There we all were Tuesday night. Toronto’s usual schmoozing suspects at Fashion Television’s 25th birthday bash 36 hours before the official first day of TIFF’s 35th round of films and fetes.
You’d think we’d all be home pressing our party dresses and colour coding our invitations but who has time to prep for the next two weeks of stars and scene when the divine Ms. Beker (aka the CTV PR department) invites you out.
Upstairs at the network’s Queen and John HQ, the sweaty bash featured a cast of models in vintage rhinestone catsuits and other 80s garb from Shrimpton Couture. They mingled with designers like Ashley Rowe, Sunny Fong and Evan Biddell and media types including FLARE’s Lisa Tant and outgoing Hello Canada editor Ciara Hunt both wearing Greta Constantine.
The crowd traded FT memories (my personal favourite being when Beker exchanged on-camera insults with the host of the similarly named Fashion TV) and flipped through a special edition magazine chronicling two and a half decades of news making designers, models and style personalities. For another well-dressed walk down memory lane, CTV airs an anniversary special this Sunday at 7 pm.
As for TIFF talk, the film festival party intel flowed as freely as the bubbly because, let’s face it, attending parties by yourself, as is scene beat tradition, can be lonely and having someone to spy on George Clooney with makes the assignment a little less awkward.
A series of parties, including the annual Artists for Peace and Justice fundraiser hosted by James Franco and AnnaLynne McCord, at a pop up Avenue and Davenport lounge set up by ToroMagazine.com are on many TIFF to do lists. If you haven’t seen her re-tweets yet, organizer Natasha Koifman (@natashankpr) is donating a dollar for every new follower she collects during the festival to the charity.
Nikki Beach has left the Park Hyatt rooftop to open two poolside lounges, a daytime space at the Four Seasons and a nightspot at the redesigned C Lounge. Mongrel Media is heading back to Hart House for their annual party after a year in the Distillery while the Royal Conservatory hosts events for Hello Canada and E1 Entertainment.
Hayden Christensen is doing double duty at Ultra and Brassaii, hosting back-to-back parties for his flick Vanishing on 7th Street. Robert DeNiro and Edward Norton will dine at the Roosevelt Room for Stone while Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush hit the Windsor Arms for The King’s Speech.
You can’t crash the private OneXOne lunch co-hosted by Matt Damon and former New Brunswick Premier Frank McKenna but you can hit the Diesel-sponsored after party with a performance by K’Naan at Maison Mercer on September 11. NOW’s own TIFF party is for Tamara Drewe at the Courthouse.
Seems like a manageable schedule but that’s barely a taste of the festival parties planned between now and Sunday night. Check back daily for our Morning after TIFFs and we’ll tell you all about them.
