Toronto Film Festival Weighing Onsite, Digital Options for September Event

Toronto's Bell Lightbox cinema may be on coronavirus lockown, but the festival staff is busy planning a hybrid version of the 2020 edition.

By Andreas Wiseman

The Coronavirus outbreak has put a halt to almost everything around the world. As countries have resorted to stricter rules for curbing the entire situation and combating the deadly virus, multiple events and occasions have been cancelled to date.

The Venice Film Festival will go ahead as planned in September, with organizers promising to defy the threat of the coronavirus pandemic.

Various filmmakers across the world look forward to showcasing their content at the highly anticipated Cannes Film Festival every year. This year too, the things were going as planned till the organisers decided to delay the event amid the ongoing Coronavirus Pandemic.

The Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday abandoned plans for a postponed 2020 edition in June or July but declined to give up entirely, saying it will explore other options.

Cannes Film Festival bosses are committed to staging an event to mark 2020 once the coronavirus restrictions have been relaxed, but they insist any gathering will not look like the typical South of France celebration.

«What are next year's Oscars going to look like?» It's a question the industry, awards forecasters and armchair pundits alike have been wondering as release schedules are scuttled and film festivals are canned amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

«What are next year's Oscars going to look like?» It's a question the industry, awards forecasters and armchair pundits alike have been wondering as release schedules are scuttled and film festivals are canned amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The Cannes International Film Festival, previously postponed due to the novel coronavirus, said Tuesday that it won't take place in its originally planned form, but is still exploring options for a 2020 edition. The organizers of the world's most prestigious film festival didn't confirm new dates for the 73rd Cannes Film Festival.

PARIS — The Cannes Film Festival will not take place this year in “its original form” due to the coronavirus pandemic but organizers said they continued to review options for the event.

By Elsa Keslassy

By Andreas Wiseman

By Kaleem Aftab

By Nick Vivarelli

Self-isolating Canadians are being invited to grab their popcorn and view virtual chats with Hollywood stars led by Toronto Film Festival artistic director Cameron Bailey, followed by movie screenings on the Crave streaming service. As TIFF joins other major film festivals in moving online during the coronavirus pandemic, Bailey, who is also festival co-head, will tonight launch a Stay-at-Home Cinema offering by chatting via Instagram Live @tiff_net with Homeland star Mandy Patinkin.

The Palais des Festivals, the main complex used for the Cannes Film Festival each year has been repurposed to shelter the homeless during the coronavirus outbreak that has taken hold of most countries around the globe. The huge centre has reportedly opened its doors to around 50-70 homeless people per night in the coastal city in the south of France. It reportedly opened its doors last Friday.

In today’s film news roundup, Canada’s largest LGBTQ film festival gets postponed, the commercial industry’s health plan addresses the coronavirus pandemic and Margaret Qualley’s “A Head Full of Ghosts” finds a home.

The 28th edition of the Raindance Film Festival will take place in London from Oct. 28 through Nov. 7. this year.