Tiff Long Take

This week on TIFF Long Take, Rob and Geoff sit down with director and screenwriter Jason Reitman. Although only 40 years old, Reitman already seems like a seasoned veteran in Hollywood, with four Oscar nominations to his name as well an impressive filmography of critical and commercial successes like 'Juno', 'Up in the Air', and 'Young Adult'. His latest film, 'Tully', starring Charlize Theron and Mackenzie Davis is in theaters now. Reitman talks about his unglamorous beginnings in filmmaking, the unlikely benefactors of his first movie, 'Thank You For Smoking', and his frequent collaborations with screenwriter Diablo Cody. He also talks about his success casting relatively unknown actors like Ellen Page and Anna Kendrick, why he continues to pursue theatrical distribution rather than going the Netflix route, and who he would cast in hypothetical remakes of 'Jaws', 'Thelma and Louise', and 'Harold and Maude'.  

This week on TIFF Long Take, Rob and Geoff sit down with celebrated director Andrew Haigh. Over the last decade Haigh has established himself as one of the most daring new filmmakers in the industry, writing and directing films 'Weekend', and '45 Years', as well as creating the HBO series 'Looking'. His latest film, 'Lean on Pete', was released earlier this month to critical acclaim. Haigh discusses his early struggles as a filmmaker, why he prioritizes creative control over a higher budget, and what the decline of the “mid-budget film” means for filmmakers at his level. He also talks about why, to this point, he’s only directed his own scripts, what attracted him to ‘Lean on Pete’, and how he approaches working with a great young actor like Charlie Plummer.

Last month, the Chilean film 'A Fantastic Woman' won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and made history as the first Oscar-winning film with a transgender performer in the lead. Now transgender activists in Chile are hoping to use the film’s success to push forward a 2013 bill that would allow transgender people to legally change their names and gender marker on official documents. To get the full story, Rob and Geoff speak with Isabel Amor, Director of Education at Iguales Chile. Amor discusses the history of transgender rights in Chile, the importance of the gender identity bill, and how the international success of A Fantastic Woman has helped accelerate her institution’s mission. She also talks about the significance of A Fantastic Woman being broadcast on public television in Chile, why the film’s Oscar win gives a new significance to award shows, and why a documentary on the same subject likely wouldn’t have had the same impact.

This week on TIFF Long Take, Rob and Geoff sit down with celebrated character actor and filmmaker Steve Buscemi. Although his name rarely appears at the top of the credits, Buscemi has gained a level of recognition comparable to most A-List actors, with iconic roles in films like Reservoir Dogs, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, and Ghost World. He can also be seen in Lean on Pete and The Death of Stalin, two of this year’s most acclaimed new films. Buscemi talks about his early days in New York City's East Village theatre scene, why it’s important for him to balance independent work with more commercial films, and how he managed to form partnerships with filmmakers like the Coen Brothers. He also talks about his approach in working with young actors, what his work as a director has taught him about acting, and what he thinks is the best show currently on television.

This week on TIFF Long Take, Geoff chats with social activist and founder of the famous #OscarsSoWhite movement, April Reign. Reign has recently started a new project, Akuarel;  a digital database for minorities seeking work in Hollywood and other creative industries. Reign talks about how she started an online movement completely by accident, how the mission of #OscarsSoWhite has evolved over the last three years, how she and her campaign have navigated the darker side of Twitter. She also discusses the problem with thinking #OscarsSoWhite accomplished its mission with Moonlight’s Best Picture win, why the hashtag has become such a powerful tool for social movements, and why she saw the need for a tool like ‘Akuarel’.

This week on TIFF Long Take, Rob and Geoff sat down with veteran Canadian film producer J. Miles Dale, who recently brought a Best Picture Oscar home to Toronto for his work on The Shape of Water. Even though the movie is not typically viewed as a “Canadian film,” Dale argues that its success has been a watershed moment for our national cinema, given that it was filmed in Toronto and was made by a largely Canadian crew. Dale discusses the unique challenges of making Hollywood films in Canada, why he thinks The Shape of Water’s success has been so significant for the Canadian film industry, and why some Canadians feel the need to draw a line in sand when it comes to what is, and what is not, Canadian. He also talks about his relationship with Guillermo del Toro, the incredible homegrown talent working in the industry, and how his professional life has changed after winning an Oscar.

Editing is one of the most integral parts of any film, yet a good editor often doesn’t receive the level of recognition that a director, cinematographer, or composer would. To take a closer look at the often unappreciated craft Rob and Geoff sit down with one of the best film editors working today, Tatiana S. Riegel. Over her 30 year career Riegel has worked on a number of beloved films including Pulp Fiction, There Will Be Blood, and Lars and The Real Girl, and recently won an Independent Spirit Award and was nominated for an Oscar for editing I, Tonya. Riegel talks about how she fell into the business of editing, her collaborations with filmmakers like Quentin Tarantino and Craig Gillespie, and why being a successful editor comes down to being able to navigate a lot of very different personalities. She also discusses why audience screenings are so crucial to her job, and why, despite a large disparity, women have historically had more opportunities in the field editing than they have in other disciplines li

One of the most interesting success stories in Hollywood this decade has been the meteoric rise of A24. The upstart distributor has built a reputation as one the film industry’s top tastemakers, releasing films like Lady Bird, Ex Machina, Room, The Witch, and a little film called Moonlight. To get the story of how A24 went from nonexistence to Best Picture status in just five years, Rob and Geoff speak with New York Times reporter Brooks Barnes. Barnes discusses A24’s origin story, how its media-shy founders have cultivated a sense of mystery around the company, and how their rivals, including Annapurna, Blumhouse, and Neon, are also disrupting the film business. He also talks about how A24 runs more like a Silicon Valley startup than a traditional film distributor, their upcoming forays into television, and why some in Hollywood think the company might be overrated.

