Friday, September 19, 2014

tiff 2014


we had a great time in toronto last week.  it was a whirlwind five days from beginning to end.  we ate well, stayed at a hotel in the center of the city, walked a lot, did some touristy stuff and saw some great movies (and a few celebrity sightings).

it worked out that this trip was the day after our 20th wedding anniversary.  great reason to come along with bobby on his first trip to the film festival. (let's be honest, i wouldn't have missed this for the world.)


we absolutely loved this city.  LOVED! it was clean, and people were nice and we could walk everywhere and it has a subway and lots to do and see and places to eat.  it's funny because in talking with people we know who used to live there we ask, "why did you ever leave?" and the answer was always, "visit in january and you'll know why." ok, maybe too cold for me but we could definitely spend some more warm weather days here.

this was a great moment for bobby in his career. finding a story and producing a movie that made it to the film festival was impressive. and it was so exciting to be a part of something so big.  can i say how proud i am of him?  he worked his way up from an office runner at douglas reuther to becoming a movie producer at furthur films.  it really makes you believe that working hard and being nice to people will pay off.

we only got to see a few movies while we were here.  there were so many movies that we missed.  bobby had an industry pass but he was working most of the weekend.  i had to buy general tickets and those were hard to get or the screenings were not at a convenient time.  but we did manage to see a few.

 boy choir with dustin hoffman.  great film, amazing performance by the lead actor (who we later congratulated when we saw him at our hotel) and written by ben, a screenwriter that is working with bobby on another project.

 whiplash - which was my favorite movie.  the cast and director are pictured above.  it was an intense movie about what it costs to be great. can't wait to take jordan to see it.

this is where i leave you - so funny and screened in this beautiful theater.

 i spent my alone time walking around the festival area and going where the crowds were gathered to see a star step out of the suv.  i caught adam sandler (on video) and jason reitman - pictured above signing autographs.

 people dressed up like movie characters.

the cast of this is where i leave you going into interviews.  we were walking one night and saw stars entering the in style party.  we saw anna kendrick posing for fans and photographers but did not get a good picture of her.

 i scored a seat at the maverick talk with jon stewart while bobby was off coordinating interviews for the film.

he was so funny and genuine talking about his movie rosewater which he wrote and directed.  definitely a highlight to be in the audience for this.  the movie screened after we left toronto.

 but let's face it, the reason we were here and the absolute best moment of the trip was seeing the movie that bobby has worked so hard for on the big screen.  the excitement and nervous energy was palpable.  so many people working to make it a successful event.

michael, jeremy, jb and the tiff interviewer after the screening answering audience questions.

yes, we had reserved seats in the 2,000 seat theater!

sorry no pictures of the intimate after party.  we have to be professional.  but it was fun getting to meet some of the people that bobby spent 3 months with last year.  and i still can't get over talking to michael and him asking me about the kids and school.  he's just a regular guy, right?

i love this picture of bobby watching the director answer questions after a general audience screening.   there were events like this happening all over town.

and here he is with jb after we had drinks at a pub.

in the evening toronto was alive.  people walking everywhere.  great restaurants and atmosphere.  there was rain a downpour one night that had us drenched and running for cover but laughing the entire time.

and there were days that we went back to the hotel in complete exhaustion to skype with the kids and hear about their day. we couldn't wait to get home to them.

of course we went to the top of the cn tower and walked along the glass floor.  not an easy thing to do, especially since i have a serious fear of heights.
the tower was right next to the blue jays' baseball field.  we had hoped to see a game but they didn't play until the night we left.  we also missed going to the hockey museum and taking a tour of the local brewery - although we did have our share of beers.

it was an amazing weekend in an amazing city with an amazing partner.  we are so lucky to have had this opportunity to get away for a few days and celebrate our marriage, to see movies which we love to do and to applaud success which was so worth it.

check out this fun interview for the hollywood reporter.  listen closely at 1:03 when jb mentions bobby's name.

now to wait for the release date...

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