The 45th edition of the Toronto International Film Festival wrapped up September 19, 2020, and we’re thrilled to tell you about the awards earned by awesome Canadian talent. While TIFF 2020’s digital-and-physical format was different this year, our filmmakers made waves just the same with a diverse array of impactful stories and projects that captivated audiences and juries alike.
Here’s your scoop on Canada’s TIFF winners:
Tiffany Hsiung’s Sing Me a Lullaby took home the IMDbPro Short Cuts Share Her Journey Award.
- About the award: This new $10,000 jury award, in its first year at TIFF, goes to a female-directed film.
- About the film: This documentary short follows a woman’s quest to find her mother’s parents. Toronto-based filmmaker Tiffany Hsiung’s first feature The Apology won a coveted Peabody Award.
Paul Shkordoff’s Benjamin, Benny, Ben earned the IMDBPro Short Cuts Award for Best Canadian Film!
- About the award: Part of the aforementioned Short Cuts Awards, this $10,000 jury prize goes to the Best Canadian Film.
- About the film: A story about an anxious fellow en route to a job interview, this short will screen at the 2020 Special Cannes event taking place from October 27 to 29, 2020.
Métis and Algonquin filmmaker Michelle Latimer’s feature doc Inconvenient Indian took home two prizes: the TIFF 2020 People’s Choice Documentary Award and the Amplify Voices Award for Best Canadian Feature Film!
- About the awards: As its name suggests, TIFF’s People’s Choice Awards come from the people, audiences voted online on their pick!. As for the Amplify Voices Awards presented by Canada Goose, these bring three $10,000 prizes to features by BIPOC filmmakers.
- About the film: Indigenous author Thomas King’s book about colonization in North America is the starting point of this documentary. In fact, Thomas King himself narrates.
Tracey Deer’s Beans earned the second runner-up honour in the TIFF 2020 People’s Choice Award category! (P.S.: This Mohawk filmmaker, known for the hit series Mohawk Girls, also received an emerging talent prize at this year’s TIFF Tribute Awards Ceremony!)
- About the awards: Fun fact! This is the 43rd year the People’s Choice Award has been part of the festival.
- About the film: Set in the 1990 Oka Crisis, award-winning Tracey Deer’s first feature is drawn from her own experiences during the event.
Philippe Lacôte’s Ivory Coast-France-Canada-Senegal coproduction Night of the Kings (La nuit des rois) scored an Amplify Voices Award.
- About the award: With three winning feature films selected by a jury, the $10,000 Amplify Voices Awards celebrate and honour diversity.
- About the film: Set in an Ivory Coast prison, a man has to save his life by captivating his fellow prisoners with his storytelling. This feature premiered at the Venice International Film Festival before heading to TIFF and is the Ivory Coast’s official Academy Awards submission for the Best International Feature Film category!
And finally… Nicolás Pereda’s Mexico-Canada coproduction Fauna earned a Special Mention from the jury in the Amplify Voices Award for Best Canadian Film Category.
- About the film: Making its premiere at TIFF, this drama with a funny edge surrounds the theme of Mexico’s culture of violence
