Venice, Telluride, Toronto, New York – 4 Terrific Fall Movie Festivals
by Alex Billington
August 29, 2022
Who’s prepared for the autumn movie pageant season to kick off?! In the event you work within the film business, or if observe the film business, or in the event you simply love new motion pictures, September 1st is the massive day when the autumn season begins. It is an thrilling time as a result of 4 main movie festivals happen back-to-back, and the entire wonderful movies which have been ending up this yr shall be premiering throughout lots of them. The Venice Movie Competition (in its 79th yr / aka “Venezia”) kicks issues off each fall, launching simply days earlier than the Telluride Movie Competition (in its forty ninth yr / aka “Telluride”). Days after Telluride is over, and earlier than Venice has even ended, the Toronto Movie Competition (in its forty seventh yr / aka “TIFF”) launches. On the finish of the month, the enduring and glamorous New York Movie Competition (in its sixtieth yr / aka “NYFF”) begins with a giant celebration on the beloved Lincoln Middle on the Higher West Aspect. I’ve been to all 4 of those festivals many occasions over time, and I would say that every one is an impressive movie pageant and any of those 4 are value attending.
Whereas I am keen on Sundance (which takes place in January) and Cannes (which takes place in Could), I additionally do love the autumn pageant season due to the anticipation and pleasure that comes with it yr after yr. All of those movies we have been ready to see are lastly premiering! And there is so lots of them! I need to see ALL of them! If solely I had the time… TIFF all the time overloads their line-up with nearly 200 new movies, whereas Venice and Telluride and NYFF concentrate on selecting a extra refined collection of the most effective of the most effective of every yr’s newest cinematic choices. Venice has established itself as the facility participant working neck-and-neck with Cannes because the premiere pageant bringing the world’s best movies to audiences. Previously few years, Cannes & Venice have premiered Greatest Image winners (The Form of Water, Parasite, Nomadland, and so forth) and on the similar time confirmed that they will additionally characteristic worldwide movies from all corners of the world that deserve the identical consideration and acclaimed that Hollywood movies get regardless of the place they present up first.
Self-importance Truthful’s David Canfield not too long ago wrote a enjoyable little article discussing how filmmakers typically fly between Venice and Telluride (within the mountains of Colorado) and Toronto, and the way exhausting these first few weeks of September will be. Guillermo del Toro mentioned how he needed to fly instantly from his Venice premiere of The Form of Water to Telluride and again to select up his Golden Lion. “He needed to catch an in a single day flight to Telluride for Water’s American debut. Upon his arrival within the Rockies, he was greeted by a hailstorm, which pelted the roof of the Werner Herzog Theatre whereas the movie screened. Because the credit rolled, he obtained a message: ‘You higher get again to Venice.’ He was successful one thing; he did not know what. He flew throughout the Atlantic as soon as extra…” Fortunately, until you are concerned with considered one of these movies, most individuals aren’t flying throughout the Atlantic backwards and forwards for every pageant. Simply select one and keep it up! You’ll be able to’t go unsuitable with any of those – Venice is superb, a spectacular expertise; Telluride is healthful and charming, with no paparazzi or purple carpets solely mountains; TIFF is the large metropolis extravaganza and looks like a large social gathering; New York looks like coming dwelling, a joyful fest taking part in so many distinctive movies it is nearly overwhelming.
For the primary 10 years that I ran FirstShowing, I used to be attending Telluride and Toronto each single yr (TIFF infamously refused to offer me a press move the primary yr I attended in late 2007 – I simply purchased all my tickets anyway). Then I moved to Berlin in 2016 and ever since then I have been attending the Venice Movie Competition as a substitute, because it’s unaffordable and exhausting to fly from Venice to Toronto. The timing of each festivals on the identical opening weekend makes it unattainable to attend each Telluride and Venice, although I admit I do dream of it once in a while (fly out to Colorado and again to maintain watching extra Venice movies). I additionally lived in New York from 2012 to 2016 and was all the time on the NYFF, I cherished each minute of it there. I am joyful to go to any of those festivals and I am joyful to focus on them, ship writers to them, learn protection from them, and help them (even when they’ve all develop into a bit too company in the previous few years – blech). These days I am proud to be a veteran providing assist to first-timers attending any of those fests. Along with recommendations on the place to remain and find out how to navigate, I can counsel nice eating places, journey ideas, and different survival recommendation.
So have been we’re in 2022, on the tail finish of a brutal pandemic that has left hundreds of thousands lifeless, with the world of cinema struggling to regain its prominence. As soon as once more, it is that point of yr, and the autumn pageant season has come a-knocking and it is time to dive in. The present should go on. The movies at these fests are able to wow us, dazzle us, destroy us, enlighten us, excite us, and typically frustrate us (why did they program this movie?!). I actually do hope that waxing poetic about these festivals encourages and conjures up film lovers identical to me to attend. I do not need anybody to be envious or aggravated at my protection; I like movie festivals as a result of they actually do convey us collectively, they are surely these lovely locations the place all of us get to affix in celebrating the glory of cinema. So seize some popcorn, seize some champagne, seize your tickets, seize your mates, and watch some motion pictures. Remember to inform us which of them you liked, and which of them you did not. We’ll see you on the theater.
