DreamWorks' untitled Cameron Crowe project and The Contender, directed by Rod Lurie and handled internationally by France's TF1, will make their world premieres at the 25th Toronto International Film Festival (September 7-16).

Handled internationally by DreamWorks/UIP, Crowe's latest project is a loosely autobiographical tale about a teenage rock fan on assignment for Rolling Stone magazine during the early 1970s. It stars Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, Kate Hudson, Jason Lee and Anna Paquin.

The Contender, starring Gary Oldman, Joan Allen, Jeff Bridges, Christian Slater and Sam Elliott, is a political thriller about the character assassination of a female US vice-president. DreamWorks has US rights to the film which TF1 is selling overseas.

Also making its premiere will be Christopher Guest's Best In Show, a mockumentary about the goings-on at a dog show. The film, which Warner Bros will distribute internationally, features Guest's usual ensemble, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara, Bob Balaban and Fred Willard, as well as Parker Posey.

Denys Arcand's Cannes-closer Stardom will open the festival, the second time the Quebecois auteur has been thus honoured. Marleen Gorris' The Luzhin Defence, which screened at Cannes in the market, will make its international premiere at the festival.

As part of the festival's 25th anniversary celebration, guest filmmakers will be invited to document their experiences during a 25-hour period; the results will be screened for public audiences free of charge.