Some of Canada’s best songwriters and musicians played showcase sets to music supervisors and other film industry personnel from around the world at the fourth annual Canadian Music Café, presented by SOCAN and five other producing partners during the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival ®.

Afternoon performances took place Sept. 9-11, at the Hard Rock Cafe, located next to Dundas Square in the heart of downtown Toronto. The atmosphere was intimate and relaxed as SOCAN members Martha Wainwright, Royal Wood, Thunderheist, City and Colour, Kreesha Turner, Two Hours Traffic, Grand Analog and Gentleman Reg, among others, played for enthusiastic crowds well in excess of 100 people.

Among the music supervisors and film industry personnel attending the café were John Bissell (The Hurt Locker, Ugly Betty, The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys); Gary Calamar (True Blood, Dexter, House); Tony Scudellari of SONY Pictures (Damages, Rescue Me, Rules of Engagement); Tony von Pervieux of ABC/Disney (Lost, Samurai Girl); and Howard Paar (Dogtown and Z-Boys, Party Monster, The L Word). By all accounts, the visiting film industry personnel were thoroughly impressed by the performances, sometimes approaching artists or their management as soon as their sets finished.

The first three annual editions of the Canadian Music Café generated film and television placements for Molly Johnson, Jorane, Chantal Kreviazuk and Andy Stochansky, to name a few, and put Canadian music squarely on the radar of the music supervisors who attended the showcase. This year’s edition has strengthened that place for Canadian music.

In addition to the aforementioned performers, other artists showcasing at the café included Jill Barber, Ali Milner, Kyrie Kristmanson, Final Flash, Shuyler Jansen, Lindi Ortega and The Midway State.

Aside from showcasing for the music industry, SOCAN members also gained valuable exposure through a simulcast of the event on CBC Radio 3 and Sirius Satellite Radio Channel 86 on the Wednesday, as well as stories about the music café in such media as CITY-TV News, CFRB 1040 AM, The Toronto Star, National Post, eye Weekly, Vue Weekly and the Hollywood Reporter.

The Canadian Music Café was co-produced by SOCAN, the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA), the Canadian Independent Record Production Association (CIRPA) and the Canadian Music Publishers Association (CMPA), in partnership with the Toronto International Film Festival ® Group and in association with the Government of Canada.