Everything you need to know about TIFF 2021

After going largely online last year due to the pandemic, the Toronto International Film Festival is back and, god, have we needed movies. The organization announced that, for its 45th year, it will be returning to in-person screenings for the most part, though its virtual offerings will also still be available.

Not only that, but the city's annual 10 days of international and Canadian cinema will feature over 100 movies, which is more than we saw in 2020, but not quite at pre-pandemic numbers for TIFF (which usually look closer to 300).

Who is getting a TIFF Tribute Award this year? 

The recipients of this year's TIFF Tribute Actor Awards are Golden Globe winner Jessica Chastain and Benedict Cumberbatch, who won an Emmy Award for Sherlock and a BAFTA for his role in Patrick Melrose. The Awards will air on Saturday, September 18 at 7 pm ET / 8 pm AT on CTV, CTV.ca and the CTV app.

Cumberbatch's upcoming projects include Netflix’s The Power of the Dog, directed by Jane Campion, and Amazon Studios’ The Electrical Life of Louis Wain, directed by Will Sharpe — both of which will have their Canadian premieres at TIFF. Chastain stars in The Eyes of Tammy Faye and has premiered many a movie in Toronto.

“Jessica has brought to life such strong and inspiring roles for women, from the films that have screened at TIFF such as The Debt, Take Shelter, The Martian, Crimson Peak, and Molly’s Game to the upcoming World Premiere of The Eyes of Tammy Faye at the Festival — she is one of the most respected actors of her generation,” said Joana Vicente, executive director and co-head of TIFF. “Her recent portrayal of Tammy Faye Bakker is a testament to her exceptional onscreen presence and talent.”

This year, the Special TIFF Tribute recipient will be Queen of Twitter and cultural ICON Miss Dionne Warwick, whose documentary Dionne Warwick: Don't Make Me Over will have its world premiere at the festival. It chronicles the Miss Dionne’s fascinating six-decade career in both music and Black and LGBTQ activism

Saskatchewan-born Cree/Métis filmmaker Danis Goulet will receive this year’s TIFF Emerging Talent Award for her film Night Raiders which is set in a post-apocalyptic future, where the state removes children from their families and trains them to be soldiers at a boarding school.

The TIFF Tribute Awards honour the film industry’s outstanding contributors and their achievements, recognizing leading industry members, acting talent, directorial expertise, new talent, and a below-the-line artist and creator.

This year’s event will raise funds for TIFF’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiative and champion a safe, community-focused and inspiring return to cinemas.

The TIFF Tribute Awards will be hosted by Etalk's Tyrone Edwards and Chloe Wilde air on CTV Saturday, Sept. 18 at 7 pm/8atl. For the first time ever, TIFF People’s Choice Award and Platform Prize winners to be announced LIVE during one-hour event on CTV and be streamed internationally by Variety. 

Academy Award-nominated actor Riz Ahmed will head the jury for the 2021 Platform Competition. He will lead a panel including Clio Barnard, Valerie Complex, Kazik Radwanski, and Anthony Chen.

“I am honoured to be named president of the Platform jury at TIFF this year and to be a part of TIFF with Encounter,” said Ahmed. “TIFF has always been a festival that showcases bold and daring cinema on a global stage. Its commitment to celebrating small independent films, like Sound of Metal, has had such a significant impact on my career and many others. I’m looking forward to watching all of this year’s selections and working alongside my fellow jury members.”

TIFF will present a special TIFF Cinematheque retrospective of Abenaki artist, filmmaker, singer, writer, and activist Alanis Obomsawin, entitled Celebrating Alanis. Curated by Jason Ryle, this presentation of films spans Obomsawin’s vast accomplishments and is co-presented with the National Film Board of Canada.

How can I watch the TIFF Tribute Awards? 

The 2021 TIFF Tribute Awards air on Saturday, September 18 at 7 pm ET / 8 pm AT on CTV, CTV.ca and the CTV app to Canadian audiences, on the final day of the 46th edition of the Toronto International Film Festival. The show will be streamed to global audiences by Variety. This year, TIFF’s People’s Choice Award and the Platform Jury Prize will be announced live during the broadcast event. 

Etalk’s own Tyrone Edwards and Chloe Wilde will be returning as hosts, and the one-hour TIFF Tribute Awards broadcast will feature this year’s celebration of TIFF Tribute honourees and yet to be announced presenters. 

Who's featuring in the "In Conversation With..." series?

As per usual, the festival will offer its "In Conversation With..." series featuring one-on-one discussions with heavyweights at the festival. This year's slate includes: Kristen Stewart, Steven Yeun, Kenneth Branagh and Benedict Cumberbatch. 

There will also be five Special Events, as well as the 2021 TIFF Short Cuts programme, comprising 38 short films.

