TIFF festivalgoers note amped-up star wattage, city buzz after strikes and COVID woes
Five hours ahead of the first screening of "Saturday Night" at the Toronto International Film Festival, fans were already lined up along the red carpet and waiting for celebrities to arrive.
Cinephile and TIFF regular Darian Sawh was among those at the front of the line Tuesday afternoon, with clusters of people who sat on the sidewalk and made signs as they awaited stars of Jason Reitman's ode to "Saturday Night Live," including Willem Dafoe and Dylan O'Brien.
"It feels like the first time that TIFF is back in full swing, probably since 2019 when I went for the 'Joker' premiere," Sawh said of the dark drama that was a buzzy draw that year, in part due to stars Joaquin Phoenix and Robert De Niro.
Indeed, many movie fans, visitors and filmmakers alike agree there's a renewed spark in the air after four back-to-back festivals tempered by various hurdles — first by the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated public health, travel and gathering restrictions, and then by an actors' strike that largely stripped red carpets of celebrities.
Throngs of moviegoers and passersby flooded a pedestrian-only strip of King Street known as festival street on the opening day for a massive singalong to songs by the Tragically Hip, and continued visiting the downtown hub throughout the first weekend for red carpet sightings, product giveaways from festival sponsors and food truck finds.
Lineups were everywhere — for fanzone wristbands, buzzy industry-only screenings and the infamously narrow escalator at Scotiabank Theatre.
Not everyone was celebrating. Several protests unfolded at this edition, including an opening night demonstration by a group who objected to Israel's assault on Gaza and interrupted a screening Thursday. On Saturday, animal rights activists showed up to a press and industry screening of "Piece by Piece," an animated biopic about Pharrell Williams, who serves as men's creative director for Louis Vuitton.
A protester also hopped on stage as Williams fielded a Q-and-A after the film's premiere Tuesday, calling on the fashion house to stop using leather and fur.
Also Tuesday, dozens of protesters gathered at the Scotiabank Theatre to call on TIFF to pull a documentary about Russian soldiers from its schedule, saying the movie was tantamount to propaganda.
For Sawh, the energy of TIFF is what makes the festival special.
"It's nice to see the celebrities and have a moment to say thank you and hopefully get a picture and autograph," he said.
"But it's also just a communitive experience because you are with a ton of people that just share the love of film and everything cinema-related."
He attended the TIFF premiere of Steven Spielberg's "The Fablemans" in 2022, when pandemic restrictions were lifted and film-lovers were cautiously emerging from home theatres.
The festival courted audiences with a red carpet featuring Spielberg and stars Michelle Williams and Seth Rogen, but Sawh said the mood was still muted.
More than fans have noticed the difference this year.
Ahead of a press and industry screening of "Anora" last week, the lineup outside Scotiabank Theatre snaked around the block as attendees from all over the world buzzed about the movie that won the highest honour at the Cannes Film Festival. The theatre quickly filled up and some were turned away.
"The festivals have definitely felt more alive since I was on the circuit in 2021 with 'Red Rocket.' Just more people and energy. I can feel it here at TIFF," its director Sean Baker said in an interview Monday.
When "Anora" screened for the public at the Royal Alexandra Theatre on Sunday, he wasn't in the crowd with viewers. Instead, he sat behind the screen and took in the atmosphere.
"The audience last night was more engaged than any other audience. Laughing when we wanted them to laugh. Silent when we wanted them to be silent," he said. "It was really a very engaged audience. You can’t ask for more than that."
TIFF's 49th edition follows an especially tough series of blows, starting with the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced the festival to adopt a hybrid approach in 2020.
There were limited screenings, including at two drive-ins and an open-air cinema, with most films made available online. And only 60 movies made it to the festival, roughly one quarter of 2019's lineup.
The following year, the festival offered a few films online as it moved away from the hybrid model. Those attending in-person screenings had to wear face masks. Crowds were smaller and cheers were quieter.
Pandemic restrictions had lifted in 2023 but twin Hollywood strikes cast a pall over festivities, as only a handful of films received waivers allowing their writers and actors to promote their projects at festivals, and those who did scaled back on appearances.
Matt Neglia, a New York City based journalist who runs the online publication Next Best Picture, said his first two TIFF experiences in 2022 and 2023 felt quite staid.
This, he said, is his first time experiencing TIFF in all its glory.
"There's an electricity in the air. There's an excitement, a palpable energy that everyone's grasping onto," he said.
He's trying to keep up with that energy, shifting his schedule based on what he's hearing about different films.
"It's constantly evolving and changing and that also adds a layer of excitement to it."
—with files from David Friend and Alex Nino Gheciu in Toronto.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Donald Trump says Canada becoming 51st U.S. state 'a great idea'
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is taking aim at Canada once more, saying it would be 'a great idea' to make it America's ‘51st state.'
After scamming their victims, some con artists go on to scam our courts with impunity
Convicts, including fraudsters, are skipping out on their court-ordered payments to their victims to the tune of tens of millions of dollars across the country, according to figures obtained by CTV W5.
The barriers and benefits as a global bank looks to branch out in Canada
It's not every day, or even every decade, that a big foreign bank decides to have a go at Canada's retail banking market. But Spain's Banco Santander is poised to be among the few that have tried as it nears the all-clear to expand in Canada.
Ryan Reynolds among new appointments to Order of Canada
Ryan Reynolds, Scott Oake and Maureen Ann Jennings are among the 88 new recipients of the Order of Canada.
Canadian government announces new border security plan amid Donald Trump tariff threats
The federal government has laid out a five-pillared approach to boosting border security, though it doesn't include specifics about where and how the $1.3-billion funding package earmarked in the fall economic statement will be allocated.
Nissan, Honda confirm talks on closer collaboration but say there's been no decision on a merger
Japanese automakers Nissan Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. confirmed Wednesday that they are discussing closer collaboration but denied reports they have decided on a merger.
Verdicts are due in the historic French rape trial that turned Gisele Pelicot into a feminist hero
French judges plan to deliver hugely anticipated verdicts this week in a historic drugging-and-rape trial that has turned the victim, Gisele Pelicot, into a feminist hero.
2 B.C. police officers charged with sexual assault
Two officers with a Vancouver Island police department have been charged with the sexual assault of a "vulnerable" woman, authorities announced Tuesday.
B.C. teacher disciplined for refusing to let student use bathroom
A teacher who refused to let a student use the bathroom in a B.C. school has been disciplined by the province's professional regulator.