 and CFC Media Lab

Additional Industry Programming and Initiatives

indieWIRE @ Filmmakers’ Lounge September 7 to 10, 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. featuring Q&A sessions with actors and directors

Telefilm Canada’s Talent to Watch panel discussions