OSCAR WATCH: TIFF Awards

This past Sunday, the award winners for TIFF 2015 were announced and somehow, I ended up missing all the winners. But such is the nature of the beast at such a gargantuan festival, and now I have a number of films to look forward to. Of course, the big story was the reveal of the People's Choice Award winner, which has built up a reputation as a strong indicator for Best Picture Oscar success. This year, that honor went to Lenny Abrahamson's "Room", which was a slight surprise, beating out the popular "Spotlight" into 3rd place. But the question remains, will the Academy really find room (pun intended) for "Room" in the Best Picture lineup?

The answer to that question is especially tricky this year, which seems to be one of the most wide open races in recent history. Although "Spotlight" and "Steve Jobs" have launched to raves, no film thus far has received the slam dunk notices that propelled films like "12 Years a Slave" in the past. What it does prove however, is that Brie Larson will indeed be a force to be reckoned with in Best Actress, even if "Room" ultimately misses out. Additionally, the 3rd place showing for "Spotlight" further confirms that it will play gangbusters to audiences when it finally releases. I think we have our frontrunner.

In terms of the other awards handed out, their impact on the Oscar race is likely to be minimal. At best, we may see some of these being submitted by their respective countries as Foreign Language submissions next year. The NETPAC winner for Best Asian Film premiere "The Whispering Star" could also be Japan's submission next year, but they are always impossible to predict. Among the FIPRESCI critics' prizewinners, Czech-Slovak co-production "Eva Nová" could potentially follow in the footsteps of "Ida", which also won a FIPRESCI award at TIFF 2013.

As we head into the New York Film Festival and AFI Fest though, we'll soon have a clearer idea of where everything stands. For now, here's the list of award winners from the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival:

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TIFF: Wrapping up the festival

When I first found out I would be attending the Toronto International Film Festival for the first time, I was filled with as much anxiety as excitement. With such a daunting lineup ahead of me, I immediately began stressing over my selections. Do I watch the would-be Oscar contenders? Seek out the new talents? Plunge into the delights of world cinema? Eventually, I ended up scheduling a mixture of them all, in what turned out to be a richly fulfilling experience.

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INTERVIEW: Stephan James

Among many other sidebar events, one of the coolest initiatives of the Toronto International Film Festival is its annual Rising Stars programme, co-presented by the Casting Society of America. Now in its fifth year, the programme provides a platform for a selected group of promising Canadian actors, allowing them to engage in various development opportunities to boost their careers. This year’s distinguished honorees were Deragh Campbell, Stephan James, Aliocha Schneider and Karelle Tremblay; and I was fortunate to be invited to the Rising Stars Mixer, where I was able to have a quick chat with Stephan James ("Selma", "Home Again"). This talented Toronto native is one to watch, as he eyes a breakout year in 2016, when he plays Jesse Owens in the upcoming "Race".

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INTERVIEW: Saoirse Ronan

One of my highlights of TIFF this year was the opportunity to sit down with Saoirse Ronan to discuss her new film "Brooklyn", as part of Fox Searchlight’s press junket for the film. Having seen the film a day earlier, I was eager to find out how she prepared for the role and the experience of making such a beautiful film.

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TIFF: Embrace of the Serpent

As TIFF 2015 comes to a close, my festival experience ended on an ethereal high with an outstanding Colombian film. Directed by Ciro Guerra, "Embrace of the Serpent" is a hypnotizing look at the Amazon rainforest and its varied inhabitants. With the feel of an epic tome, it tells two interconnected stories about the dying indigenous cultures and the effect of Western influence.

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TIFF: A Heavy Heart

In a general sense, films are made to provoke happiness, fright, thought or sadness. As its title suggests, "A Heavy Heart" mostly falls into the latter category. This drama from the promising German director Thomas Stuber is real tearjerker, following a man coping with a devastating personal tragedy.

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TIFF: Spear

Before the relatively recent invention of cinema, the most popular modes of artistic entertainment comprised dance, music and theatre. Since the birth of cinema however, these performing arts no longer control the spotlight. In Stephen Page's "Spear", the power of all these arts come together in this refreshingly original coming-of-age film.

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TIFF: Stranger

Famine. War. Death. The premise of Yermek Tursunov’s lastest film "Stranger", probably won’t send you skipping merrily out of the theaters. Recounting one of the most turbulent periods in Kazakhstan’s history, this parable about Soviet era strife brings the struggle to vivid life.

