The Film Reference Library (FRL) is Canada’s film research collection located on the 4th floor of TIFF Bell Lightbox, a cultural centre in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, Canada. The library is a free resource for students, filmmakers, scholars, and journalists. The library is affiliated to International Federation of Film Archives (FIAF), to promote Canadian and global film scholarship by collecting, preserving, and providing access to a comprehensive collection of film prints, and film-related reference resources including books, periodicals, scripts, research files, movies, press kits.

History

The Library assumed operation of the Ontario Film Institute in 1990, when the Province of Ontario selected the Library to be guardian of its film-related holdings and continue the dedicated work of

Gerald Pratley Gerald Arthur Pratley (September 3, 1923 – March 14, 2011) was a Canadian film critic and historian. Piers Handling"Gerald Arthur Pratley" ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'', September 18, 2011. A longtime film critic for the Canadian Broadcasting Cor ...

, founder of the OFI, by collecting and preserving materials indispensable to film education, production and research.

Reference Collection

The library contains 60,000 film research files, which include presskits, photographs, and clippings, 20,000 book titles, 13,000 film, 2000 film scripts, 700 magazine and journal titles, 80 Special Collections, and a large and varied selection of other research materials, including 300,000 images, 11,000 posters, 6000 soundtracks and television titles.

Special Collections

The Film Reference Library houses over 80 Special Collections that illuminate the history of

Canadian cinema ''Canadian Cinema'' was a Canadian television series about films which aired on CBC Television in 1974. Premise Feature films from Canada were presented in this series:Dates verifiable from TV listings July–August 1974 from ''The Globe and Ma ...

. The Special Collections are composed of original archival records: audiovisual material and film elements; print materials, festival catalogues, as well as shooting scripts and production notes. The library's holdings include the personal research archives of film journalist and celebrity interviewer Brian Linehan, in whose memory the library's public reading room is named.Brian Linehan
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The Canadian Encyclopedia ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' (TCE; french: L'Encyclopédie canadienne) is the national encyclopedia of Canada, published online by the Toronto-based historical organization Historica Canada, with the support of Canadian Heritage. Available f ...

Exhibition

Previous exhibitions include: * In Love with the Stars, September 8, 2015 – April 2, 2016 * The Unseen Seen, April 10, 2015 – June 14, 2015 * The Booth, May 2, 2014 – 15 June 15, 2014 * X-Men Master: Gordon Smith, August 17, 2012 – March 31, 2013 * Otherworldly: The Art of Canadian Costume Design, September 2, 2011 – April 1, 2012 * Mary Pickford and the Invention of the Movie Star, January 13, 2011 – July 3, 2011

References

External links

* {{Authority control Toronto International Film Festival Film organizations in Canada Film archives in Canada Libraries in Toronto