Toronto International Film Festival

The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The festival begins the Thursday night after Labour Day (the first Monday in September, in Canada) and lasts for ten days. Between 300-400 films are screened at approximately 23 screens in downtown Toronto venues. Annual attendance at TIFF exceeds 300,000 from public and industry audiences.

Founded in 1976, the TIFF is now among the top prestigious film festivals in the world. In 1998, Variety magazine acknowledged that "the Festival is second only to Cannes in terms of high-profile pics, stars and market activity." Quoted by the National Post in 1999, Roger Ebert claimed "...although Cannes is still larger, Toronto is just as great...." It is the premiere film festival in North America, from which the Oscars race begins.[1]

The festival is centred around the Yorkville, Toronto neighbourhood, an upscale area in the downtown core. Although the Festival has begun to give more attention to mainstream Hollywood films, it still maintains its independent roots. It features retrospectives of national cinemas and individual directors, highlights of Canadian cinema, and a variety of African, South American, and Asian films.

The festival is considered a launch pad for many studios to begin "Oscar-buzz" for their films; for example, Taylor Hackford's Ray premiered at the festival and garnered much attention for Jamie Foxx's portrayal of Ray Charles (for which he ultimately won the Academy Award for Best Actor).

The Director and CEO of the Toronto International Film Festival, since 1994, is Piers Handling. In 2004, Noah Cowan became Co-Director of the Festival. In late 2007, Cowan was promoted to Artistic Director of Bell Lightbox, the Toronto International Film Festival Group's (TIFFG) future home, while long-time programmer Cameron Bailey succeeded as Co-Director.

For this year's 2008 festival, please see: 33rd Annual Toronto International Film Festival.

History

Festival box office at the Manulife Centre in 2006

TIFF, known originally as "The Festival of Festivals", was founded in 1976 at the Windsor Arms Hotel.^[1] It began as a collection of the best films from festivals around the world. It has since, through consistent investment and promotion by its organizers and sponsors, grown to become a vital component of Hollywood's marketing machine.

Many notable films have had their global or North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, including Chariots of Fire, The Big Chill, Husbands and Wives, Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould, Downfall, American Beauty, Sideways, and Crash.

In 2001, Perspective Canada, the programme that had focused on Canadian films since 1984, was replaced by two programmes:

• Canada First!, a forum for Canadian filmmakers presenting their first feature-length work, featuring eight to 15 films, and
• Short Cuts Canada, which includes 30-40 Canadian short films.

The TIFF Group occasionally polls critics, programmers, and industry professionals, asking them to identify their top 10 Canadian films. The TIFF Group has conducted three such polls, in 1984, 1993, and 2004.

Maclean's magazine named TIFF one of Canada's Top 100 Employers in 2007, making it the only arts group in Canada to receive this honour.^[2] TIFF was also named among 2008's Financial Post Top 10 Employers, Canada's Top 100 Employers, and Greater Toronto's Top 50 Employers.

In 2004, TIFF was featured as the site of murder mystery in the film Jiminy Glick in Lalawood, a comedy film starring Martin Short.

In 2007, the Festival Group will begin construction on a new facility at the corner of King and John Streets in downtown Toronto (on land donated by Ivan Reitman and family) - Bell Lightbox, named for founding sponsor Bell, with additional support from the Governments of Ontario and Canada. The facility will open in 2010 and will provide extensive year-round galleries, cinemas, archives and activities for cinephiles.

People's Choice Award

• 2008 Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
• 2007 Eastern Promises (2007)
• 2006 Bella (2006)
• 2005 Tsotsi (2005)
• 2004 Hotel Rwanda (2004)
• 2003 Zatôichi (2003)
• 2002 Whale Rider (2002)
• 2001 Fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain, Le (2001)
• 2000 Wo hu cang long (2000)
• 1999 American Beauty (1999)
• 1998 Vita è bella, La (1997)
• 1997 Hanging Garden, The (1997)
• 1996 Shine (1996)
• 1995 Antonia (1995)
• 1994 Priest (1994)
• 1993 Snapper, The (1993) (TV)
• 1992 Strictly Ballroom (1992)
• 1991 Fisher King, The (1991)
• 1990 Cyrano de Bergerac (1990)
• 1989 Roger & Me (1989)
• 1988 Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios (1988)
• 1987 Princess Bride, The (1987)
• 1986 Déclin de l'empire américain, Le (1986)
• 1985 Historia oficial, La (1985)
• 1984 Places in the Heart (1984)
• 1983 Big Chill, The (1983)
• 1982 Tempest (1982)
• 1981 Chariots of Fire (1981)
• 1980 Bad Timing (1980)
• 1979 Best Boy (1979)
• 1978 Girlfriends (1978)

References

External links

• Official website
• Toronto International Film Festival Group
• Bell Lightbox — Festival centre
• TIFFReviews.com
• TOfilmfest.ca — Film reviews
• TIFF coverage at The GATE
• Festival coverage at DigitalHit.com
• FilmFest.ca - Daily coverage
• Festival coverage at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
• Festival coverage and reviews by Metro
• Toronto International Film Festival at the Internet Movie Database
• See Toronto 2007 Festival Favorites on Time.com (a division of Time Magazine)
• CBC Digital Archives - Front Row Centre: The Toronto International Film Festival
• CityNews.ca Covers TIFF
• FILMFANS - movie trailers, poster and news for TIFF
• Toronto Film Festival Guide at AOL Canada
• [2]

Cinema of Canada Films A–Z • Films by year • Animation • Comedy • Documentaries • Drama • Horror • LGBT • Sci-Fi • Short Actors • Awards • Directors • Cinemas • Cinematographers • Composers • Critics • Editors • Festivals • Producers • Schools • Screenwriters • Soundtracks