[VIDEO] “Where Do We Go Now?” earns the Cadillac People’s Choice Award for favourite film of the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival

[VIDEO] In a slight upset, a foreign language film set in war-torn Lebanon emerged as the people’s choice favourite of the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival. “Where Do We Go Now?” from Lebanese-Canadian director and actor Nadine Labaki won the 2011 Cadillac People’s Choice Award – an accolade that usually signals more recognition is to come for the film. Labaki’s film has already been announced as Lebanon’s official entry into Oscar consideration for best foreign language film. The TIFF award should further help it make the coveted short-list of Academy Award considerations once the nominations are announced early next year.

The Cadillac People’s Choice award also includes a $15,000 cash prize. Festival programmer Rasha Salti, accepted the award on the director’s behalf, who was in the process of flying back to Lebanon. “I’m thrilled, I’m happy, I’m ecstatic, I’m excited… I’m running around jumping up and down at the Frankfurt airport. Tomorrow we’ll be screening ‘Where Do We Go Now?’ for the first time in Lebanon and I will be proud and happy to announce the news in front of my crew, my family and the Lebanese audience.” Labaki said in a statement emailed to TIFF.

“The Island President” won the Cadillac People’s Choice Award for favorite documentary. Thom Powers, documentary programmer for TIFF accepted the award on the filmmaker’s behalf. Said Powers, “The President came here from the Maldives . He was watching the film for the first time along with the audience. There was something so exciting about that experience, it translated to the audience and elevated the film to the People’s Choice Award.” The TIFF premiere also marked the first time a sitting President in power had ever visited the Festival.

“The Raid” was voted favourite Midnight Madness feature and writer-director Gareth Evans, along with stars Iko Uwais and Joe Taslim were on hand at the awards brunch to accept their Cadillac People’s Choice Award.
M.J. Comeau, VP of Sales for GM Canada presents the Cadillac People’s Choice Awards to the winning films. (photos: George Pimentel. video/editing: Mike Edge.)

TIFF Cadillac People’s Choice Awards often predict greater things to come for Audience favorite films

Curious to what films might be front-runners to garner awards attention come Oscar season? Paying attention to the Toronto International Film Festivals Cadillac People’s Choice Awards when handed out on the final Sunday is good place to start.

Toronto audiences have become renowned for their good taste in movies and TIFF audience picks have increasingly gone on to greater acclaim – especially during Oscar season. Slumdog Millionaire, The King’s Speech, and Precious are all among Cadillac People’s Choice Winners at TIFF that went on to scoop-up many more critical awards.

“Over the last decade, we’ve been a bellwether for not just best picture wins, but many other of the other awards too – acting awards in particular.” – says Piers Handling, co-director of the Festival. “So many of the films that have Oscar potential, Golden Globe potential, awards potential, actually do platform in Toronto.”

TIFF Cadillac People’s Choice Award is presented to the highest-rated film as voted by the Festival going public. Movie-goers are distributed ballots after every TIFF screening with the chance to rate the film. Votes are tallied at the end of the Festival and an audience favorite is determined. The winning filmmaker is further awarded $15,000 in prize money. In recent years, Cadillac People’s Choice has added categories recognizing favorite Documentary and Midnight Madness features.

So what films did you vote for this TIFF as favorites? What’s going to be the people’s choice when the awards are handed out this Sunday, September 18th?

A Dangerous Method, Moneyball, or maybe, The Artist?

(George Pimentel photos) Freida Pinto accepts the 2008 Cadillac People’s Choice Award on behalf of “Slumdog Millionaire.” The film would go on to capture the Academy Award for Best Picture.

On the eve of TIFF’10 Cadillac Festival Insider talks tips and celebrity scoops with Mad Dog & Billie on 99.9 Virgin radio in Toronto

Oscar winning Slumdog Millionaire alumni Freida Pinto and director Danny Boyle are returning to the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival – but in different films this time

While they’ll be in Toronto to support different films this year during TIFF, Slumdog Millionaire actress Freida Pinto and her former director Danny Boyle are expected to reunite at sometime during the 2010 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival.

It was just two years earlier that their film, Slumdog Millionaire took the festival (and by extension, the world) by storm. When SlumDog captured the Cadillac People’s Choice Audience Award it would be just the first in many accolades to come for the film, culminating in the highest honor of them all – the Academy Award for Best Picture.

It’s been quite the whirlwind couple of years since Slumdog Millionaire introduced Freida Pinto to audiences outside her native India. Freida comes to the 2010 Toronto Film Festival in support of not one, but two films this year.


And those films are helmed by powerhouse directors. Pinto will first join director Julian Schnabel on the red carpet for the TIFF premiere of Miral. A few days later, we’ll see Freida join the iconic writer and director Woody Allen when You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger makes a TIFF debut.

Also happening during TIFF, Pinto’s Slumdog Millionaire director Danny Boyle will premiere his follow-up directorial effort, 127 Hours. We just need now Freida’s Slumdog co-star, and real life boyfriend, Dev Patel to come to TIFF’10 for a true cast reunion.

