Canada's Top Ten: Monsieur Lazhar, Take This Waltz, and more at Pacific Cinematheque

There's been a lot of good news for Canadian film this week, from the announcement of the Genie Award nominees to Monsieur Lazhar making it onto the shortlist for the best foreign language Oscar.

Some good news for Vancouver film lovers is that Canada's Top Ten, an annual selection of the country's best cinematic work as chosen by two panels of filmmakers, festival programmers, academics, journalists, and industry professionals, is playing at the Pacific Cinémathèque (1131 Howe Street). The films run this weekend (January 20 to 22) and the following weekend (January 27 to 29).

Some have played in Vancouver before but others haven't had their theatrical release here yet. So it's not only an opportunity to catch some films ahead of their theatrical runs but it's also a chance to see the titles that you've heard buzz about but haven't actually seen.

Things kick off tonight with two titles from Quebec. Ken Scott's comedy Starbuck, about a sperm donor who discovers he fathered over 500 children, won over audiences at the 2011 Vancouver International Film Festival, so much that it won the Most Popular Canadian Film award.

It's double-billed with the Jean-Marc Vallée's Café de Flore, which led the Genie Award nominees, announced on Tuesday (January 17) with 13 nominations.

If you want to check out the aforementioned Monsieur Lazhar by Philippe Falardeau (which won the Audience Award at the 2011 Whistler Film Festival and hasn't screened in Vancouver yet), you'll get a chance when it screens on Saturday (January 21).

Other titles include Jason Eisener's ultraviolent and gory Hobo With a Shotgun, Guy Maddin's Keyhole (which won the Best Canadian Feature Film award at the 2011 Whistler Film Festival), Sarah Polley's Take This Waltz (starring Michelle Williams and Seth Rogen), and more.

Nathan Morlando's Edwin Boyd, Sébastien Pilote's The Salesman (Le vendeur), and Guy Edoin's Wetlands (Marécages) round out the list.

David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method was chosen for Canada's Top Ten but won't be shown as part of this series since it is currently playing in Vancouver theatres.

Canada's best selection of short films are also being shown in two programs. The films range from live action to animation to even a film shot with infrared thermal-imaging cameras. The collection spans an eclectic range of subjects including war and grieving, First Nations and Caribbean tales, dance, and more.

For a full list of films, plus screening and other information, visit the Pacific Cinémathèque website.

You can follow Craig Takeuchi on Twitter at twitter.com/cinecraig.