Just as New Yorkers are getting ready to leave all those lazy Labor Day vacations and weekend trips to the Hamptons behind, the city’s film community, like much of the arts scene, is ready to roar back into business. Just last week, studios were still in a summer state of mind, eager to run with the silly comedies and the effects-loaded blockbusters. But seemingly overnight, the movie industry has ushered in its crop of major-league autumn contenders — the more serious and substantial titles that will duke it out over the next three months, trying to make the year-end top- 10 lists on their way to the Oscar stage.

Last weekend, several titles made their world premieres at the Venice Film Festival. From there, industry eyes shift to the Toronto Film Festival (starting Thursday), which has become a popular launching pad for Oscar hopefuls, before shifting again to the New York Film Festival (starting September 28), where many of the same titles will make their American premieres.

In anticipation of the festival — the year’s largest local film spectacle — the New York film scene is buzzing with special events, unique series, and industry gatherings.

ROOFTOP FILMS

Expanding to a wider schedule than ever, the annual “Rooftop Films” summer series continues through the end of the month, with screenings of independent films scheduled for rooftops in both Manin-dependent filmmakers with awards of cash, equipment, and the development of a distribution network to help them gain exposure with wider audiences.

Three weeks remain in the 2007 schedule, with two screenings scheduled for this weekend. On Friday, at the Open Road Rooftop on the Lower East Side, the featured program is “Dark ‘Toons,” a compilation of animated works that includes a handful of Brent Green titles, some of which will be paired with live accompaniment. On Saturday, the series moves to the Old American Can Factory in Brooklyn for a show dubbed “Industriance Shorts: Manifest Destiny,” featuring a collection of documentaries, animated films, and experimental works about the “ongoing attempts to conquer the world, and about the people and places left in the wake.”

For more information, visit www.rooftopfilms.com.

IFP MARKET

Sundance may be the most recognized gathering of the independent film community, but for the aspiring or first-time filmmaker — those without the required Rolodex to get on Sundance’s radar — there is no more important annual event than the IFP Market, which is set to begin in New York on September 16.

Through the years, the IFP Market has introduced such titles as “Blood Simple,” “My Dinner With Andre,” and “Maria Full of Grace,” and is the forum where so many filmmakers from around the world come to pitch, sell, and refine their films, scripts, and ideas. What sets this event apart from others is that every aspect of IFP Market is conceived expressly to connect filmmakers with relevant industry insiders. It’s also the only market in America where a work in development — from a partially finished film to the basic outline of a script — can be workshopped, compete for awards, and gain exposure to industry executives. All that said, the market is also famous for its parties, both official and unofficial, which will spread out across downtown starting the weekend of September 14.

For more information, visit www.ifp.org.

TROPFEST

On the weekend before the New York Film Festival becomes the talk of the town, the Tribeca Film Festival resurfaces with a special event — four months after its festival run drew to a close.

Scheduled to take place on Sunday, September 23, at the World Financial Center Plaza, and dubbed “Tropfest@Tribeca,”the one-day event is modeled after the Tropfest short film festival in Australia —the largest event of its kind in the world. A similar New York Tropfest marathon event was held during last year’s Tribeca Film Festival, but the goal this year is to launch Tropfest as a stand-alone autumn event, featuring 16 short films culled from 161 submissions submitted from 10 countries.

Featuring a star-studded jury — headed by the actress Rose Byrne, actor and director Griffin Dunne, and director Bennett Miller — the evening will incorporate live music, a screening of the 16 competitors, and an awards ceremony, where the jury will offer a grand prize of $10,000; the audience will also choose its own winning selection.

For more information, visit www.tribecafilmfestival.org.

NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL

Of course, all this is merely a prelude for the month’s main event: The New York Film Festival. Set to kick off on September 28 with the new Wes Anderson comedy, “The Darjeeling Limited,” and running through October 14, when Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud’s “Persepolis” will close out the party, the festival will feature 28 selected titles, along with numerous silent, avant-garde, and retrospective screenings as part of its various sidebars. Tickets for most events go on sale this Sunday and Monday. For more information visit www.filmlinc.com/nyff.