My love affair with the Toronto International Film Festival began in 1982, when I first made the drive up the 401 to attend what was then called The Festival of Festivals. After going to the much smaller and much tougher to negotiate New York Film Festival the following two years, I have sojourned in Toronto every September since 1985.

For those with even a casual interest in film, I can’t recommend this event any more highly. After its rather humble beginnings, the Toronto International Film Festival — known to most as TIFF — has grown into the most important cinematic spectacle on the planet, with the exception of the Cannes Festival. The 35th edition of TIFF runs from this Thursday, September 9, through Sunday, September 19, offering up over 300 films from more than 60 countries, including many world premieres and sure-to-be Oscar nominees. Making TIFF even more exciting this year is the opening of the Bell Lightbox, the new home of the festival, which occupies a full city block in the heart of downtown Toronto.

What makes me return every year to TIFF is the thrill of seeing the hottest new films months before they hit the Michigan Theater or surrounding multiplexes. And many films I catch in Toronto never even make it to local theater screens, making the trip there even more essential.

Plus there’s always the chance you’ll bump into your favorite movie star or film director at one of the screenings, or maybe at a Starbucks in the trendy Yorkville area. The guest list for 2010 is once again impressive, with Clint Eastwood, Robert Redford, Nicole Kidman, Helen Mirren, Catherine Deneuve, Matt Damon, Robert De Niro, Bruce Springsteen and hundreds of other luminaries expected to attend. Also heading to Toronto this week for his eighth festival will be Tom Long, Saline resident and film critic for The Detroit News. “I’m looking forward to the new Danny Boyle film ‘127 Hours,’ says Long. “There’s a big buzz about it already and I plan to interview James Franco.” Franco stars as Aron Ralston, the American mountain climber who took drastic measures to free himself after being trapped by a boulder for almost five days in May 2003. Based on a true story, ‘127 Hours’ is director Boyle’s much anticipated follow-up to ‘Slumdog Millionaire,’ which took TIFF by storm two years ago, winning the People’s Choice Award before going on to win eight Oscars.

“For me it’s the most pragmatic film festival to go to,” explains Long. “It brings the most stars in; as far as sheer amount of talent there are plenty of people to talk to. Most of the main Oscar contenders come out of Toronto; it’s the key award season precursor. Just last year came ‘Up In The Air’ and ‘Precious.’

Long also noted that he was aware of at least four films unspooling in Toronto that were shot totally or partially in Michigan, including locally shot ‘Trust,’ directed by David Schwimmer and starring Clive Owen and Catherine Keener.

So what’s on my radar this year at TIFF? Besides the Danny Boyle flick, I’m particularly looking forward to English director Mike Leigh’s ‘Another Year,’ which received raves earlier this year at Cannes; ‘Black Swan,’ helmer Darren Aronofsky’s follow-up to ‘The Wrestler’; Jean-Luc Godard’s ‘Film Socialisme,’ possibly the last film we’ll ever see from one of the founding fathers of the New Wave; Clint Eastwood’s latest, ‘Hereafter;’ and ‘The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town,’ a documentary about the recording of one of Bruce Springsteen’s greatest albums.

Watch an excerpt of “The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town,”

For tickets and everything you need to know about the Toronto International Film Festival, head to the TIFF website or call 416-968-FILM.

Martin Bandyke is the 6-10 a.m. morning drive host on Ann Arbor’s 107one. Follow him on Twitter @martinbandyke and at his web site.