Pictures courtesy TIFF
BY RENU MEHTA, TORONTO:
11 days, 254 features, 88 shorts, 83 countries, 35% directed by women, 939 staffers and 2,911 volunteers made the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) happen.
And there was only one Grolsch People’s Choice award winner. This year it was the film Green Book that walked away with this much anticipated award at the Film Festival.
“And the winner is Peter Farrelly for the film Green Book,” announced Cameron Bailey, co-head of TIFF along with Piers Handling, amidst much applause at TIFF Bell Lightbox on September 16.
The film is set in the 60s starring actors Mahershala Ali (playing Don Shirley) and Viggo Mortensen (playing Tony “Lip” Vallelonga) and tells the story of a working-class Italian-American bouncer who takes a job chauffeuring an African American classical pianist across the American South. The true story presents a celebrated New York musician who must hire an assistant to drive him on a concert tour through the Southern states because he is unable to travel safely on his own. The musician is Black. His driver is white.
The Italian-American raised in the streets and bars of New York, Tony uses his loud mouth to get his way. If that doesn’t work, he uses his fists. As this mismatched pair sets out on their journey, the Negro Motorist Green Book guides them to safe hotels and restaurants in the segregated South.
The award offers a $15,000 cash prize and custom award, sponsored by Grolsch.
The first runner-up is Barry Jenkins’ If Beale Street Could Talk. The second runner-up is Alfonso Cuarón’s ROMA.
The Festival presented free screenings of Green Book at TIFF Bell Lightbox
OTHER AWARDS AT TIFF
IWC SHORT CUTS AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN SHORT FILM
The IWC Short Cuts Award for Best Canadian Short Film goes to Meryam Joobeur’s Brotherhood.
Honorable mention to Jérémy Comte’s Fauve for its confident visual storytelling and moving performances from the child actors.
IWC SHORT CUTS AWARD FOR BEST SHORT FILM
The IWC Short Cuts Award for Best Short Film goes to Sandhya Suri’s The Field.
Honourable mentions to Anette Sidor’s Fuck You for its acutely observed study of teenage sexuality, and to Emma de Swaef and Marc James Roels’s This Magnificent Cake! for the spectacular level of animation and the surreal humour it uses to explore its complex colonial subject matter.
CITY OF TORONTO AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN FIRST FEATURE FILM
The City of Toronto Award for Best Canadian First Feature Film goes to Katherine Jerkovic’s Roads in February (Les routes en février).
CANADA GOOSE AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN FEATURE FILM
The Canada Goose ® Award for Best Canadian Feature Film goes to Sébastien Pilote’s The Fireflies Are Gone (La disparition des lucioles).
THE PRIZES OF THE INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF FILM CRITICS (FIPRESCI PRIZES)
The Prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) for the Discovery programme is awarded to Carmel Winters for Float Like a Butterfly.
Honourable mention goes to Laura Luchetti’s Twin Flower.
The Prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) for Special Presentations is awarded to Guy Nattiv for Skin.
Honourable mention goes to Louis Garrel’s A Faithful Man.
NETPAC AWARD
The NETPAC Award for World or International Asian Film Premiere goes to Ash Mayfair’s The Third Wife.
Honourable mention to Bai Xue’s The Crossing.
EURIMAGES’ AUDENTIA AWARD
The Festival and the Council of Europe’s Eurimages Fund present the third Audentia Award for Best Female Director goes to Aäläm-Wärqe Davidian’s Fig Tree.
Honourable mention to Camilla Strøm Henriksen’s Phoenix.
TORONTO PLATFORM PRIZE PRESENTED BY AIR FRANCE
Toronto Platform Prize presented by Air France was unanimously awarded to Wi Ding Ho’s Cities of Last Things.
Honourable mention was awarded to Emir Baigazin’s The River.
GROLSCH PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS
Grolsch People’s Choice Award goes to Peter Farrelly for Green Book.
The first runner-up is Barry Jenkins’ If Beale Street Could Talk. The second runner-up is Alfonso Cuarón’s ROMA.
The Grolsch People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award goes to Vasan Bala’s The Man Who Feels No Pain.
The first runner-up is David Gordon Green’s Halloween. The second runner-up is Sam Levinson’s Assassination Nation.
The Grolsch People’s Choice Documentary Award goes to Free Solo, directed by E. Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin.
The first runner-up is Tom Donahue’s This Changes Everything. The second runner-up is John Chester’s The Biggest Little Farm.
