The Toronto International Film Festival started in 1976 as the 'Festival of Festivals' and grew into the industry's most important public launchpad: the People's Choice Award, voted by audiences, has picked eventual Best Picture winners and nominees year after year. Unlike Cannes or Venice, TIFF sells the majority of its seats to the public. That is why the red carpets outside Roy Thomson Hall and the Princess of Wales Theatre are lined with fans rather than accredited press.
Ticketing works in layers. Packages go on sale in the summer — bundles of six, ten or more vouchers that you later exchange for specific screenings in a selection window. Single tickets follow closer to the festival and are released day by day; rush lines form at each venue for returns. Galas at Roy Thomson Hall and Special Presentations at the Princess of Wales are the premieres with the stars; the TIFF Lightbox on King Street runs the rest of the programme and the industry talks.
King Street West between University and Peter Street becomes Festival Street for the opening weekend — closed to traffic, with free outdoor screenings, food trucks and pop-ups. It is the place to be at 6 p.m. on a gala night, when the cars pull up outside Roy Thomson Hall. Dress is smart; the city's restaurants along King and in the Entertainment District run at capacity, so reserve.
Stay in the Entertainment District or the Financial District and you can walk to every main venue. Hotel rates rise for the first weekend; midweek is calmer and the programme is just as strong. A chauffeur is the natural fit for TIFF week — Pearson to the hotel on arrival, and King Street is a place people notice how you arrive.
Three things to get right
- Buy a ticket package in summer; single tickets are competitive.
- Festival Street on King West is free and is where the red-carpet arrivals happen.
- Midweek screenings are easier to get and just as good.
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