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By the 1990s, TIFF became known as a key launching pad for Oscar contenders. Films like ‘American Beauty’ (1999, dir. Sam Mendes) and ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ (2008, dir. Danny Boyle) made their premieres at TIFF and went on to win major Academy Awards. 2010 saw the opening of the TIFF Bell Lightbox, a year-round venue in downtown Toronto that serves as the festival’s headquarters with state-of-the-art cinemas, galleries, and educational spaces, expanding TIFF’s role beyond the festival dates.
The 49th edition began on September 5 2024 and Cooke lenses feature across multiple strands of the festival.
In the Centrepiece strand ‘Crocodile Tears’ tells the story of an overbearing mother who lives with her son in a secluded crocodile farm and spirals out of control when her son sees the outside world and falls for a girl for the first time. The film is directed by Tumpal Tampubolon with cinematography by Teck Siang Lim who used Cooke Anamorphic/i FF SF lenses paired with an Alexa Mini LF.
“Given the vast range of Southeast Asian skin tones, it was crucial to accurately represent our actors’ skin tones, reflecting their social background, occupations, and origins in the film. The warm contrast of the Cooke optics beautifully captured the delicate nuances of these varying skin tones.”
‘Jane Austen Wrecked my Life’ is also in the festival’s Centrepiece strand and is director Laura Piani’s charming and witty debut about an aspiring author looking to get more out of life who takes up a writing residency and finds herself in the sort of romantic entanglements that could come from the pages of a Jane Austen novel. Cinematography is by Pierre Mazoyer on the historical Cooke Varotal 20-100 5:1 Zoom with anamorphic modification.
Continuing in the Centrepiece Strand is chaotic family dramedy ‘Front Row’ about feuding matriarchs behaving badly at the beach. Shot on Cooke Panchro/i Classic lenses by Mohamed Tayeb Laggoune with direction from Merzak Allouache.
‘Measures for a Funeral’ rounds out the Centrepiece Strand shot on Cooke and brilliantly spotlights a young academic’s run towards one woman — acclaimed early 20th-century Canadian violinist Kathleen Parlow — as she simultaneously flees from another, her failed musician mother. Directed by Sofia Bohdanowicz with cinematography by Nikolay Michaylov the film was shot on rehoused Cooke Speed Panchro S2s.
“The Panchros offered a perfect combination of character and fidelity that the other lenses we tested couldn’t produce while paired with a digital sensor. This was important for us because the focus of this film is Audrey, who is often framed in the centre, but the world around her seems to be in complete chaos. These lenses really brought out this feeling.”
In the Gala strand ‘Superboys of Malegoan’ is an uplifting story that chronicles the life of Nasir Shaikh, whose no-budget, community-sourced movies turned his hometown into an unlikely dream factory. Reema Kagti directs and Swapnil S. Sonawane, ISC shoots on Cooke S5/i Primes.
Rounding out the Gala strand is ‘Will & Harper’. This heartfelt documentary from director Josh Greenbaum follows Saturday Night Live alumni and close friends Will Ferrell and Harper Steele as they traverse the US by car following Steele’s announcement of her transition. Cinematographer Zoe White used Cooke Panchros and the Varotal 20-100 5:1 zoom.
“There’s a lovely, nostalgic feeling that the Panchros bring, and they’re very small and lightweight, so they were the perfect lenses for all the different applications and environments we were expecting to encounter while bringing a soft, cinematic look to the story.”
In the Industry Selects strand is ‘Monsieur Aznavour’ which depicts the rise and fall of one of the most immortal singers of all time. With direction by Grand Corps Malade & Mehdi Idir and cinematography by Brecht Goyvaerts SBC who used both Cooke S7/i and Anamorphic/i S35 SF lenses.
In the Special Presentations strand is ‘Sketch’. When a young girl’s peculiar drawings come to life, leaving a wake of chaos and crayon dust, a grieving family must band together to fight them off. Seth Worley directs with cinematography from Megan Stacey who used Cooke Anamorphic/i S35 lenses for this feature debut reminiscent of classics like Gremlins, Jumanji, and The Goonies.
“The Cooke Anamorphic/i S35s were perfect for us because they have all the modern luxuries of a new set of anamorphics but are designed with the softness, warmth and subtle distortion of an older set of lenses. They also have Cooke’s /i Technology which enables the lenses to communicate with the camera and record important lens data. This allowed us to easily give our VFX and post team much more information about our focus and t/stop.”
‘Went Up The Hill’ is also in the Special Presentations strand. Dacre Montgomery (Stranger Things) and Vicky Krieps (The Dead Don’t Hurt) deliver haunting performances in Samuel Van Grinsven’s atmospheric ghost story that explores the legacy of loss and dark family secrets. Cinematographer Tyson Perkins used rehouse Cooke Speed Panchro S2s.
“Amongst about 12 different sets we looked at, the vintage Cooke Panchro S2 set that we looked were the immediate winner. They have a beautiful softness in the centre and a wonderful, chaotic out of focus fall off that looked stunning in the aspect we ended up choosing, 1:66:1.”
Also in Special Presentations is the previously mentioned ‘All We Imagine As Light’ shot on the Cooke S4/i lenses by cinematographer Ranabir Das who Cooke spoke to after the film picked up the Grand Prix at Cannes.
Finally in Special Presentations is ‘The Salt Path’. After losing their home and livelihood, a middle-aged couple impulsively set out on a 630-mile walk along the southwest English coast, a walk complicated to no small degree by the recent diagnosis of a terminal neurodegenerative disease. Marianne Elliott directs with cinematography by Hélène Louvart who shot on S4/i Primes “to get some softness in the skin tones.”
In the Discovery strand is ‘The Courageous’ director Jasmin Gordon’s poignant and impeccably crafted feature film debut which rattles our perceptions of motherhood and moral integrity with its intimate and complex portrait of a sort of woman who is rarely depicted. Cinematographer Andi Widmer opted for a soft, warm image with the Cooke Pancho/i Classic S35 Lenses. “They have a soft sharpness, are pleasantly warm and their bokeh is finely divided and differentiated, making the foliage of the omnipresent trees tangible without playing it into the foreground.”
Also in Discovery is ‘The Quiet Ones’ shot with Cooke S4/i primes by Adam Wallensten. Based on the true story of Denmark’s biggest-ever robbery, director Frederik Louis Hviid’s heist thriller highlights the steely professionalism of men operating outside the law.
Finally in Discovery is ‘U Are the Universe’ a story set in space in the near future. Pavlo Ostrikov directs with cinematographer Nikita Kuzmenko opting for the Cooke S4/i Primes paired with the Alexa Mini which offered “an ideal balance between a vintage look and a modern feel.”
Cooke are proud to be a part of these varied and powerful films – thank you to all the filmmakers involved for #shootingoncooke