This week on TIFF Long Take, Rob and Geoff chat with Katey Rich and Richard Lawson, the hosts of Vanity Fair’s 'Little Gold Men' podcast, about the biggest winners, surprises, and storylines coming out of the 90th Academy Awards. Rich and Lawson chat about the thrill of seeing James Ivory and Jordan Peele step to the podium, the agony of watching Lady Bird go home empty handed, and whether the Oscar’s preferential ballot voting method is leading to good results. They also talk about the uphill battle Black Panther has to get a nomination next year, why the Oscars’ ratings continue to fall year after year, and what films they think could sneak into the best picture race in 2019.

This week on TIFF Long Take, Rob sits down with renowned screenwriter and director, Alex Garland. Over the last 20 years, Garland’s films, including 28 Days Later, Sunshine, and Ex Machina, have helped him stand out as a fresh voice in the crowded landscape of modern science fiction. His latest film, Annihilation, starring Natalie Portman and Oscar Isaac, and adapted from Jeff Vandermeer’s best selling novel, is in theaters now. Garland discusses how J.G. Ballard and Stanley Kubrick got him hooked on science fiction, how he comes up with and researches such complex ideas, and why he doesn’t see his films as prescient, but rather catching up with the obvious. He also talks about his unconventional approach to adapting Annihilation, how he conceived of the legendary Ex Machina dance scene, and which film in his catalogue he wishes he’d done differently.

Throughout the 80’s, 90’s and early 2000’s, sports movies were one of Hollywood’s most celebrated and bankable genres. Recently though, things seem to have changed. Of the top 50 grossing sports movies of all-time, only 3 have come in this decade with Creed, The Fighter, and 42 barely cracking the list. So what’s going on? Have the quality of sports movies declined? Are studio’s making less of them? Or have audience tastes just changed? To figure it out, Rob sits down with The Ringer’s Adam Nayman. Nayman discusses how the definition of a “sports film” has evolved over the years, why the genre has seen such a steep decline this decade despite hitting with the critics, and why making more baseball and boxing movies probably isn’t the answer. He also talks about how sports documentaries have thrived in the place of narrative sports films, how sports movies have likely been a casualty of the decline of the mid-budget film, and which director he would like to see revitalize the genre.

As much as we love to argue about their relevance, there’s no denying that an Academy Award is still the height of prestige in the film industry. But is winning an Oscar more about politics then merit? Over the last 40 year’s studios have increasingly relied on incredibly expensive, and often quite nasty, campaigns to get their film’s a statue. To get the story the evolution of Oscar campaigns, Rob and Geoff talk to Screen Rant’s Kayleigh Donaldson. Donaldson talks about how the term “Oscar bait” originated, how Michael Cimino’s now classic film The Deer Hunter defined the modern Oscar campaign, and the unfortunate legacy of Harvey Weinstein and Miramax’s smear campaigns. She also discusses what an Oscar means to the bottom line of a film in 2018, why, despite their massive marketing budgets, superhero films have not been able to get in the academy’s good graces, and why Get Out may have run this year’s most effective campaign.

Last week marked the release of the contentious Bollywood film Padmaavat. The lavish epic about a Hindu queen, Padmavati, is one of the most expensive Bollywood films ever, but is not without its detractors, with many claiming the film is historically inaccurate and disrespectful. Rajput and Hindu extremists who oppose the film attacked Padmaavat’s crew while it was in production, vandalised theaters screening the film, and offered a bounty to behead director and lead actress. To make sense of the outrage surrounding Padmaavat, Rob and Geoff sit down with Dilani Rabindran, founder of Viewfinder Film Consulting, and programmer at Reel Asian Film Fest. Rabindran walks them through Padmaavat’s long and troubled history, explains the furor surrounding its plot and themes, and questions if the controversy surround the film has helped it gain a wider audience. She also breaks down the concessions the film had to make to be cleared by the censor boards in India, and how the film has helped spark a debate on the limi

Since its start in 1978, The Sundance Film Festival has served as both an exhibition for the best independently produced films from around the world, and, as the first major film festival of the year, an early predictor of the year’s movie trends. To get the story of the films and themes that shaped this year’s festival, Rob and Geoff speak with IndieWire’s Senior Film Critic, David Ehrlich, who just finished up a week in Park City. Ehrlich talks about the most buzzed about films from this year’s slate (including Josephine Decker's Madeline's Madeline, Boots Riley’s Sorry to Bother You, and Jennifer Fox’s The Tale), why the absence of an “early awards frontrunner” isn’t a bad thing, and Netflix and Amazon’s quiet week. He also discusses female filmmakers dominating the festival’s major awards, and his favourite films from his year’s covering Sundance.

