So, Toronto is very exciting this time of year! Aside from the four regular seasons - Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter - we have a fifth season: TIFF! The Toronto International Film Festival; the biggest film festival the world, I recently learned. And I am finally back in Canada and happy to be a part of the excitement!
I decided to volunteer this year, because I thought it sounded glamourous to be brushing shoulders with celebs, and because I'm too cheap to pay for festival movie tickets. Honorable, I know. Despite my original intentions, I had a moment today, while I was scanning ticket barcodes, when I realized that this festival is really run by volunteers. That without cheap and superficial people like me, there would be no festival.
The atmosphere on King Street has been amazing this weekend. Noise, crowds, and red carpets, oh my! Even the rush lines are an experience and you'll usually end up having some fascinating conversations if you're open to it...fascinating in the way that half of what is say may go over your head, but you'll still be throughly impressed by their extensive film knowledge. I like to chime in every once in a while, "Mmhm, mhm." "I know!" (Oh gosh, here I was going to refer to a mainstream movie and all I can think of is Fast Five. People are going to think I'm some Fast in the Furious freak. Movies sucked this summer, okay? Except Midnight in Paris...but this was not the point I was trying to make.) "Yeah, I really think Paul Walker stepped up his game this time around." (so shoot me.)
The atmosphere on King Street has been amazing this weekend. Noise, crowds, and red carpets, oh my! Even the rush lines are an experience and you'll usually end up having some fascinating conversations if you're open to it...fascinating in the way that half of what is say may go over your head, but you'll still be throughly impressed by their extensive film knowledge. I like to chime in every once in a while, "Mmhm, mhm." "I know!" (Oh gosh, here I was going to refer to a mainstream movie and all I can think of is Fast Five. People are going to think I'm some Fast in the Furious freak. Movies sucked this summer, okay? Except Midnight in Paris...but this was not the point I was trying to make.) "Yeah, I really think Paul Walker stepped up his game this time around." (so shoot me.)
I like to scoff at the celebrity crazed and talk about how it's a complete waste of time for people to wait around for hours just so they can catch a glimpse of their favourite star. They're only people, right? I had just finished watching the premiere of Barrymore, a film version of the play starring Christopher Plummer, followed by a Q&A by CP himself. What! Feeling pretty good, I walk past the red carpet, crowds cheering. HA. Silly people, I think to myself. I glance up at the video screen, which shows live footage of the carpet, and it's none other than Aragorn himself (Viggo Mortensen, you fools!). Do you know how fast I was at that red carpet? I think I ran in front of cars. I couldn't help but laugh at my own hypocrisy. Viggo was with Keira Knightley for their new film, A Dangerous Method. Yeah...I did see him, for about a second. He is still just a person. But there's something exciting about seeing a familiar filmface in real life. Bizarre. The two world collide. This is why I think that if I had to talk to a celeb in real life...the universe would implode.
No, I was not able to personally escort Ryan Gosling to his Gala showing, but aside from that, it's been a reel good start to the festival.
Oh, so you're volunteering? Will you be around the Lightbox during the week? Maybe I'll run into you there...
ReplyDelete