TIFF47: Platform lineup unveiled including Frances O’Connor’s directorial debut ‘Emily’ starring Emma Mackey

TIFF today unveiled the 10 features that comprise the Platform program for 2022. Platform is TIFF’s competitive program that champions bold directorial visions. From first-time feature directors to veterans, this year’s Platform lineup offers a diverse range of talent and distinct directorial voices that are emerging around the globe. It is a year rich in perspectives, genres, and exceptional performances by newcomers, as well as established actors. 

Emily, the feature debut by Frances O’Connor, has been selected as the program’s opening film, and — like all 10 films in the program — is a World Premiere. This year’s selection also includes two Canadian titles: Riceboy Sleeps and Viking. 

“We launched Platform to shine a brighter light on some of the most original films and distinct voices at our Festival,” said Cameron Bailey, TIFF CEO. “Now in year seven, it’s become a true home for international auteurs on the rise.”

Named after Jia Zhang-ke’s groundbreaking second feature, Platform is curated by TIFF Chief Programming Officer Anita Lee; Director, Festival Programming Robyn Citizen; and Senior Manager, Festival Programming Ravi Srinivasan.

“Eclectic in vision, this year’s selection not only represents all World Premieres of exciting, on-the-rise voices from around the world, but it also reflects the very timely and unique perspectives of racialized filmmakers from diasporic communities broadening the canvas,” said Lee.

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The 10 films in the program are eligible for the Platform Prize, an award of $20,000 CAD given to the best film in the program, selected by an in-person international jury. This year’s Platform Prize jury will be announced later this summer. Previous jury members include: Claire Denis, Béla Tarr, Brian De Palma, Mira Nair, Riz Ahmed, and Jia Zhang-ke.

Previous Platform selections include Hany Abu-Assad’s Huda’s Salon (2021), Kamila Andini’s Yuni (2021), Darius Marder’s Sound of Metal (2019), Alice Winocour’s Proxima (2019), Kazik Radwanski’s Anne at 13,000 Ft. (2019), Sarah Gavron’s Rocks (2019), Armando Iannucci’s The Death of Stalin (2017), Pablo Larraín’s Jackie (2016), Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight (2016), William Oldroyd’s Lady Macbeth (2016) and Ben Wheatley’s High-Rise (2015).

The 2022 Toronto International Film Festival runs September 8-18, 2022.

Platform’s full 2022 lineup:

Charcoal (Carvão) Carolina Markowicz | Brazil, Argentina
World Premiere

In the Brazilian countryside, a family straining to care for their bedridden patriarch have their lives changed when a shady nurse offers a diabolical deal: put their elder to rest and host an Argentinian drug kingpin who urgently needs a place to hide.

Emily Frances O’Connor | UK – Platform Opening Night Film
World Premiere

This boldly atmospheric portrait of Wuthering Heights author Emily Brontë — the directorial debut from veteran actor Frances O’Connor — is a tale of creativity, secret desire, and a woman’s arduous journey toward self-actualization in 19th-century England.

The Gravity (La Gravité) Cédric Ido | France
World Premiere

The sophomore feature from French Burkinabé actor Cédric Ido centres on a mysterious planetary event that upsets both the gravity and the fragile equilibrium of a Parisian suburb, which is ruled by a cosmically-connected crew of young “entrepreneurs.”

Hawa Maïmouna Doucouré | France
World Premiere

A Capraesque tale about a soon-to-be-orphaned adolescent seeking an audience with Michelle Obama, Maïmouna Doucouré’s sophomore feature dismantles boundaries of status and decorum and celebrates the power of self-determination.

How to Blow Up a Pipeline Daniel Goldhaber | USA
World Premiere 

A crew of young environmental activists execute a daring mission to sabotage an oil pipeline, in director Daniel Goldhaber’s taut and timely thriller that is part high-stakes heist, part radical exploration of the climate crisis. Based on the controversial book by Andreas Malm.

Riceboy Sleeps Anthony Shim | Canada
World Premiere

A South Korean mother and son struggle with their new life in 1990s Canada and the growing rift between them, in Anthony Shim’s assured second feature.

Subtraction (Tafrigh) Mani Haghighi | Iran, France
World Premiere

After a confusing interaction in downtown Tehran, a married couple seems to have found their doppelgängers, in the latest from Iranian director Mani Haghighi (Pig).

Thunder (Foudre) Carmen Jaquier | Switzerland 
World Premiere

After the sudden and mysterious death of her sister, a 17-year-old novitiate explores her God-given right to experience life to the fullest, during the summer of 1900 in Switzerland.

Tora’s Husband Rima Das | India
World Premiere

In the latest drama from Indian director Rima Das (Village Rockstars), a loving father strains to keep his small-town business afloat while his relationships deteriorate amidst personal loss and lockdowns during the pandemic.

Viking Stéphane Lafleur | Canada
World Premiere

The latest from Stéphane Lafleur (Tu dors Nicole) balances absurdist humour with poignant reflection on the human condition as it follows the subjects of behavioural research — and the astronauts they mirror — in advance of the first manned mission to Mars.