INTERVIEW: CATHERINE HARDWICKE, DIRECTOR OF "TWILIGHT" AND "RED RIDING HOOD" | SIGNED PHOTO GIVEAWAY

Catherine Hardwicke in Toronto - March 2011

Known commercially as the Most Successful Female Director of all time, Catherine Hardwicke would appear to have a lot - pardon the pun - riding on her re-imagination of The Brothers Grimm classic, Red Riding Hood. After surprisingly opting not to sign-on for the second Film in The Twilight Saga franchise due to the rushed demands of its studio, many are wondering: will Catherine Hardwicke be able to replicate her success without that franchise?

Sitting down to chat with Hardwicke recently during the Toronto stopoff of her promotional tour for Red Riding Hood, the Architect-turned-Production Designer-turned Filmmaker sure had me fooled if there was an inkling of pressure. The effervescent Texas native walked into the room all smiles, apologizing for running behind schedule in one of many interviews she had slated for the day.  "Ooh, that`s cute!", she said as she  admired a Paul Smith-designed Limited Edition bottle of Evian on the table.

Despite Red Riding Hood being Hardwicke`s fifth time directing a Feature Film with critical successes Lords of Dogtown and moreso Thirteen on her Résumé, this is the first project which allowed her to incorporate her talents as an Architect and an Artist into her Filmmaking. "When I first arrived in Hollywood I was so naïve and thought they only wanted creative people.  I thought I could be like Tim Burton and just do whatever I wanted", she  giggles.  Incorporating her artistic vision into the Film wasn`t an easy feat though as  Hardwicke had to draft various images, paintings and drawings and present them to the studio, "Essentially, I had to sell Warner Bros. on their own project", she admits.

TIFF DAY 7

I think I'm just about ready to crash at this point. With three more days of TIFF remaining, that light at the end of the tunnel is nearing. I'm very certain that by this time Sunday I'll be missing the excitement.

Earlier in the day I caught what will be the final Press Conference snaps of the festival from me. I must say I was most disappointed by Natalie Portman who completely ignored fans. After digging around on the net a little, I am able to understand better why it is she does not interact more. Apparently earlier in her career she received some disturbing fan mail, so since then she has minimized interaction on the advice of her management. Regardless, a simple wave and a smile would've sufficed I think. She didn't even give that!

Portman is in town promoting Don Roos' (Marley & Me) new film Love and Other Impossible Pursuits. The film also stars Lisa Kudrow who was a little nicer. Kudrow spent the longest time doing additional press after the conference had ended. This of course is a good sign as many critics are raving about her performance in this film. I'm excited to attend a screening of it on Friday morning.

Of all the stars I was able to see today I must say that our very own Michael Cera (Juno) is a class act. He came to the Press Conference for his new film Youth in Revolt in a simple button-down and knapsack, generously taking his time to do autographs afterward. If you look in the middle photo below, you will see Cera's father who is an active part of his career. My collection of Juno cast signatures is nearing completion as you can see: