Summer is just around the corner (or at least I keep telling myself that), and I'm looking forward to the patio sessions that usually mark my warm nights. However, there's also a great new reason to spend a little more time indoors this year. This summer will be the first for TIFF Bell Lightbox, and there's a lot to look forward to. Summer 2011 at TIFF will be characterized by a major exhibition, retrospectives, special presentations, film series, and new releases. So until the truly warm weather arrives, I'm studying up on the upcoming events so I can plan ahead.

The summer exhibition, Fellini: Spectacular Obsessions (June 30 - September 18), about the Italian film director and screen-writer is a must-see, and will be accompanied by stunning cinema. Fellini / Felliniesque: "Dream" Double Bills (June 30 - August 26) will compare 12 Fellini films with 12 other films of note, and Days of Glory: Masterworks of Italian Neorealism (July 28 - August 29) will feature a month of neorealismo films — a genre which Fellini worked in extensively.

TIFF Cinematheque retrospectives will include: the Bollywood giant, Raj Kapoor & The Golden Age of Indian Cinema (July 1 - August 7); a pioneer of American independent film, Masks and Faces: The Films of John Cassavetes (July 14 - July 31); and the Canadian master who directed The Thomas Crown Affair and Moonstruck, And Justice for All: The Films of Norman Jewison (August 11 - August 27).

A couple special presentations of note this summer include Egypt Rising: Portents of Revolution in Recent Egyptian Cinema (June 15 - June 19), which will feature six films about the ongoing issues in Egyptian society, and Summer in 70mm (July 28 - August 12), the second season of the series that will be showing some great classics, including Kubrick's Spartacus in 70mm.

The film series this summer are probably what has me most excited. Family Classics (June 11 - August 20), will run matinee screenings of classic Disney movies old and new, while The Best of Midnight Madness (June 11 - August 20), will feature late-night screenings of gory favourites from the Festival. Warning: not suitable for children! TIFF in the Park: Classic Musicals (July 6 - August 31), will show film versions of musicals in David Pecaut Square. Call me a nerd (and in my defense, I hate Glee!), but I can't say no to free outdoor screenings of musical theatre greats.

Of course, there are also a bunch of new releases to look forward to this summer. Bobby Fischer Against the World -which got a great review at Hot Docs - will start things off, and El Bulli: Cooking in Progress — another Hot Docs favourite — will finish the summer with many others in between.

Tickets for summer events will go on sale May 26. Tickets can be purchased online, by phone: 416-599-TIFF, or in person: TIFF Bell Lightbox, Reitman Square, 350 King Street West.

Still from Mother India