Laughing all the way to Fantasia by MATTHEW HAYS It all seems rather odd. I hadn't generally connected Fantasia, arguably Montreal's most exciting film fest, with comedy. Rather, I think of their programmers as fixated with horror, martial arts movies and anything with gore in it. But this week Fantasia and the Just for Laughs comedy festival announced plans to fuse their talents and launch a series of screenings of comedy films this summer. Titled Comedia, the fest will run concurrently with Fantasia and Just for Laughs, from July 14-23. Though the NFB will be supplying bits of the content, organizers remain tight-lipped about exactly what they'll be screening at the event. Again this year the NFB cinema will host Images from the Arab World, a series of film screenings and panel discussions regarding the underseen cinema of this part of the world. Filmmakers screened this year include Akram Zaatari, Jamelie Hassan and Walid Ra'ad, while speakers included esteemed philosopher Paul Dumouchel and Tunisian human rights advocate Khemais Chammari. The series begins this weekend, May 27-28 and continues on June 2-4. Info: www.alternatives.ca/ima or 982-6616 ext. 2233. Shakti, the Women of Colour collective based out of QPIRG-McGill, reports that their summer event, the Warrior Women Film Series, is off to a promising start. The gals invite all to their free screenings, which continue on June 15 with You Have Struck a Rock and Winnie and Nelson Mandela. I strongly recommend this group's documentary lineup. Info: shakti@tao.ca. In semi-related news, one of the city's more savvy publicists recommended a Web site to me that specifically profiles black filmmakers. Based in London and edited by filmmaker Menelik Shabazz, the online mag offers reviews and interviews by the global filmmaking community. Address: http://blackfilmmakermag.com Those intrigued by the thought of looking at buildings in movies should consider the CCA's film series, which continues tonight (May 25) at 6 p.m. with the sublime The Third Man. Not only do you get to see Vienna in this movie, you get a good look at the sewer system in the film's final unforgettable chase sequence. The series continues next Thursday, June 1 at 6 p.m. with Steven Soderbergh's underrated Kafka, which features Prague as its backdrop. Both screenings are free. Congratulations go out to local young thespian Lawrence Arcouette who, along with cyclist Geneviève Jeanson, are among the winners of this year's YTV Achievement Awards. The winners will be awarded their honours this Sunday, May 28 at 7:30 p.m. in a ceremony that will be broadcast on the youth specialty channel. Though it's out of town, the first annual Lake Placid Film Forum may be worth the trip, considering their rather stellar lineup of guests, all of who are slated to give talks on all things cinematic. The event, which is to include Milos Forman, Paul Schrader, Michael Ondaatje and Robert Downey, Sr., runs the weekend of June 8-11. Info www.lakeplacid-filmforum.org or call (518)523-3456. : COMMENTS: matt_hays@babylon.montreal.qc.ca