Toronto International Film Festival ’19: The Ultimate Event for Movie Fans

One of the world’s most cosmopolitan cities, Toronto is the perfect setting for a truly international film festival. Now in its 47th year, TIFF is one of the world’s largest publicly attended film festivals. 

Nearly half a million film fanatics congest the streets during the 11-night event, which includes more than 200 screenings and world premieres.

The Toronto International Film Festival has it all. It’s not Sundance; it’s not Cannes or Tribeca; and it’s definitely not your average red carpet rollout. There’s everything from directorial debuts (“Easy Land”) and artful indie flicks (“Blackbird”) to big-budget blockbusters (“Joker”) that bring the Oscar buzz. 

It’s loved for everything that it is, and many things that it is surely not.

Opening and Closing Galas

TIFF 2019 is bookended by “Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band,” a musical documentary with a uniquely Canadian perspective, and Marjane Satrapi’s “Radioactive,” which is based on the life of Marie Curie as told in the award-winning graphic novel “Radioactive: Marie & Pierre Curie: A Tale of Love and Fallout.” 

The festival is punctuated with galas showcasing standout submissions like “Abominable,” “American Woman” and the Mr. Rogers bio-film “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood” with Tom Hanks in the title role 

Gala presentations at Roy Thomson Hall and the Princess of Wales Theatre are among the festival’s main attractions, especially if you plan on catching Matt Damon and Christian Bale in “Ford v Ferrari.” 

However, many smaller venues around King Street West and Reitman Square provide a uniquely intimate experience, perfect for hard-boiled film buffs who revel in the unknown and unexpected.

When the Lights Go Down

Even casual cinema fans can appreciate the electricity that builds when the house lights drop and the excited chatter fades to a hush. It’s the moment that every writer dreams of, all directors long for and actors unanimously fantasize about. 

Each project represents countless hours of creative teamwork and, in many cases, hundreds of tens of millions of dollars in funding. At TIFF, premieres focus on the actors and the audience. 

For its inaugural 1976 season, TIFF billed itself as a festival of festivals featuring a greatest-hits lineup from other events, but it quickly became a destination for future award winners to make their debut.

Let’s just say that the festival’s discerning audience knows how to pick a winner. In the ’80s, the festival propelled classics like “The Big Chill” and “Chariots of Fire” to global fame, and it’s just as influential today. 

The Toronto International Film Festival lives up to its name and beyond. It’s not just international–a better word would be worldwide. It’s one of the most diverse, inclusive events of its kind featuring films from more than two dozen countries and works from newcomers and living legends alike–a good example of which is the new Eddie Murphy (remember him–Hollywood and comedy royalty?) with newcomer Tituss Burgess (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) in a new film called “Dolemite is My Name.”

Experience a Toronto Tradition

If you’ve ever wanted to attend a movie premiere, meet Tituss Burgess or join a Q&A session with film stars like Renee Zellweger and Susan Sarandon, here’s your chance. 

For tickets to premieres, parties and gala presentations at the Toronto International Film Festival, contact VIP Concierge. There’s no better way to get inside sold-out and invitation-only events at the world’s most exclusive film premieres.