TIFF 2018: The Ultimate Party Guide
There are a lot of movies to see this year at the Toronto International Film Festival — 340, to be exact — but that doesn’t mean it has to be all screenings and no play.
From Thursday’s opening night party for Netflix’s “Outlaw King” to the third annual B.L.A.C.K Ball, as well as Julia Roberts celebrating her film “Ben Is Back” and her new Amazon Prime series “Homecoming,” the fest is packed with cocktail soirees, dinners, and late-night parties.
Here, Variety gives you the ultimate guide to TIFF’s hottest parties…
Thursday, Sept. 6
“Outlaw King” Party: The Netflix film starring Chris Pine, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Elizabeth Pugh opens TIFF, Patria, 10:30 p.m.
“Fahrenheit 11/9” Dinner and Party: Dinner for Michael Moore’s new Donald Trump doc, Peter Pan Bistro, 6 p.m.; Premiere party, Speakeasy 21, 11 p.m.
RBC TIFF Kick-Off Party: Performance by Haim, hosted by RBCxMusic in partnership with Live Nation, RBC House, 8 p.m.
“Monsters & Men” Party: Grey Goose launches its five days of festivities with this late-night soiree, Soho House, 12 a.m.
Friday, Sept. 7
AAFCA Lunch: African American Film Critics Association founder Gil Robertson hosts, DIRECTV House presented by AT&T at Momofuku, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
CBC Films Lunch: Celebrating Canadian creators of CBC-supported TIFF 2018 films, Kost at the Bisha Hotel, 1 p.m.
“White Boy Rick” Cocktail Party: Soho House, 6 p.m.
“Homecoming” Reception: Julia Roberts celebrates her new Amazon Prime series, Kost at the Bisha Hotel
“Donnybrook” Premiere Party: Film’s composer and original member of LCD Soundsystem Phil Mossman spins the tunes, Soho house, 5 p.m.
“Teen Spirit” and new IMDbPro App Celebration: Love Child Social House, 9 p.m.
“The Changes Everything” Dinner: In honor of Geena Davis’ new doc, Lyft hosts, Sotto Sotto 8 p.m.
The eOne Best of the Fest TIFF 2018 Celebration: In partnership with Deadline, Assembly Chef’s Hall, 10 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 8
“Widows” Cocktail Party: Variety and AT&T toast “Widows” with stars Viola Davis, Elizabeth Debicki, Daniel Kaluuya, and Brian Tyree Henry as well as director Steve McQueen and co-writer Gillian Flynn, Momofuku, 6 p.m.-8 p.m.
Artists for Peace and Justice Gala: Co-hosted by Ben Stiller, Jackson Browne, Maxwell and Susan Sarandon, honoring “Property Brothers” stars Drew Scott and Jonathan Scott, Windsor Arms Hotel, 6 p.m.
“Unbroken” Party: Post-screening party for doc about Olympic snowboarder Mark McMorris with performance by DJ Scratch Bastid, RBC House, 8 p.m.
Spotlight Initiative Awards: The Creative Coalition honors Maura Tierney, Olivia Munn, Dan Fogelman, and Mandy Patinkin, House of Aurora, 7:30 p.m.
Autograph Collection Hotels Garden Party: Maggie Gyllenhaal and the hotel group celebrate “A Room of One’s Own” with a performance by Martha Wainwright, Mongrel House, 7:30 p.m.
AT&T Film Selections Party: Deejay duo Chromeo plays with opening deejays Franki Chan and Them Jeans, DIRECTV House Presented by AT&T, 9 p.m.
“The Front Runner” Party: Hugh Jackman and director Jason Reitman celebrate after the premiere of their Gary Hart film, Soho House, 9 p.m.
“Ben is Back” Party: Julia Roberts and writer-director Peter Hedges celebrate, sponsored by Nespresso and Audi, the Chase, 9 p.m.
HFPA/InStyle Party: Easily TIFF’s most star-studded event, the party moves this year from the Windsor Arms to the Four Seasons Hotel, 10 p.m.
“Life Itself” Party: Amazon hosts, Montecito 10:30 p.m.
“The Sisters Brothers” Party: Diageo World Class hosts, Patria, 11:30 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 9
“Tell It to the Bees” Party: Drinks include honey-fused cocktails, House of Aurora, 4 p.m.
“Quincy” Party: Mark Ronson and surprise guests perform, Goldie, 5:30 p.m.
Female Filmmaker Dinner: The inaugural event, hosted by Variety and Chanel, honors “Colette” star Keira Knightley, La Banane, 7:30 p.m.
“The Old Man & the Gun” and “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” Party: Fox Searchlight celebrates its two TIFF films, Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, 8 p.m.
“The Public” Party: Director Emilio Estevez with co-stars Gabrielle Union, Alec Baldwin and Taylor Schilling, RBC House, 5:30 p.m.
Monday, Sept. 10
“WildLife Party”: Grey Goose hosts, Soho House 5:30 p.m.
“Destroyer” Party: Nicole Kidman and director Karyn Kusama, Soho House, 6:30 p.m.
“Stan Smith: Some People Think I’m a Shoe” Book Party: Tennis legend Stan Smith will be in attendance, performance by the Dwayne Gretzky Band, RBC House, 8 p.m.
“Driven” Party: RBC House, 6:30 p.m.
The IMDb Dinner Party: Kost at the Bisha Hotel, 6:30 p.m.
“First Man” Party: Ryan Gosling and Claire Foy and director Damien Chazelle celebrate, Patria, 9 p.m.
“A Million Little Pieces” Party: Aaron Taylor Johnson and Odessa Young, RBC House, 11:30 p.m.
B.L.A.C.K Ball: Shamier Anderson and Stephan James host, in partnership with Aurora Cannabis, TIFF Bell Lightbox, 9:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Sept. 11
“Boy Erased: Party: Soho House, 6:30 p.m.
“Assassination Nation” Dinner: Diageo World Class hosts, Kost at the Bisha Hotel, 8 p.m.
“Colette” Party: Soho House, 9 p.m.
“Green Book” Party: Viggo Mortensen, Mahershala Ali, and Linda Cardellini, RBC House, 11 p.m.
Related stories
'Aladdin': Justin Paul and Benj Pasek Reveal Details of New Songs for Live-Action Reboot (EXCLUSIVE)
Toronto-Bound 'Transit' Picked Up for U.S. by Music Box Films (EXCLUSIVE)
'The Meg' Is 'Jaws' on Steroids, Says Star Rainn Wilson
Subscribe to Variety Newsletters and Email Alerts!
