2020 Toronto International Film Festival

The 2020 Toronto International Film Festival, the 45th event in the Toronto International Film Festival series, is scheduled to be held from September 10 to 21, 2020.[1] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, organizers have acknowledged that the event will "look different" than in past years, primarily by incorporating an online streaming component, but they have indicated that current plans still include some form of physical festival taking place if possible within the constraints of whatever social distancing restrictions are still in place by September.[2]

2020 Toronto International Film Festival
Opening filmAmerican Utopia by Spike Lee
LocationToronto, Ontario, Canada
Founded1976
Festival dateSeptember 10–21, 2020
Websitetiff.net/tiff

The festival's executive director Joana Vicente and artistic director Cameron Bailey spoke about the festival's plans in a video conference call launching the international We Are One: A Global Film Festival;[2] Bailey has also discussed some of the festival's plans in an interview on IndieWire's "Screen Talk" podcast.[3] Plans have included efforts to act as a "united platform" to screen films that had been slated to premiere at other cancelled festivals such as the 2020 Cannes Film Festival, and efforts to capitalize on the resurgence of drive-in theaters by staging some live screenings at drive-in venues.[3] In a joint statement with the Venice Film Festival, the Telluride Film Festival and the New York Film Festival, which along with TIFF are generally considered the "big four" autumn film festivals that often compete with each other to land major film premieres in a normal year, the organizers of all four festivals committed to a spirit of collaboration and unity, designed "to serve the filmmakers, audiences, journalists and industry members who keep the film ecosystem thriving."[4]

On June 24, organizers indicated that a smaller program of 50 films will be screened in a conventional manner, using social distancing strategies such as drive-in or outdoor screenings, over the first five days of the festival, and will then remain available on a dedicated streaming platform for the remainder of the festival.[5] The digital platform was launched in July 2020 as the Digital TIFF Bell Lightbox, with a curated selection of past TIFF films available for short-term digital rental in the weeks leading up to the festival.[6] The digital platform will include both a professional option for international critics and industry, and a public option available only to Canadian viewers; ticket prices will be the same regardless of whether the viewer is attending a physical screening or watching the film online.

Venues for the festival will include both the TIFF Bell Lightbox and the Isabel Bader Theatre, with social distancing strategies in place, as well as two outdoor screens at Ontario Place and one at Polson Pier.[7]

With a smaller than normal program, both festival programmers and critics have noted that films which have a tendency to be overlooked at a normal TIFF, such as documentaries and titles by emerging film directors in the Discovery program, may have a better chance than usual of standing out and gaining attention.[8]

Ambassadors

Due to the unique nature of the 2020 festival, and the fact that celebrities and filmmakers will largely not be able to attend the festival in person, the festival has announced a roster of 50 "TIFF Ambassadors", actors and filmmakers who will help to promote the festival through interactive digital experiences and events.[9]

Awards

TIFF Tribute Awards

The festival will again present the TIFF Tribute Awards, which were introduced in 2019 to honour actors and filmmakers for distinguished achievements over the course of their careers. Honorees in 2020 will include Anthony Hopkins, Chloe Zhao, Mira Nair and Kate Winslet.[10] For the first time, the ceremony will be broadcast live by CTV Television Network.[11]

Regular awards

To date, TIFF has not revealed its specific plans for its regular annual awards to honour the best films screening at the festival. With the smaller program, it is likely that at least some of the award categories will not be presented; in particular, with no films having been announced for the Platform program, the Platform Prize is unlikely to be presented, but TIFF has not otherwise indicated whether any of the other award categories will be presented or not.

Films

American Utopia by Spike Lee has been announced as the festival's opening film.[12] The festival will also screen Chloé Zhao's film Nomadland, as part of a special arrangement which will see the film screen at TIFF, NYFF and Venice all on the same day.[13]

The first batch of films slated for the festival was announced on June 24, 2020,[14] and more were announced on July 30.[15]

The selections of short films and virtual talks remain to be announced.

Gala Presentations

Special Presentations

Contemporary World Cinema

Masters

TIFF Docs

Discovery
  • 180 Degree Rule by Farnoosh Samadi
  • Beans by Tracey Deer
  • Beginning (Dasatskisi) by Dea Kulumbegashvili
  • The Best Is Yet to Come (Bu Zhi Bu Xiu) by Wang Jing
  • Gaza mon amour by Tarzan Nasser, Arab Nasser
  • Limbo by Ben Sharrock
  • Memory House (Casa de Antiguidades) by João Paulo Miranda Maria
  • Shiva Baby by Emma Seligman
  • Spring Blossom (Seize printemps) by Suzanne Lindon
  • Wildfire by Cathy Brady

Midnight Madness

Primetime

Wavelengths

References
  1. Calum Slingerland, "TIFF Still Plans to Have a Physical Festival in 2020". Exclaim!, May 28, 2020.
  2. Victoria Ahearn, "TIFF still planning some type of physical festival, execs say". CBC News, May 28, 2020.
  3. Peter Howell, "What will TIFF 2020 look like?". Toronto Star, May 28, 2020.
  4. Eric Kohn, "How Venice, Telluride, NYFF, and TIFF’s 2020 Collaboration Will Affect the Festival Circuit". IndieWire, July 8, 2020.
  5. "Toronto International Film Festival plans scaled-down event, virtual red carpets". CBC News, June 24, 2020.
  6. "TIFF launches digital platform online film rentals ahead of festival". Victoria Times-Colonist, July 10, 2020.
  7. Becky Robertson, "TIFF movies will be screened at three separate outdoor theatres for 2020 festival". BlogTO, August 12, 2020.
  8. Anne Thompson, "TIFF 2020: Fewer Oscar Movies and Gala Premieres Means Docs and Discoveries Could Stand Out". IndieWire, July 30, 2020.
  9. "Celebrity news: A new crop of actors and directors named TIFF ambassadors". Toronto Star, July 23, 2020.
  10. Michael Rosser, "Anthony Hopkins, Chloe Zhao, Mira Nair to receive TIFF Tribute awards". Screen Daily, August 12, 2020.
  11. "Toronto film festival's TIFF Tribute Awards to air on CTV". CP24, August 12, 2020.
  12. Kate Erbland, "TIFF 2020: Spike Lee’s ‘David Byrne’s American Utopia’ Will Open This Year’s Festival". IndieWire, July 21, 2020.
  13. Ravindran, Manori (July 27, 2020). "Chloe Zhao's 'Nomadland' to Play Venice, Toronto, New York Under Fest Alliance". Variety. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  14. "Toronto International Film Festival sets 2020 plans. It won't look the same". Los Angeles Times. June 24, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
  15. Wiseman, Andreas (July 30, 2020). "Toronto Sets 2020 Lineup: Werner Herzog, Regina King, Mira Nair, Francois Ozon, Naomi Kawase Titles Join Hybrid Edition". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
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