This year’s TIFF Industry Conference — a six-day event, taking place September 7–12 during the Toronto International Film Festival — will inspire and incite discussions for creative and business entrepreneurship, while examining the role independent filmmakers play within an evolving and challenging media landscape.
[Schedule is up: from left menu, select Industry –> Industry Conference]
More than 150 speakers will take the stage of the Glenn Gould Studio including Ivy Agregan, Tre’vell Anderson, Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, Chris Aronson, Paul Austerberry, Jennifer Baichwalz, Andrew Barnes, Jeremy Blacklow, Justin Broadbent, Tantoo Cardinal, Barry Cole, Jacqueline Coley, Valerie Complex, Christian de Castro Oliveira, Nicholas de Pencier, Amy Emmerich, Helen Estabrook, Ana Letícia Fialho, Shawn Finnie, John Fithian, Patricia Gomes, Kate Hagen, Werner Herzog, Kevin Iwashina, Ellis Jacob, Jiang Wen, Mark Kueper, Amanda Lebow, Franklin Leonard, Sergei Loznitsa, Maxim Pozdorovkin, April Reign, Gil Robertson, A.V. Rockwell, Rena Ronson, Nermeen Shaikh, Dr. Stacy L. Smith, Tema Staig, Taika Waititi, and Nina Yang Bongiovi.
TIFF MASTER CLASSES
The Conference will open with a candid interview with Canadian screen icon Tantoo Cardinal, as part of the new Betty-Ann Heggie Speaker Series, a Share Her Journey initiative. In his first visit to TIFF, New Zealand filmmaker, actor, and comedian Taika Waititi joins TIFF’s Artistic Director Cameron Bailey for a conversation about cinematic inspiration, vampires, superheroes, and portraying marginalised characters in films. Fresh from his role in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, actor-director Jiang Wen, one of China’s most prolific and accomplished superstars, takes the stage to discuss his trajectory from acting in art-house classics to blockbusters that are tailor-made for the largest film audience in the world.
TIFF MOGULS
This series, with industry leaders and innovators, begins with a groundbreaking keynote on inclusion and diversity from Dr. Stacy L. Smith, author of the inclusion rider template and the Founder & Director of the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative. Dr. Smith will unveil the second phase of her research on equity in film criticism in a compelling address, after which she will be joined by Rotten Tomatoes editor Jacqueline Coley, freelance writer Valerie Complex, and Gil Robertson of the AAFCA. The panel will be moderated by Franklin Leonard, Founder & CEO of The Black List.
TIFF also welcomes award-winning producer Nina Yang Bongiovi (Fruitvale Station, Sorry to Bother You, Dope), an influential force in the industry with a discerning eye for groundbreaking stories and thrilling new directors.
DIALOGUES
Our Dialogues programme presents an array of topical programming that includes exhibitors, filmmakers, and industry executives, including:
FOUNDATIONS
Foundations is a practical stream designed for up-and-comers that explores all aspects of the business, from craft to distribution, and provides tangible tools for creative practitioners.
THE GUARDIAN TIFF TALKS
The Guardian TIFF Talks is a series of onstage conversations between high-profile creative talent and The Guardian’s journalists. Landscapes is a new stream featuring four intimate fireside chats presenting a global snapshot of current trends in storytelling from specific countries and markets. Connections will offer networking roundtables in the areas of co-production, documentary, shorts, tech, and primetime television, on a first-come, first-served basis. Delegates can also look forward to Microsessions sponsored by leading companies that showcase their newest media tools, products, and programmes.
Launching this year, TIFF Tech is a new stream presenting innovations in computer technology and the convergence of the tech and media industries.
TIFF DOC CONFERENCE
Celebrating its 10th anniversary, Doc Conference will deliver an array of high-profile guests in its news-making talk and craft sessions. Highlights include an opening conversation with director Werner Herzog on the making of this new film Meeting Gorbachev; producer of Democracy Now! Nermeen Shaikh revealing what makes a great documentary; CEO of The Festival Agency Leslie Vuchot providing the hits and misses of self-distribution and marketing; award-winning Inuk filmmaker Alethea Arnaquq-Baril providing a critical insight into how to tell stories with humility while looking to the future of Indigenous storytelling; and renowned filmmaker Sergei Loznitsa, joined by Tanya Cooper from Human Rights Watch and Polina Kovaleva from PEN American, to discuss actions to free Oleg Sentsov, a Ukrainian filmmaker who was detained in Crimea and sentenced to 20 years in a Russian prison on charges of terrorism.
BAFTA Breakthrough is the arts charity’s flagship new talent initiative supported by Netflix, offering a… Read More
Addiction is a universal struggle and one oft explored in film and television. The Outrun,… Read More
Triple was the buzz word of the 2024 Hollywood Music in Media Awards where Hans… Read More
As we head into the Thanksgiving holiday here in the U.S., it also means we're… Read More
Sugarcane earned a leading five nominations as the IDA Documentary Awards announced its nominees today, followed closely by Soundtrack… Read More
Los Angeles, CA – November 20, 2025 – AwardsWatch, the leading industry resource for awards… Read More
This website uses cookies.