With the festival fast approaching, Cameron Bailey, CEO, TIFF, announced the first honorees of this year’s Tribute Awards: Oscar-nominated actor Amy Adams, who will receive the TIFF Tribute Performer Award; and iconic Canadian filmmaker and screenwriter David Cronenberg, who will be recognized with the Norman Jewison Career Achievement Award. Sandra Oh, the award-winning Korean Canadian actor and producer, will serve as the inaugural Tribute Awards Honorary Chair.
The sixth annual Tribute Awards will take place on Sunday, September 8 at Fairmont Royal York Hotel and honors the film industry’s outstanding contributors and their achievements, serving as a kick-off to awards season.
“In the five years that TIFF has been honouring such standout talent as Joaquin Phoenix, Michelle Yeoh, Jessica Chastain, Chloe Zhao, Taika Waititi, and Ari Wegner on their road to further awards success, we’ve been inspired to watch our Tribute Awards gala grow into a must-attend event,” said Bailey. “This year, we’re thrilled to welcome the incomparable Sandra Oh as the inaugural honorary Chair of the 2024 Tribute Awards. She joins our first-announced honorees, Amy Adams and David Cronenberg, in what promises to be another singular, sparkling night during the Festival. We’re grateful that artists of this stature will gather in Toronto to help TIFF turn the spotlight on increasing inclusion throughout our industry.”
“Returning to TIFF feels like coming home and I’m excited to serve as Honorary Chair for this year’s Tribute Awards,” said Oh. “Raising funds and awareness for representation and great storytelling is a passion of mine and why I’m so proud that the proceeds will go directly to Every Story Fund. Their mission to empower diverse voices aligns perfectly with my own, and I’m thrilled to be a part of this.”
The Tribute Awards gala is TIFF’s largest annual fundraiser. In 2024, proceeds from the Awards will go towards TIFF’s Every Story Fund, which champions diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in film.
Adams returns to the Festival this year for the World Premiere of Marielle Heller’s dark comedy Nightbitch, and is being recognized for her outstanding body of work. Past recipients of the TIFF Tribute Performer Award are Colman Domingo and Vicky Krieps in 2023; Brendan Fraser and the ensemble cast of My Policeman in 2022; Jessica Chastain and Benedict Cumberbatch in 2021; Kate Winslet and Sir Anthony Hopkins in 2020; and Meryl Streep and Joaquin Phoenix in 2019.
The Norman Jewison Career Achievement Award, presented this year to David Cronenberg, recognizes Canadians in the film industry who have made a global impact with their careers. The filmmaker’s willingness to explore unconventional themes and his innovative storytelling continues to shape contemporary cinema worldwide. Producer-director Shawn Levy received the inaugural award in 2023.
The 49th Toronto International Film Festival takes place September 5–15, 2024.