Tickets go on sale for members September 4 and are open to the public September 6. You can find info here.

TIFF co-heads Cameron Bailey and Vicente previously announced that the feature-film adaptation of the Tony Award-winning musical Dear Evan Hansen is the Opening Night Gala Presentation and will screen Thursday, September 9 at Roy Thomson Hall.

Dear Evan Hansen is the story of a high-school senior with a debilitating anxiety disorder whose private letter to himself as part of a therapy exercise lands in the hands of a fellow classmate, with tragic consequences. The incident propels Evan on a journey of self-discovery. The film, directed by Stephen Chbosk, stars Ben Platt as Evan, along with Amy Adams, Julianne Moore, Kaitlyn Dever, Amandla Stenberg, and Nik Dodani.

Additional screenings of Dear Evan Hansen will take place at the Visa Screening Room at the Princess of Wales Theatre, at the RBC Lakeside Drive-In at Ontario Place, and digitally on the digital TIFF Bell Lightbox platform.

“There was no question that Dear Evan Hansen was the ideal film to launch the Festival this year,” said Bailey. “This film is ultimately about healing, forgiveness, and reaffirms how connected and essential we all are to one another. We couldn’t think of a more important idea to celebrate this year as we come together once again to share the power and joy of cinema in theatres together.”

The Closing Night Gala of TIFF 2021 will feature One Second, the newest offering from the acclaimed Chinese director of Raise the Red Lantern and Hero, Zhang Yimou.

One Second tells the story of a travelling film projectionist and an escaped prisoner connected through cinema. The film is a love letter to movies and a reminder of how they can unite people, regardless of our differences.

Twelve more films were announced in June, and include the highly-anticipated debuts of Denis Villeneuve’s Dune (in IMAX) and Edgar Wright’s Last Night in Soho.

“It’s been a tough year and we’re so glad to be back,” said Cameron Bailey, TIFF artistic director and co-head, in a press release. “We’re thrilled to be presenting the latest by Alison Klayman, Edgar Wright, Philip Noyce, Kenneth Branagh and many more to audiences in our Toronto cinemas, and to Canadians all across the country at home. We can’t wait for September.

"We’re also honoured to introduce the world to outstanding Canadian debuts such as Eric Warin and Tahir Rana’s Charlotte and Danis Goulet’s Night Raiders. We’ve been inspired by the quality, range, and diversity of the films we’re inviting, and we couldn’t wait to give everyone an early glimpse.”

That slate, so far, also includes Mélanie Laurent's Le Bal des Folles, Terence Davies' Benediction, Kenneth Branagh's Belfast, Dave Wooley and David Heilbroner's Dionne Warwick: Don't Make Me Over, Antoine Fuqua's The Guilty, Alison Klayman's Jagged (a documentary on Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette), Philip Noyce's Lakewood, Céline Sciamma's Petite Maman, and Theodore Melfi's The Starling.

Award-winning Canadian filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin, whose work often centres Indigenous identity and spirit, will also be honoured with a retrospective, called Celebrating Alanis.

Gala and Special Presentations will be announced on July 20, all TIFF programme selections will be announced July 28, and TIFF Short Cuts and the Platform Programme will be announced Aug. 11.

As for the where of it all, in-person screenings will take place at the TIFF Bell Lightbox, Roy Thomson Hall, the Visa Screening Room at the Princess of Wales Theatre, and Festival Village at Ontario Place, which includes the Cinesphere IMAX Theatre, Visa Skyline Drive-in, RBC Lakeside Drive-In and the West Island Open Air Cinema.

The digital screening platform via TIFF Bell Lightbox and TIFF Bell Digital Talks will also be available for those outside the city hoping to get in on the action.

Capacity in theatres will be reduced, all audience members will have to be masked, and there will – sadly, or finally depending on how much loud chewers bother you – be no concessions available. Even the red carpet, which will return, will be facing distancing and mask restrictions.

“We are confident in our planning for a return to in-person screenings as part of TIFF as both the province and country accelerate vaccination rollout,” said Dr. Peter Nord, Chief Medical Officer, Medcan, and TIFF’s consultative partner on health and safety for the pandemic.

“Canada’s first-dose immunization rate has surpassed the US, and recently reached the best rates in the world. As of today in Toronto, more than 75% of adults have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 25% have received their second dose. We fully anticipate that by the time the Festival arrives, all Ontarians will have the opportunity to be fully vaccinated. Public health indicators, such as hospitalizations, ICU occupancy, and case rates indicate that we’re on the right — and safe — path to fully reopening.”

Digital ticket package sales start June 30 for TIFF Members, and July 14 for the public, while this year's festival will run from Sept. 9 to 18. Welcome back!