Giovanni Ribisi and Scott Caan were running late for our interview and had to get to the Ryerson theatre before their film, “The Dog Problem,” started, so instead of sitting in a corner of their hotel, I joined them for the ride and did the interview in the car.

Ribisi and Caan were escorted past the fans waiting outside the Intercontinental and right into the car. They were in a rush so couldn’t stop to sign autographs, but those two I’m told have been the most courteous stars at the festival. Inside the hotel, I had met Caan but hadn’t yet been introduced to Ribisi. So as he was shutting the car door, I had to stop him and I entered. He had a look like “ummm… why is this strange man getting into our car” but all was soon explained.

Ribisi should be one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, and will be soon. He’s very selective in his roles and always gives a memorable performance. Caan is a fantastic writer and I hope “The Dog Problem” gets bought by a huge studio and achieves mass distribution.

Unfortunately, I had an interview with the director and cast of “Bella” after that one back at the hotel, and because of traffic, I was late. I say “unfortunately” because I was late, not because I had an interview with them.

Luckily, the film’s director, Alejandro Gomez Monteverde, and his wife and one of the stars, Ali Landry, stuck around and we had one of my favourite interviews of the festival. Alejandro is the most passionate director I have met all festival long and he preaches how he wants to make a moving film, but also one that can make a difference. “Bella” is a moving feature that is a must-see. After that interview, spoke with the lead actor, Eduardo Verastegui, who is apparently a huge Mexican singer and actor and who is equally as passionate about the film as his friend Alejandro.

Ended the day relatively early by visiting the PokerRoom.com VIP Lounge, high above the city at Panorama on the 51st floor of the Manulife Centre. Am I VIP? Not according to the film fest’s definition, but I couldn’t turn down an invite to play some poker.

As I entered the lounge, a few familiar faces were playing poker: Michael Mabbott (director of “Citizen Duane”), Devon Bostick (Maurie from “Citizen Duane”) and Kris Holden-Ried (Jack Walker from “A Stone’s Throw”). The director of “A Stone’s Throw,” Camelia Frieberg, was also in the lounge having a bite to eat, as was the very helpful publicist, Julius Comia of VKPR.

Daniela Gentile, who is handling publicity for the lounge, showed me the $6,000 gift bag that the A-listers would be receiving. Oh, to be famous. Among the items in the gift bag: a portable Nintendo DS Lite, a portable XM Satellite Radio, Puma shoes, a Vonage V-Phone, and a Whistler Resort ski and spa mountain getaway. Hot damn.

I didn’t walk away empty-handed. I was given my choice of a pair of awesome Puma shoes. I also got a free meal courtesy of PokerRoom.com from the fine folks at Panorama… great pizza. Sure, call me a sellout, but I’m a sellout wearing free shoes and well fed.

I joined in on a game of poker with Shawn Reynolds (who appears in the upcoming film “One Way” with Michael Clarke Duncan and Eric Roberts), director/producer/actor Glen McDonald and Andrew Nisker, the creator of the documentary “Garbage Men.” Reynolds and McDonald have created a film called “Dogs Playing Poker,” which I imagine we will be hearing about a lot soon.

When the game was down to McDonald and myself, he hit a royal flush! I don’t think I had ever seen that before. It was remarkable, and only the dealer and the two of us were there to see it. Now it will live on in the form of this blog entry.






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