(Toronto) Amid talk of the double strike in Hollywood, three Oscar winners gathered at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) Tribute Awards ceremony on Sunday to celebrate cinema and receive accolades for their own contribution to the world of cinema.
Actress Patricia Arquette and directors Spike Lee and Pedro Almodovar were the main attractions at the annual fundraising gala held as part of the Toronto International Film Festival. Proceeds from the evening will be used to fund TIFF’s various film initiatives.
For meme Arquette, showing support was essential, especially during a time of great uncertainty that made her feel uneasy about the film industry.
“Where is the next pit of quicksand,” she asked after listing some of the seismic technological shifts and mega-mergers that have put Hollywood under pressure in recent years.
Mme Arquette received the “Share Her Journey Groundbreaker Award” for her decades-spanning screen career, recognized with an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for Boyhood.
She is present at the film festival with her first feature film Gonzo Girl. Mme Arquette said she received a waiver from the actors’ union to participate in the festival, specifying that the film’s producers agreed to respect the terms of the agreement ultimately reached with the union.
“Film festivals have been celebrating cinema for so long,” she said of the importance of TIFF on the red carpet in front of the Fairmont Royal York hotel.
“The programmers (of festivals are the first) to see […] those little gems that were made on shoestring budgets and end up winning Oscars. »
Mme Arquette used his time in Toronto to support the strikes. On Saturday, she joined dozens of actors and writers outside the Canadian headquarters of Amazon and Apple, both of which operate online streaming services and are among the companies in dispute with unions.
Directors Lee and Almodovar decided to avoid any questions about the strike on the red carpet of tributes. They posed for photos before walking past journalists without talking about their awards.
Some onlookers were wowed by Mr. Lee’s gold high-top sneakers with black lettering on the sides of the sole reading: BlacKkKlansmanthe 2019 film that won him the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Mr. Lee received the Ebert Director Award, which celebrates his influence in the film industry, notably with his groundbreaking 1989 film Do the Right Thing.
PHOTO CHRISTOPHER KATSAROV, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Spike Lee
Mr. Almodovar received the Jeff Skoll Award in the Impact Media category, which recognizes his achievements in making cinema with a social impact. He realised All About My MotherOscar winner, and presented his new short film Strange Way of Life at this year’s festival.
PHOTO CHRISTOPHER KATSAROV, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Pedro Almodóvar
Several other stars with films at TIFF showed up at the event, including Willem Dafoe who stars in M’s film.me Arquette. He strolled leisurely across the carpet, stopping only to offer his signature raised eyebrow.
Ethan Hawke and his wife hosted Canadian actress Devery Jacobs, whose queer film Backspot is one of the local titles worthy of interest. And Viggo Mortensen rushed to take photos following rave reviews for his film The Dead Don’t Hurt.
Other TIFF award winners of the evening included Shawn Levy, Montreal director of Free Guywho received the Norman Jewison Career Achievement Award.
“It’s humbling and really rewarding,” he said. It means that the work I put into the world connects and adds up to something. It’s every storyteller’s dream.”
The actor of fear the walking dead Colman Domingo and actress Phantom Thread Vicky Krieps both received this year’s acting awards.
Proceeds raised from the evening support Viola Desmond Cinema’s campaign to rename the main theater at TIFF headquarters in honor of the civil rights pioneer.