Martin Short was at the Toronto Film Festival for the screening

The film, shown on Saturday night, was shot at the 2002 festival and features a bevy of star cameos.

A murder-mystery satire, directed by Vadim Jean, it follows the obnoxious celebrity interviewer Jiminy Glick.

Toronto's influential festival, one of the world's largest, traditionally ends on a lighter note after 10 days of more than 300 films.

I could see Glick being a member of Parliament, easily Martin Short

Short said the film skewered media, stars and their handlers alike, but was about his characters, not the industry.

"I don't view it as something about the industry itself. It's a dumb guy with power," he said.

"I could see Glick being a member of Parliament, easily."

Animal rights

A total of 100 films premiered at the festival, which opened on 9 September with the premiere of Being Julia, starring Annette Bening.

Among the big names who attended the festival was Kevin Spacey, whose biopic of Mack the Knife singer Bobby Darin received its world premiere.

But the festival has not been without controversy.

Animal rights protesters demonstrated at the premiere of Casuistry: The Art of Killing a Cat, a documentary about three art students who video themselves killing a cat.