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.

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"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.