For many seasoned film critics, the Toronto International Film Festival is the busiest, most stressful time of year. But I’m not a film critic. I’m just a girl who loves movies and the odd star sighting. For me, TIFF is amazing and exciting, but it’s also chaotic, confusing and terribly difficult to go to. In fact, when I moved to Toronto last year around the same time as TIFF 2015, I couldn’t get tickets to any of the films I wanted to see after queuing online for an hour.
But this year, I have connections, namely media accreditation. So I’m putting that accreditation to good use and transporting you to the wacky world of TIFF. I’ve always wanted to know what a press conference with box-office stars is like and how you get into TIFF parties. What’s the deal with Festival Street, and what’s worth going to?
This is My First TIFF diary.
So what’s the verdict on attending TIFF?
Michelle da Silva
It’s taken me a few days to write my final TIFF post because that’s how long it’s taken me to recover. TIFF is tiring – even if all you do is watch movies. The parties run late, the celebrity sightings are plentiful and there’s a lot of hurrying to stand in lines for hours. No wonder so many film critics tend to be a bit crabby in September.
There were many fun things I experienced during my first TIFF, and some annoying and strange things too. One thing that struck me at the start of the festival is how noticeably grumpy everyone is about Festival Street, which closed King West from September 8 to 11. Traffic was a mess and streetcars had to be rerouted, and for what? A few red carpets and an army of corporate marketers.
The only people who seemed to enjoy Festival Street were the ones strolling along it. With the number of people attending TIFF, it was nice to have a widened walkway between theatres. Plus, both locals and tourists alike were excited to take photos with the illuminated orange TIFF sign.
For me, the weirdest part of Festival Street was likely the reason why many people go down to King West over those four days: freebies. This year, the promotional teams for Pure Leaf, McCafé, the Dairy Farmers of Canada and Cottonelle were out in full force handing out cups of iced tea or coffee, cubes of cheese and flushable wet wipes. Some of the lineups for these products were really long! But I suppose people will queue for anything, so long as it’s free.
In addition to the parade of corporate Canada on Festival Street, TIFF also seemed to be the platform to market just about anything. With a large international audience in attendance willing to spend their money, I suppose it made sense, but so many of these marketing stunts seemed to have very little connection to the festival at all.
For example, a cocktail reception at the Thompson Hotel during TIFF’s opening weekend, where a group of YouTube stars performed aerial stunts to promo their upcoming movie We Kill Death. The film wasn’t screened at TIFF nor was it connected to any other film at the festival, but I’m sure it got some attention amongst party-goers.
People partying at the Ritz-Carlton had the option of dropping some serious dough on a cocktail. Days before the festival, the upscale hotel announced the creation of a $600 drink in honour of its sixth year in association with the festival. I’d assume that even Hollywood celebrities would find $600 steep for a taste of “The 6.”
Now, onto some positive things I experienced at the festival.
One of them was the 3,200 volunteers clad in bright orange T-shirts that greeted and guided festival goers through every venue. The number of volunteers it takes to help a large-scale festival run smoothly never ceases to amaze me, and every volunteer I interacted with during TIFF was so friendly and happy to be there.
Another thing that was really great was simply people-watching along Festival Street and inside the theatres before films started. It was amazing to see how diverse the audiences were and to hear why people chose to attend certain films and what their TIFF experiences had been.
When I was waiting in line for a public screening of The Birth Of A Nation, I met a couple who live in Richmond Hill. They told me they’ve been coming to TIFF for two decades and that watching movies is what brought them together early on in their relationship. They look forward to the festival every September and buy packages of tickets. This year, they had the time and budget to see six films.
The couple described for me how the festival had changed over the years, how it had gotten bigger and more glamorous after the TIFF Bell Lightbox was built. They said it felt like every year, tickets became scarcer and lines got longer, but they didn’t mind. They loved the festival and planned on volunteering one day when they retired from their full-time jobs.
This positive, movie-loving mentality was apparent at all the public screenings I went to. Audiences seemed just as thrilled by a Leonardo DiCaprio appearance during Before The Flood as they did by François Ozon stepping out on stage ahead of the Canadian premiere of Frantz.
The thrill was in going to the movies, and people really went for it – buying popcorn and candy, attending in large groups and really making an event out of it. I contrasted that atmosphere with the ones at press and industry screenings, where a lot of complaining was heard before and after the films, where film reviewers typed notes into their illuminated phones during the film and where no one really seemed to be enjoying themselves.
I get it, when it’s your job to watch and review movies, it’s perhaps not as fun. It takes a lot of concentration and your butt really hurts after sitting for 10 hours (I know mine did after a weekend of marathon watching). Dark theatres can feel isolating and disorientating, and they’re overly air-conditioned. But going to the movies – nevermind TIFF – is real treat for most people. Maybe the key is attending a few public screenings so you’re reminded of that.
Personally, I had the best time at my first TIFF. I’m glad it’s over and I have my life back, but for 10 days, it was exciting to see Hollywood bring a little bit of its sparkle to the Big Smoke. Despite all of its annoyances and disruptions to the city, TIFF can be a great time if you want it to be. I’m already looking forward to next year.
Get more TIFF 2016 here and the rest of my blog here.
michelled@nowtoronto.com | @michdas
