by Rosalie Kicks, Old Sport and Jaime Davis, The Fixer

Welcome to the latest edition of Hot Takes, in which MJ’s Rosalie and Jaime shout into the void about the latest movie thing that’s got them all in a tizzy. Today’s topic: with continued uncertainty in the wake of COVID-19, many film festivals explore moving online. Will you log on or tune out?

Rosalie Kicks, Old Sport

It feels like a million years ago that I attended the 2020 Sundance film festival. Packed in queues like sardines, elbow to elbow to fellow cinephiles. It was a time before masks, when handshakes were a plenty and hugs were given out like candy.

Alright, I gotta be honest… not everything about this whole pandemic thing has been completely terrible. Despite the whole work from home thing (at least I’m working… but I much prefer the paperwork to be left at the office) I have been enjoying my time at home with my films. It is so lovely to just be steps away from the video store that Best Boy and I have created in our basement. I am very much an introvert. More accurately, a sweaty introverted creature of sorts. On numerous occasions, I have been informed that upon clutching my hand ,it left the person feeling as if they just grasped a dead fish. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that I’m one of those chaps that is secretly hoping and pining that even after this whole thing blows over the following still stands: the shaking of hands never returns, warm embraces are a thing of the past and we continue to maintain a six-foot distance from one another. The last request would be particularly pleasant in the cinema.

To the shock of no one, I am not a fan of people… The only time I am willing to tolerate a packed theater is during a film festival experience. When attending a festival, there is often no choice of seating, you take what you can get – and frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn where I sit. I love commiserating with fellow film fans, when that projector light hits the silver screen I forget all about my fellow breathers. In my normal movie theater viewing habits, I select the end seat. It not only leaves the opportunity to have one person beside me, but it provides a quick exit when/if needed. When and if cinemas re-open, I will gladly embrace the distance from other patrons. The less people, the less distraction. Which is why I have always been a matinee gal. Before the pandemic hit, Benjamin and I had our Saturday ritual of attending a feature in the early hours and then having lunch (aka early bird dinner – Ben and I have vintage bones) at our favorite diner which is an activity I miss dearly.

As much as I do love being home and having access to my film collection, there is something about seeing a movie in the cinema that can’t be replicated; especially at a film fest. The feeling of watching a flick in the festival atmosphere is an experience in moviegoing that I wish all to have. I am so thankful that MJ’s Fixer, my film pal Jaime Davis invited Best Boy and I to tag along with her to the Toronto Film Festival in 2017. It literally changed my life. Never in my wildest dreams did I think watching cinema in a packed theater could be so thrilling! When I am in film fest mode, something happens to me. I become more outgoing, energetic, dare I say… bubbly! I become a living, breathing piece of film. The wind blowing through my perfs makes me feel aliveeeeeeeee. I strut to each upcoming showtime grasping my cane with a pep in my step.

Word on the street is that with social distancing being en vogue, film festivals have no choice but to turn to the digital world (said in the tune of Madonna’s “Material Girl”). And I feel like the word “digital” really means distraction.

To imagine TIFF going digital welllll… I understand why and obviously totally get it, but I ain’t looking forward to it. In the theater setting my mobile device is placed in airplane mode and I succumb to the cinema. At home when watching from my sofa there are two occasions that I will submit to the movie completely: silent and foreign film watching. Unfortunately, it is just a fact of life that when viewing from the comfort of my abode, I am rarely free of all hand-held devices. Additionally, between dogs barking, toddlers toddling next-door or the mystery sounds from outdoors, it is hard to keep my eyes and ears from wandering. Sure, I will most likely try to catch some of the TIFF flicks if they go digital, but I can already predict my attention span shall be low. I’m sure my mind will be in other places – like thinking about 2021 and my return to the darkened cinema.

There is something about being able to attend a film fest in person – a magic in the air. Being able to watch a movie simultaneously with one of your favorite filmmakers and being around film geeks truly get my blood pumping. Heck, even looking straight into Sebastian Stan’s eyes -did you ever notice how he acts with his eyes?- that one year gave my heart a flutter. Silliness aside, I truly believe that the digital experience will lack the razzle dazzle one feels when in attendance. It was attending the fest that inspired me to continue my path as a filmmaker. To witness someone representing their work and showing that dreams come true is inspiring. I hope to one day know the feeling a filmmaker has of being at TIFF with their film… I bet it is incredibly electrifying. With the digital experience, I think it will be hard to replicate the mystique the fest typically exudes when I am sitting in sweatpants that have not been washed for two weeks and throwing back a White Claw.

Jaime Davis, The Fixer

I’ve only been lucky enough to attend a few film festivals, but the key to my enjoyment is in the word “attend.” For me, it’s all about being around people: fellow film-goers, talent gushing about their films (or watching others’ films), creatives and industry folks working rooms and parties. Yeah, of course I’m there first and foremost for the movies, but I love watching a new film at a festival with people - the audience is typically 30 times more amped than they would be at your local AMC, Regal or independent theater on any given night. There’s a hush over the crowd while the film plays, a sense of camaraderie during funny moments or sad moments or scary moments. After the film, you feel an immediate kinship with everyone you watched with, a sense of community with relative strangers from all over who love movies, too.

So far, the pandemic has disrupted the heavy hitters of film fests, most notably the Beijing International Film Festival, Tribeca, and Cannes. Next up on the slate are Karlovy Vary, Locarno, Venice, Telluride, and my beloved Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Beijing, scheduled to run in April, is moving completely online during a May holiday in China, while Locarno announced recently they have cancelled altogether and aren’t going digital. Many others, including TIFF, are weighing their options. I’ve attended TIFF about seven or eight times - Toronto is one of my favorite cities and my soon-to-be-home, so this year I was feeling especially warm and fuzzy towards attending again. But that may not come to be. I love the festival and the friendly attendees and the stars and the freebies and the hot dog cart on the corner of John and King Street W and the movieesssss, so I admit I’m sad that we may not be able to do it this year. I totally understand why, though - it’s more important that people are safe than it is for me to see 10 movies in two days and eat my share of Malteasers and cheap veggie dogs. I will still probably tune in to whatever TIFF decides to do, but I’ll be blissfully looking forward to whatever 2021 holds for movies and in-person festivals, and for all of us as we hopefully are able to move on from this time.

P.S. TIFF is running some really fun Stay-At-Home Cinema programming. For more info check out their website and follow them on Instagram and Twitter.