Why PRECIOUS: Based on the Novel Push by SAPPHIRE is an important film to see – press conference for Cadillac People’s Choice Award winner in Toronto

IVAN and JASON REITMAN had a very busy TIFF 2009 with Up In The Air, Jennifer’s Body, and Chloe all having Toronto premieres

(festivalinsider.ca) There could not have been a more active father-son duo in the filmmaking business then what Ivan and Jason Reitman put on display during the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. Put simply, the Reitmans owned TIFF’09. Jason Reitman was in Toronto as producer on Jennifer’s Body and director on the already highly acclaimed UP IN THE AIR. After the recent film festival reviews for Up In The Air, many think the George Clooney starring vehicle will be well represented come awards time. During the press conference, Jason was sure to point out a key producer on the film, his father, Ivan Reitman proudly sitting in the first row with the assembled media. It wasn’t the only business at TIFF for Ivan – he was also there to support another Gala premiering film he produced – the Atom Egoyan directed CHLOE. From press, to red carpet premieres and receptions, there was no shortage of Reitman sightings during the 2009 TIFF week.

Sean Byrne’s THE LOVED ONES wins 2009 Cadillac People’s Choice Award – Midnight Madness at Toronto International Film Festival

TIFF midnight madness programmer Colin Geddes accepted the Cadillac People’s Choice Award from Frank Trivieri of GM Canada for best Midnight Madness feature on behalf of director Sean Byrne’s The Loved Ones at an awards reception hosted by Toronto’s Intercontinental Hotel.

“This is a candy-coloured popcorn film that invites the audience into a fun, pop-horror world that seems familiar. People will be in their seats, kind of comfortable, feeling like they’ve been here before and then we’ll sneak up and drop acid into their soda.” – SEAN BYRNE

It’s Leanne Pooley’s TOPP TWINS over Michael Moore’s CAPITALISM for Cadillac People’s Choice Documentary Award at 2009 TIFF

In a little bit of an upset, director Leanne Pooley’s TOPP TWINS has won the Cadillac People’s Choice Award for documentary at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. Michael Moore’s CAPITALISM was the runner-up.

“I have been making documentaries for twenty years, and usually they are dark. That is often the world a documentary filmmaker moves in, a dark world. This is a film about joy, and laughter, and love. And its just so special to be able to bring a film like that to audiences like yours. I have to thank the TOPP TWINS. who are a force of nature. Thank you so much.” – Leanne Pooley, director TOPP TWINS

Tom Ford’s A SINGLE MAN comes to TIFF on Colin Firth’s BEST ACTOR Venice honors – Weinstein Co. acquire distribution

Actors Julianne Moore and Colin Firth joined TOM FORD at the very well-dressed and attended A Single Man after-party held at the Gardiner Museum. Fashion designer turned director-writer FORD proved during the 2009 Toronto Festival he will be a force in the film business. Riding an impressive wave of positive buzz from the Venice Film Festival where Colin Firth’s performance from Ford’s film won BEST ACTOR honors. A SINGLE MAN came out of the Toronto Festival with TIFF’s largest deal as the Weinstein Co. paid a few million dollars to secure U.S. distribution rights for Ford’s directorial debut.

STATEMENT from director LEE DANIELS on winning the CADILLAC PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD for PRECIOUS at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival

“I like to dedicate this award to Cameron Bailey. Cameron your support of me and belief in my work from the beginning of the The Woodsman, Shadowboxer and now Precious is unparalleled. For that, I give you my fullest gratitude. I wish I could be there myself to accept the award on behalf of the film but I just landed in San Sebastian, Spain and I’m on the way for the films premiere here in a few hours. I can’t begin to express my gratitude. The audience award holds such an important meaning. I made this film for every person out there who ever looked in the mirror and felt unsure about the person looking back. This is not an art film for a select few. This is a movie that everybody can relate to. This film is for all precious girls and for everyone who has a little precious on the inside. Thank you so much, I am so honoured with this award there is nothing more special then being honoured by the public, by my peers. Again, I send heartfelt thanks to Maple Pictures and Lionsgate and somebody I forgot to thank at our premiere – a friend, an ally, a mentor, our co-executive producer Simone Sheffield. Thank you everyone.” – LEE DANIELS

Cadillac People’s Choice Award celebrates the best in film from TIFF – now expanded in 2009 for Documentary and Midnight Madness categories

The 34th edition of the Toronto International Film Festival brings about important change to the Cadillac People’s Choice Award. In addition to the main feature award (Slumdog Millionaire won last year) for 2009, there will be new Cadillac People’s Choice Awards presented in separate documentary and Midnight Madness categories. The awards are chosen by audiences through a voting process that takes place at screenings throughout the Festival.

TIFF’s Real to Reel program that showcases the documentaries has some especially thought provoking films this year. Early favorites might be Chris Smith’s COLLAPSE. A candid look at the media empire of Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi in VIDEOCRACY has been stirring buzz. We also hear great things about WAKING SLEEPING BEAUTY, an insiders look at the Disney animation empire that recently wowed Telluride Film Festival audiences.

A Cadillac People’s Choice Award will also be presented to favorite Midnight Madness feature. An early favorite in this category could be the already much talked about JENNIFER’S BODY, featuring a demonically possessed Megan Fox and written by Oscar winning Juno scribe, Diablo Cody. But vampires from another Midnight Madness feature, DAYBREAKERS, led by Ethan Hawke could give JB a run. And of course, there are still eight other films in the Midnight Madness program for consideration.

One thing for sure, competition for the Cadillac People’s Choice Awards will be tight. We’ll just have to wait and see what the TIFF audiences decide when the awards are presented on September 19th.