TORONTO—Actors, celebrities, film critics, and enthusiastic festival goers alike attended the Toronto International Film Festival screenings and press conferences to preview a fresh batch of fall films since the festival began on Thursday, Sept. 8.
This is the 36th annual Toronto International Film Festival, featuring more than 250 films from over 60 countries. The festival has long provided a platform for the film with the highest ratings, also known as the People’s Choice Award, the festival’s highest award. Many films, such as “The King’s Speech,” “Precious,” and “Slumdog Millionaire” have continued on to earn other prestigious recognitions like Academy Awards.
Hollywood’s veteran actor George Clooney stars in two films featured at the festival and swiftly became the hot topic. “The Ides of March,” a modern-day drama set amongst a political campaign, is written and directed by Clooney.
The other film Clooney stars in is Alexander Payne’s “The Descendants,” in which he plays a father seeking a connection with his daughters after his wife dies from a boating accident.
When asked how he could play a father in “The Descendants” even though he wasn’t a family man, Clooney responded: “I don’t think you have to shoot heroin to play a heroin addict. Most people are not running for president, but I played a candidate [in “The Ides of March”].
Both films are leading contenders for Academy Award nominations.
Clooney isn’t the only actor to be featured in two films at the festival. His “The Ides of March” co-star and native Canadian Ryan Gosling is also the lead in the film “Drive” alongside Carey Mulligan in an action-packed drama about a stuntman who drives in movies.
Fellow A-lister Brad Pitt also stopped by the festival to discuss his anticipated baseball drama “Moneyball.” The film is an audience-capturing underdog tale in which Pitt plays the general manager of a baseball team and pulls the team to a win.
“At the end of the day it’s a story about our values, how we value people, how we value success, how we value failure, how we understand our own value,” said Pitt at the “Moneyball” press conference last Friday, Sept. 9.
The film also stars Jonah Hill, Robin Wright, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, and Chris Pratt, directed by Bennett Miller. The screenplay is written and adapted by Aaron Sorkin based on the book by Michael Lewis.
The Toronto International Film Festival is founded by TIFF, a nonprofit organization aiming to introduce new perspectives to the world through film. Its projects include the annual Toronto International Film Festival in September, the national distribution program Film Circuit, and the TIFF Bell Lightbox building illuminating five cinemas, exhibitions, and learning and entertainment facilities.
The festival continues for 10 days until it concludes on Sunday, Sept 18. The famed festival slams the city with a plethora of publicity, and brings a healthy boost to the Toronto economy. Last year, it raked in approximately $170 million for local hotels, restaurants, and businesses, according to TIFF.
With additional reporting on location by Kristina Skorbach.
