Festival Music House performers Half Moon Run and Kid Koala contribute music to films premiering at Toronto International Film Festival® (TIFF)

Festival Music House logo

Festival Music House logoFor the past six years, Festival Music House has aimed to introduce local and visiting film and television industry to emerging and established Canadian musicians. Produced in conjunction with Radio Starmaker Fund, the goal of the event is to not only celebrate the importance of music in film, but to also connect talented Canadian artists and their music with upcoming film/television projects. This year, Half Moon Run and Kid Koala, two of this year’s performers, have done just that.

Half Moon Run contributed an original song to acclaimed director Jean-Marc Vallée’s (Dallas Buyers Club, Wild) new film Demolition, premiering at TIFF and starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Naomi Watts. The band will release their sophomore album, ‘Sun Leads Me On,’ on Oct. 23.

kid Koala
Image by Corinne Merrell.

Canadian DJ Kid Koala continues his involvement in the film world, having previously contributed to scores and soundtracks for Looper, The Great Gatsby, and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. This year, Kid Koala is responsible for the music of Zoom, a Canadian-Brazilian co-production directed by Pedro Morelli and starring Gael Garcia Bernal, Mariana Ximenes, Alison Pill and Don McKellar.

New this year, Festival Music House has partnered with Rhombus Media and Elevation Pictures to host the official after party for Closet Monster, the highly anticipated debut feature film by Canadian writer/director Stephen Dunn. The coming-of-age story follows teen Oscar Madly (played by former TIFF Rising Star Connor Jessup), a creative and driven teenager who hovers on the brink of adulthood. Destabilized by his dysfunctional parents, unsure of his sexuality, and haunted by horrific images of a tragic gay bashing he witnessed as a child, Oscar dreams of escaping the town, family and past he feels is suffocating him. A talking hamster, imagination and the prospect of love help him confront his surreal demons and discover himself. The movie also stars current TIFF Rising Star Aliocha Schneider and three-time Oscar winner Isabella Rossellini.

Closet Monster
Image courtesy of Elevation Pictures.

“While writing Closet Monster, listening to music was one of the most important vehicles that helped catapult my ideas on the page. It’s amazing to see how the film ended up manifesting with most of the music it was actually written to,” said writer/director Dunn“Festival Music House is one of the best and most important TIFF parties. The Closet Monster team is excited to be partnering with FMH as we showcase the strong connection between Canadian cinema and our dynamic, vibrant music industry.”

The full FMH 2015 lineup is listed below, and can also be found at: festivalmusichouse.com.

Sunday, Sept.13
Kid Koala (midnight)
Half Moon Run (11 p.m.)
Reuben and the Dark (10 p.m.)
Avenue (9 p.m.)
Harrison (8 p.m.)

Monday, Sept. 14
Keys N Krates (midnight)
Barenaked Ladies (11 p.m.)
Dear Rouge (10 p.m.)
Allie X (9 p.m.)
Brave Shores (8 p.m.)

For more information on Festival Music House, visit festivalmusichouse.com

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