Mike Flanagan’s The Life Of Chuck starring Tom Hiddleston is this year’s surprise winner of Toronto International Film Festival’s 2024 TIFF People’s Choice Award, a historically reliable bellwether of an Oscar nomination.
Over a sample pool of the last 15 years, all but one People’s Choice winner has gone on to garner a best picture Oscar nomination, and several – like 12 Years A Slave, Green Book and The King’s Speech – have won the top prize at the Academy Awards.
Yet The Life Of Chuck presents an anomaly – it currently lacks a US distributor. Buyers had been circling since the world premiere in Toronto and the question is, will someone snap it up and if so, can they turn it into a genuine awards season contender?
The generally well-reviewed adaptation of the Stephen King novella is described as a life-affirming three chapters in the life of an ordinary man. WME Independent and FilmNation represent North American and international sales, respectively.
Jacques Audiard’s Emilia Pérez starring the quartet of Cannes best actress winners Zoe Saldana, Karla Sofía Gascón, Selena Gomez, and Adriana Paz was the first runner-up and Sean Baker’s Palme d’Or winner Anora was second runner-up.
Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance starring Demi Moore won the TIFF People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award, and Mike Downie’s The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal earned documentary honours. All features and series in TIFF’s official selection were eligible for the awards, presented by Rogers.
Full list of TIFF winners:
PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS
People’s Choice Award
The Life Of Chuck (USA), dir. Mike Flanagan
First runner-up: Emilia Pérez (Fr-USA-Mex), dir. Jacques Audiard
Second runner-up: Anora (USA), dir. Sean Baker
People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award
The Substance (UK-USA-Fr), dir. Coralie Fargeat
First runner-up: Dead Talents Society (Tai), dir. John Hsu
Second runner-up: Friendship (USA), dir. Andrew DeYoung
People’s Choice Documentary Award
The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal (Can), dir. Mike Downie
First runner-up: Will & Harper (USA), dir. Josh Greenbaum
Second runner-up: Your Tomorrow (Can), dir. Ali Weinstein
SHORT CUTS AWARDS
Short Cuts Award for Best International Film
Deck 5B (Swe), dir. Malin Ingrid Johansson
Honourable Mention: Quota (Neth), dirs. Job Roggeveen, Joris Oprins, Marieke Blaauw
Short Cuts Award for Best Canadian Film
Are You Scared To Be Yourself Because You Think That You Might Fail? (Can), dir. Bec Pecaut
FIPRESCI AWARD
Mother Mother (Som), dir. K’naan Warsame
NETPAC AWARD
Presented by the Network for the Promotion of Asian Pacific Cinema recognising films from the Asian and Pacific regions.
The Last Of The Sea Women (USA), dir. Sue Kim
BEST CANADIAN DISCOVERY AWARD
Returning after a hiatus since 2019, the renamed award celebrates a first or second feature by an emerging filmmaker who contribute to enriching the Canadian film landscape. The winner receives a C$10,000 cash prize.
Universal Language (Can), dir. Matthew Rankin
Honourable Mention: You Are Not Alone (Can), dirs. Marie-Hélène Viens, Philippe Lupien
BEST CANADIAN FEATURE FILM AWARD PRESENTED BY CANADA GOOSE
All Canadian feature films in Official Selection excluding first or second features were considered. The winning filmmaker receives a C$10,000 cash prize.
Shepherds (Can), dir. Sophie Deraspe
PLATFORM COMPETITION AWARD
The winner receives a C$20,000 cash prize.
They Will Be Dust (Sp-It-Swi), dir. Carlos Marques-Marcet
Honourable Mention: Daughter’s Daughter (Tai), dir. Huang Xi
On Sunday 8 the followingw ere honoured during the TIFF 2024 Tribute Awards:
- Amy Adams: TIFF Tribute Performer Award
- Angelina Jolie: TIFF Tribute Award in Impact Media
- Cate Blanchett: TIFF Share Her Journey Groundbreaker Award
- Clément Ducol & Camille: TIFF Variety Artisan Award
- David Cronenberg: TIFF Norman Jewison Career Achievement
- Durga Chew-Bose: TIFF Emerging Talent Award
- Jharrel Jerome: TIFF Tribute Performer Award
- Mike Leigh: TIFF Ebert Director Award
- Zhao Tao: TIFF Special Tribute Award
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