The 2021 Toronto International Film Festival concludes today and Award winners were announced from this year’s Festival, which still thrived in a hybrid digital and in-person format amidst the Pandemic. Taking top honours of People’s Choice was BELFAST, directed by Sir Kenneth Branagh, in-attendance at the Festival last weekend. Traditionally this title has gone on to achieve Oscars and Awards Season success, case in point, last year’s winner NOMADLAND.
In accepting the Award, Branagh says “It was absolutely overwhelming to myself and Jamie Dornan and we talked about it over a long into a memorable night of laughter and tears in your great city!”.
Winners this year as as follows:
TIFF 2021 People’s Choice Award – Belfast, dir. Kenneth Branagh. The first runner-up is Scarborough, dirs. Shasha Nakhai and Rich Williamson. The second runner-up is The Power of the Dog, dir. Jane Campion. |
2021 Platform Prize – Yuni, dir. Kamila Andini Honourable mention: Mlungu Wam (Good Madam), dir. Jenna Cato Bass. |
TIFF 2021 People’s Choice Documentary Award – The Rescue, dirs. E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin. The first runner-up is Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over, dirs. Dave Wooley and David Heilbroner. The second runner-up is Flee, dir. Jonas Poher Rasmussen. |
TIFF 2021 People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award – Titane, dir. Julia Ducournau. The first runner-up is You Are Not My Mother, dir. Kate Dolan. The second runner-up is DASHCAM, dir. Rob Savage. |
2021 Changemaker Award, presented by the Shawn Mendes Foundation, is awarded to a Festival film that tackles issues of social change, and comes with a $10,000 cash prize – Scarborough, dirs. Shasha Nakhai and Rich Williamson. |
Amplify Voices Award for Best Canadian Feature Film: Ste. Anne, dir. Rhayne Vermette Special Mention: Scarborough, dirs. Shasha Nakhai, Rich Williamson Amplify Voices Award: The Gravedigger’s Wife, dir. Khadar Ayderus Ahmed Amplify Voices Award: A Night of Knowing Nothing, dir. Payal Kapadia |
IMDbPro Short Cuts Award for Best Film: Displaced, dir. Samir Karahoda Honourable Mention: Trumpets in the Sky, dir. Rakan Mayasi |
IMDbPro Short Cuts Award for Best Canadian Film: Angakusajaujuq – The Shaman’s Apprentice, dir. Zacharias Kunuk Honourable Mention: Nuisance Bear, dirs. Jack Weisman, Gabriela Osio Vanden |
IMDbPro Short Cuts Share Her Journey Award: ASTEL, dir. Ramata-Toulaye Sy |
As announced previously, the winners at this year’s TIFF TRIBUTE GALA, which aired last night, were:
We’ve hit peak starpower at TIFF ’21 and even with Red Carpets and talent scaled back there’s still plenty enough to keep us busy!
The 2021 TIFF Tribute Gala took place earlier today at Roy Thomson Hall with this year’s Honourees taking the stage to accept their awards. Those in attendance included:
Jessica Chastain — TIFF Tribute Actor Award supported by the Tory Family
Benedict Cumberbatch — TIFF Tribute Actor Award
Denis Villeneuve — TIFF Ebert Director Award
Alanis Obomsawin — Jeff Skoll Award in Impact Media supported by Participant Media
Ari Wegner — TIFF Variety Artisan Award
Danis Goulet — TIFF Emerging Talent Award presented by L’Oréal Paris and supported by MGM
Dionne Warwick — TIFF Special Tribute Award
We caught some special moments as the stars arrived and we even saw Benedict Cumberbatch and Dionne Warwick share an embrace. R&B Legend Warwick, here for Documentary DON’T MAKE ME OVER, shared that she admittedly was a little starstruck seeing Cumberbatch, whom she admires for her work on SHERLOCK, which she was obsessed with streaming during the Pandemic! Cumberbatch is receiving tons of Oscar buzz for his work in Jane Campion‘s THE POWER OF THE DOG. Review here.
Chastain and Villeneuve, both busy with Press Days today for their respective films THE FORGIVEN and DUNE, made time to walk over to the fans, snapping Selfies and signing autographs. Chastain was stunning in a colour block Moschino outfit!
The Awards air Saturday, September 18, 2021 at 7pm ET on CTV, CTV.ca and the CTV app in Canada.
Some Snaps:
Several other Premieres took place across the City including MONTANA STORY which stars Owen Teague and Haley Lu Richardson, which many are commending for its heart and compassion. We spotted the stars and Co-Directors Scott McGehee and David Siegel, Ubering about with the Film’s stars earlier. Review to come shortly.
One of our greatest highlights finally is a moment with Rebecca Ferguson, whom we admire so deeply. This chameleon of an Actress has won acclaim for her work on the Mission: Impossible Franchise, The White Queen and more popularly, The Greatest Showman. Oh yeah, her! Ferguson stars in DUNE, which premiered at Ontario Place‘s Cinesphere and will be busy with Villeneuve with a day of press in support of the hotly-anticipated October 22, 2021 release. Review here.
One parting note, I attended a screening of Edgar Wright‘s LAST NIGHT IN SOHO and it was incredible! My thoughts below…
How amazing Wright even threw me a “like”!
We decided to take it easy tonight, wrapping early. Tomorrow will be pretty much the last day we’ll be out snapping content with more of a focus on the Films after Monday. Who knows, I might even have a little special sidekick out with me tomorrow!
(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
Best news all year! We’re so excited to hear confirmed today a return to the in-person component at this Fall’s Toronto International Film Festival. Along with that, the first wave of Films to screen at the Festival September 9-18, 2021 have been announced!
Denis Villeneuve‘s DUNE will headline the Festival with a special screening at the historic Cinesphere IMAX Theatre. Other high-profile films to debut at the Festival include: Le Bal des Folles, Belfast (Kenneth Branagh), Benediction (Terence Davies), Charlotte (Eric Warin, Tahir Rana), Dionne Warwick: Don’t Make Me Over (Dave Wooley), The Guilty (Antoine Fuqua), Jagged (Alanis Morissette Documentary by Alison Klayman), Lakewood (Philip Noyce), Last Night in Soho (Edgar Wright), Night Raiders (Danis Goulet), Petite Maman (Céline Sciamma), and The Starling (Theodore Melfi) are part of TIFF‘s Official Selection.
What does this mean? With Quarantine rules having relaxed in Ontario, we could be seeing the likes of Melissa McCarthy, Timothy Olyphant, Zendaya, Timothée Chalamet, Anya Taylor-Joy, Catriona Balfe, Jamie Dornan, Alanis Morissette, Riley Keough, Jake Gyllenhaal, Ethan Hawke, Jeremy Irvine and several more in-town this September!
In total there will be 100 films premiering at TIFF ’21 plus public digital experiences presented by Bell, with film screenings on digital TIFF Bell Lightbox available across Canada. In Conversation With… talks and interactive Q&A sessions with actors and creators will be hosted on TIFF Bell Digital Talks, available worldwide.
The 2021 TIFF Tribute Awards once again will be returning this year, and will be broadcast nationally by CTV and streamed internationally by Variety.
Digital ticket package sales start June 30, 2021 for TIFF’s Contributors Circle Members and all ticket dates are available at tiff.net/tickets. Ticket sales are serviced online and by phone only.
(Photo credit: Warner Bros. Canada)
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