In the following you will not find in depth review and analysis about the hits and misses of the films that were aired at the Toronto International Film Festival. There will be no thumbs up to this actor or that actress. No amazement about the plot twist that no one saw coming. No recommendation of the little, dark horse that is getting some screen time due to the dedication of the Filmfest programmers.
I did not see a single film at all, but I am told that there were some amazing ones. Or more precisely I am told to say that all films at the festival are of the highest quality. Now I do not have to say those words precisely, I just cannot openly negatively criticize films at the Filmfest.
You see, I am one of the many contract workers of the festival.
With that being said, you are not going to get any juicy, controversial gossip out of me, for even though I did not have to sign a confidentiality contract, I’m not interested in burning my bridges. (Ahem, one might want to look into the “protest” at the Michael Moore screening. I’m just saying…)
What I do hope to share is just a little insight into some of the stuff going on in the Filmfest that you might not notice going on.
This year I had the role of a Support Rep. As a Support Rep I am part of the theatre operations team headed by Natalie Wu and Winston Morgan (and who I hold in the highest esteem, so please let’s not say anything bad or, well, I will kick your ass.) That made me one of the people hanging around theatres with the nifty headsets, clipboards and a spreadsheet that you see at all venues. There are approximately 150 of us for the dozen or so venues at the Filmfest. This team works to get people and talent in and out theatres and try to keep everything on time. Once you look at the sheer amount of movies that run during the festival combined with all the events, you can see that it is not easy. So when your single movie runs late by 5 minutes, try to be patient, for everyone knows and everyone is working his or her butt off to adjust and accommodate.
“I don’t get no respect.”
This is one thing that really surprises me about the people that work the Filmfest. From all departments, everyone is there to try and make things work properly. People schedule vacations, adjust contracts and turn down full time work just for this 10-day contract. Now this just might be because it is a 10-day contract and if it were a full-time thing, the adrenaline high would wear off and people could get bitter. From the theatre operations to the theatre management to the box office to the tech crew, every year I see people working so hard to accommodate hundreds of screenings and tens of thousands of people. Unfortunately, not everyone is patient, nor nice. And all we’re asking is that you be patient and nice. Trust me, it pays to be nice. Nice people, you see, can get away with things while people who go out of their way to be pricks, on the other hand do not get the benefit of the doubt. That goes for life, but especially goes for Filmfest.
My happy place.
As a Support Rep I got to bounce around from various venues to help out when someone was sick or if a movie is really hot or an extra body was needed on the red carpet. While I enjoy working at all the venues during TIFF, I have a special interest in the AMC.
Last year was the first year that TIFF had screenings at the AMC at Yonge and Dundas. And it was a clusterfuck. There were a lot of roadblocks that prevented things from running smoothly. The biggest was that rush and public ticket holders line had to line up four flights down from the theatres, outside and around the block. That was the best option we had and it was not good. The regular traffic of the Toronto Life Square and a Festival Box Office on the third floor made traffic in there a nightmare. Still, with all the headaches and anger and frustration, I became attached to my clusterfuck. As of this year, I have worked 6 TIFFs and staff always become attached to the venue they work at. I was at the Cumberland for 4 years and loved the theatre and the people that went to screenings there. And they liked me. (For those of you who went to the Cumberland during that time, I am the dude in the bright orange jumpsuit, worn by choice, because it makes me recognizable and stand out in a crowd. Also,as a bonus, this year it was the TIFF colour.) Then I was asked to go to AMC and being there to start something new became a stronger attachment.
Oh the times they are a-chagnin’…
That stronger attachment made me want to go back into the trenches and I am happy I did. Those that attended this year likely noticed and appreciated the upgrade in the system. Everybody was inside and on the 3rd floor. Now there is a little oddity in that we would use one cinema to line up people in for another one, but it allowed people to sit instead of stand and it worked smoothly. Due to the joys of public relations, we also couldn’t refer to anything as “holding pen”. Thanks to all the people that rolled with the changes and finally found which line they should stand in.
It’s a rush line, not a ticket line.
The rush line had a nice view of Yonge Street. Rush is a funny thing. To be honest, from my point of view, rush patrons are not owed anything. Now I don’t mean that to be rude or harsh, but standing in line, being first, being there for hours DOES NOT entitle you to a ticket. And if you do not get one, do not take it out on the rush staff or volunteer. Everyone is trying to get as many people into that screening as possible. Here’s a tip: The best way to see a film you want, but don’t have tickets for, is to go online at 7 am. Online is the best way to get the tickets for TIFF. Also the morning of the screening is a good time to go online for tickets, since tickets tend to be returned to the box office system from production companies that took too many, etc. Rush is something that TIFF does to help the public see films (plus make a little extra coin). I don’t want to say that is charitable, but it is a nice consideration and the public needs to realize that some films, zero rush get in. Like Oprah’s Precious at Roy Thompson Hall where the little rush line girl had to go out and tell all the people in line that nobody was getting in. That got a little hairy. Not out of control, but it took people a while to realize that it was the truth. No more people were getting in.
Robin’s red carpet.
I was lucky enough to be on that red carpet for Precious. I was never one for celeb-sighting, but being an arm’s length away from Oprah (carries herself amazingly well), Gail (who?), Tyler Perry (REALLY tall), Mary J, De Niro, Clooney, Barrymore and Mariah (who is beautiful with a great pair of…eyes) was amazing. It was surprising how small, in terms of area, the red carpet actually is. Television doesn’t just add 10 pounds, it adds at least 10 feet. Thinking of red carpets I see on television, they seem so huge and then actually being on one and realizing that it is not was a reality check for sure. Some of the media was actually commenting on how this is one of the bigger (and well organized – go theatre ops!) carpets. It was the complete opposite end of the spectrum going from AMC to Roy Thompson Hall, but not for the staff. I witnessed, yet again, everyone working hard to get audience members in and out as hard as getting celebrities in and out. Everyone worked with dedication and enthusiasm and it was oh so intense. It might not look like it, but the people with the headsets at the AMC are working just as hard for you to enjoy the festival as the people with the headsets at RTH are working for the celebrities
And next year look for the guy in the orange jumpsuit, that’ll be me working hard for you to have a happy festival.