Since the early 1980s, the Bechdel-Wallace test (often just called “The Bechdel Test”) has helped call attention to the gender imbalance in Hollywood by asking two simple questions of a film: Does it have at least two named female characters? And do those characters have at least one conversation that is not about a man? But nearly 40 years since its creation, is the test in need of a successor that could better influence Hollywood’s decision makers? To find out Rob and Geoff speak with Walt Hickey, Ella Koeze, Rachael Dottle of FiveThirtyEight.com. The three recently published a study where they interviewed a number of women writers, directors, actresses and producers, and asked them what they thought the next Bechdel Test should be. They then ran these new tests on the top 50 films of 2016 to see how they stacked up. Hickey, Koeze and Dottle discuss how the opinion of the Bechdel test has evolved since 1980, why the time seemed right to find a replacement for the test, and the glaring need for female repres

This week, on a very special live episode of TIFF Long Take, Rob and Geoff sit down with Canadian director Jeremy Podeswa. In his home country, Podeswa is likely best known for his celebrated independent films The Five Senses and Fugitive Pieces, but across the globe he’s quickly gaining notoriety as one of television’s most prolific and skillful directors — with episodes of Game of Thrones, The Walking Dead, and The Handmaid’s Tale among his many credits. Podeswa talks about how the perception of working in television has changed in the last 30 years, how he found himself directing TV after years of trying to make his own films, and why he doesn’t see much of a difference between film and television anymore. He also discusses how to push things forward creatively while still being respectful to the history and vision of the show on which you’re working, how he got involved in the world of Game of Thrones, and how to direct actors, like Peter Dinklage, who have been playing the same role for years.

When it comes to contending in Hollywood, Canadian actors have always punched above their weight. But for every Ryan Gosling, Tatiana Maslany, or Rachel McAdams, there’s a Paul Gross, a Mary Walsh, or a Gordon Pinsent — actors who have, for the most part, forgone a career in the US and instead made names for themselves within the Canadian film and television scene. It makes us wonder: which career path should Canadian artists be following? To get the answer, Rob and Geoff sit down with an actor who has a foot in both camps, Maxim Roy. Maxim is well known amongst Canadians for 19-2, Allure, and Les Boys, but has also built a career south of the border with roles in Shadowhunters and The Factory. The three discuss why so many Québécois actors are reluctant to work outside their home province, what the anglophone-Canadian film industry could learn from the francophone industry, and if star Canadian directors like Denis Villeneuve and Jean-Marc Vallée should be making more of an effort to cast Canadian talent. Th

This week on TIFF Long Take, Rob and Geoff put 2017 in the rearview mirror and look ahead to the films, TV shows, events, and conversations that they’re most intrigued by in the coming year. Joining them to discuss are film critic for The Ringer K. Austin Collins and TIFF Programmer Kiva Reardon. The four talk about their rabid anticipation for Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther and Alex Garland’s Annihilation, the timeless brilliance of Agnes Varda, and what the hell we can expect from Clint Eastwood’s The 15:17 to Paris. They also get excited for unlikely genre films from Claire Denis and Luca Guadagnino, wonder what changes Hollywood will make after a year of exposed abuse and harassment, and question where HBO will go after Game of Thrones.

On their final episode of the year, Rob and Geoff look back on a sometimes unreal year in film and television, and reflect on the trends and themes that shaped the industry by revisiting some of their favourite TIFF Long Take conversations from 2017. Excerpts include: IndieWire’s Anne Thompson on the death of the old studio system (2:10); Variety’s Owen Gleiberman on Netflix and Amazon’s negative reception at Cannes (6:40); Vanity Fair’s Katey Rich, Mike Hogan, and Richard Lawson on how the Oscars view streaming services (9:25) Franklin Leonard on the importance of Moonlight (14:50) BFI Southbank’s Gaylene Gould on reframing the context of classic films (17:00); Los Angeles Times’ Tre’vell Anderson on why are studios are reluctant to finance diverse films (20:50); IndieWire’s Tom Bruggeman on what film studios could learn from the Mayweather vs. McGregor fight (24:45); The Ringer’s Adam Nayman on franchise fatigue and the decline of Summer blockbusters (29:00); Jason Blum on the economics of the genre films

On this episode of TIFF Long Take, Rob and Geoff chat with Diana Elbaum, prolific Belgian producer and founder of Entre Chien et Loup. She is one of the leading advocates of international co-productions, a model that has led to a number of recent Canadian successes like Room and Brooklyn (both co-pros with Ireland). In this episode, Elbaum explains why being a producer is not the glamorous life it’s made out to be, and how co-productions help smaller countries create thriving film scenes while allowing filmmakers to make more ambitious movies on limited budgets. She also discusses the headaches that come with co-producing, and how the declining popularity of European cinema amongst North American audiences has changed her job.