TORONTO - Quebec phenom director Xavier Dolan will be feted tonight by veteran filmmakers including Atom Egoyan.
The 20-year-old director is to receive the inaugural Jay Scott Prize for emerging talent from the Toronto Film Critics Association.
Dolan is being recognized for his hit mother-son tale, "I Killed My Mother," which opens in Toronto on Feb. 5.
Egoyan is presenting Dolan's award, worth $5,000, at a gala celebrating the association's favourite films of 2009.
Director David Cronenberg will also present a $10,000 prize to the winner of the Rogers Best Canadian Feature Award.
The three pictures nominated are: "The Necessities of Life," directed by Benoit Pilon; "Polytechnique," directed by Denis Villeneuve; and "Pontypool," directed by Bruce McDonald.
Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds" and Steve McQueen's "Hunger" were named the top films of 2009 after an online vote by Toronto film reporters and broadcasters.
