With TIFF just days away and the hottest tickets already sold out — or “off-sale” in TIFF lingo — you may feel shut out from the fiftieth edition of Toronto’s world-class film festival. But fear not. With some patience, luck, and an open mind, you can still experience movie magic, whether your taste is art-house indies or Hollywood blockbusters.
Here are my tips for latecomers and last-minute moviegoers.
Look beyond premieres and gala screenings
Although you’ll miss out on the glitz and the Q&As, look beyond premiere and gala screenings. Especially for the bigger films. Titles have multiple showings over the eleven days of the festival, so you might be able to catch your pick after its debut. Stars and directors sometimes stick around for these additional presentations, so keep an eye out.
Get outside of Hollywood
Look for international, Canadian and smaller films, most of which you’ll never see on a big screen again, at least not locally. There are plenty of gems to choose from among the list of 290 films, some with familiar names, settings and themes, and others completely unknown to you. Choose a film from a country or region you’d like to visit or something you’re passionate about — a hobby, a cause, or an art form. If you’re willing to risk it, pick a title at random because it sounds interesting. Allow yourself to be surprised.
But how do you score a coveted seat?
Your first stop is the TIFF site for a list of films and showtimes. Unfortunately, the site doesn’t indicate whether screenings are sold out. However, clicking on showtimes will direct you to Ticketmaster, where you can view available seats. Be warned: Ticketmaster allows the resale of tickets, so some tickets have jumped from the regular price of $29 to well over $100, while gala showings command prices well into the hundreds.
If you already know what you’d like to see, you can also go directly to Ticketmaster’s TIFF page.
If screenings have gone off-sale, you still might be able to get in. Here’s how.
Get up early
Unclaimed, returned, and surplus tickets go on sale every morning at 8 a.m. sharp. You can pick them up online through Ticketmaster or in person at the Scotiabank Cinema box office (at John St. and Richmond St.) and at the Steve & Rashmi Gupta Box Office at the TIFF Bell Lightbox (350 King Street W). Come prepared with a list of alternatives in case your first pick remains off-sale.
Rush it
Fifteen minutes before each screening, TIFF staff count the empty seats and make them available (at a discount) to ticketless patrons in the rush line. TIFF recommends arriving at least an hour early if you hope to get in this way. However, people often start showing up for in-demand screenings hours earlier. The rush line box office is cashless, so have your credit card or smart device ready. The rush price for regular tickets is $27, and $47 for premium tickets.
You can also buy a rush pass that allows you to rush as many screenings as you want. The regular Festival Rush Pass is $80, while the Under-25 version is $39. These passes are available in limited quantities ahead of the festival through Ticketmaster and at the box office, but they sell out quickly once TIFF gets underway.
For inspiration choosing a picture, here are three of my picks.
Three picks to get you started
You Had to Be There: How the Toronto Godspell Ignited the Comedy Revolution (Dir. Nick Davis)
While all eyes are on festival opener John Candy: I Like Me (Colin Hank’s documentary about the late Second City legend), this look at the 1972 production that helped launch the careers of Martin Short, Eugene Levy, Gilda Radner, Victor Garber, Andrea Martin, Dave Thomas, Jayne Eastwood, and Paul Shaffer promises to be an eye opener and a delight for comedy connoisseurs. There are very few tickets left!
Nouvelle Vague (Dir. Richard Linklater)
Indie darling Richard Linklater recreates the making of Breathless, Jean-Luc Goddard’s 1960 masterpiece that ignited the French New Wave and transformed cinema, capturing the youthful and irreverent spirit of this pioneering work.
Montreal’s Kid Koala wrote, directed, and scored this dialogue-free animated feature based on his award-winning graphic novel. The story of young astronaut Celeste and the lonely guardian robot she leaves behind is a made-in-Canada parable for audiences young and old. Tickets are going fast and it’s a small theatre so don’t wait too long!
TIFF 2025 runs from Wednesday, Sept. 4 to Sunday, Sept. 14.