Toronto: ‘La La Land’ Wins TIFF’s People’s Choice Award; Plus All Other Award Winners Announced
The Toronto International Film Festival has closed out its annual ten-day run with a star-studded awards brunch, which featured the announcement of the festival’s various awards and prizes. Chief among them is the People’s Choice Award, TIFF’s most prestigious award and one chosen by audience members themselves (fans of the various films could log their vote either by depositing their ticket stubs in voting boxes available post-screening, or by voting online on the official TIFF app).
This year’s winner is Damien Chazelle’s “La La Land,” starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone. You can read our full review of the film here. Runner-ups included “Lion” and “Queen of Katwe.”
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Often viewed as a harbinger of awards season glory, the TIFF People’s Choice Award winner has typically continued on to major Oscar attention. Since 2008, every single People’s Choice Award winner, save for 2011 winner “Where Do We Go Now?,” has been nominated for Best Picture. Of those titles, three — including “Slumdog Millionaire,” “The King’s Speech” and “12 Years a Slave” — have ultimately won the Oscar for Best Picture. Since TIFF’s creation in 1976, five People’s Choice Award winners have gone on to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards.
Last year’s People’s Choice Award winner was “Room,” which went on to be nominated for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay and won Brie Larson her very first Oscar for Best Actress.
Other People’s Choice winners from this year include Ben Wheatley’s “Free Fire” for Midnight Madness and for Raoul Peck’s “I Am Not Your Negro” for Documentary.
Check out the full list of TIFF winners below:
People’s Choice Award: “La La Land,” Damien Chazelle
People’s Choice Award For Documentary: “I Am Not Your Negro,” Raoul Peck
People’s Choice Award For Midnight Madness: “Free Fire,” Ben Wheatley
Platform Prize: “Jackie,” Pablo Larrian
Platform Prize, Special Mention: “Hema Hema: Sing Me a Song While I Wait,” Khyentse Norbu
Best Canadian Feature Film: “Those Who Make Revolution Halfway Only Dig Their Own Graves,” Mathieu Denis and Simon Lavoie
Best Canadian First Feature Film: “Old Stone,” Johnny Ma
Prizes of the International Critics (FIPRESCI Prize) for Special Presentations Section: “I Am Not Madame Bovary,” Feng Xiaogang
Prizes of the International Critics (FIPRESCI Prize) for Discovery Section: “Kati Kati,” Mbithi Masya
Dropbox Discovery Programme Filmmakers Award: “Jeffrey,” Yanillys Perez
NETPAC Award For World or International Asian Film Premiere: “In Between,” Maysaloun Hamoud
Best Short Film: “Imago,” Ribay Gutierrez
Best Canadian Short Film: “Mutants,” Alexandre Dostie
This year’s People’s Choice Awards were sponsored by Grolsch.
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