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TIFF: River

Cinema has long been a great tool for cross-cultural discourse, with co-productions between national film industries becoming increasingly prevalent. One such example is Jamie M. Dagg's debut feature "River". In this new thriller, the Canadian filmmaker crafts a vacation from hell, as an American doctor goes through a nightmarish experience in Laos and Thailand.

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TIFF: The Wave & The Paradise Suite

On Day 5 of TIFF 2015, I was able to catch up with two more Foreign Oscar submissions. The first was Norway’s entry The Wave and the other was the Dutch submission The Paradise Suite. Here’s what I thought of both films:

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TIFF: Downriver

The TIFF website succinctly describes its Discovery section as "Directors to watch. The future of world cinema". Hailing from Down Under is a film that perfectly captures the essence of this section, Grant Scicluna’s "Downriver". At the age of 34, this Australian filmmaker displays skills that belie his years in this staggeringly impactful debut feature.

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TIFF: Truth

In case you didn’t already know, Cate Blanchett is one of the finest actors working in the business today. As if her lauded performance in Cannes darling Carol wasn’t enough, the Australian thespian has brought another outstanding performance to TIFF in the true story journalism drama "Truth". Blanchett is in crackling form in this impressive debut film from James Vanderbilt, proving that there’s hardly any role she can’t do to perfection.

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TIFF: Girls Lost

Themes of gender and sexuality are having a big moment in American cinema this year, with the likes of "About Ray", "Stonewall" and "Freeheld" about to hit theaters soon. But Hollywood is merely catching up with the rest of the world, where films like Alexandra-Therese Keining’s "Girls Lost" are tapping into the zeitgeist in exciting ways. This Swedish fantasy film is wrapped in an accessible genre package, but I’m willing to bet it’s more thoughtful and daring than most of the Hollywood LGBT dramas we’ll see this fall.

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TIFF: I Saw the Light

On the strength of "Love & Mercy" and "Straight Outta Compton" this summer, it would have been easy to declare 2015 the year of the musician biopic. But with the TIFF premiere of Marc Abraham’s "I Saw the Light", the subgenre has hit an unfortunate bump in the road. Contrary to its title, this cinematic account of the life of country singer Hank Williams is a dull, gloomy affair.

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TIFF: Brooklyn

In our cynical age of contemporary cinema, purely sentimental depictions of true love are hard to pull off and rarely attempted. But fans of classic cinema will surely appreciate John Crowley’s heartfelt new film "Brooklyn", which successfully invokes the spirit of the romance dramas of the Golden Age. Starring a radiant Saoirse Ronan, this transatlantic saga is a must-see film for all the lovers out there.

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TIFF: Demolition

Through the success of his Oscar-nominated films "Dallas Buyers Club" and "Wild", Quebecois filmmaker Jean-Marc Vallée has cultivated a reputation for compelling dramas about individuals in crisis. This thematic thread continues with his newest film "Demolition", starring Jake Gyllenhaal as a man coping with the tragic death of his wife. Through this introspective narrative, Vallée once again provides a typically character-driven showcase for his actors. But this time, he experiments with tone to deliver a curious mix of comedy and drama.

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TIFF: Ixcanul & The Assassin

For my first day of TIFF 2015, I watched a pair of foreign language Oscar submissions from Guatemala and Taiwan. Both similarly feature female protagonists, but the worlds they depict represent completely different social strata. Below are my thoughts on "Ixcanul" and "The Assassin":

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TIFF: Preview

At this very moment, I'm waiting to board a flight to embark on another adventure. As of next week my bucket list will be one item short, as I finally attend the world's biggest film festival - the Toronto International Film Festival! Stay tuned for daily updates as I report on behalf of The Awards Circuit.

Click here to see my full lineup of films.

N.B. - I will no longer be watching "Born to be Blue" at the fest. A replacement will be identified soon.

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COMING SOON: Toronto International Film Festival

Over the next few weeks, cinephile excitement over the fall festival season will reach a fever pitch as we turn our attention towards the Venice, Telluride, Toronto and New York Film Festivals. Yours truly will once again be in the thick of it, as I head up to the "Great White North" for the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival! With another exciting lineup of films in store, I'll be on the ground to provide you with my take on some of the hottest films. The atmosphere promises to be electric as the festival celebrates its 40th year.

Check out the festival teaser below and be sure to follow me at The Awards Circuit, where all my coverage will be posted.

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