The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) is set to part ways with its leading sponsor, Bell, at the end of December 2023.
Bell has been a key partner of the festival since 1995 and holds naming rights to TIFF’s downtown headquarters on King Street West. According to Bell spokesperson Ellen Murphy, the company has chosen not to renew the sponsorship contract, and the naming rights will expire along with it.
The announcement comes at a time when the festival is preparing for a reduced celebrity turnout due to ongoing Hollywood strikes. Last year, sponsorships like Bell’s contributed about $13.4 million, making up 28% of TIFF’s total revenues. The break up appears to be mutual according to both TIFF and Bell.
“Earlier this year, we mutually agreed that this partnership would come to a close at the end of 2023. We extend our sincere gratitude to Bell for their unwavering support, dedication, and collaborative spirit and look forward to working with them in new ways,” said TIFF Communications VP Judy Lung, in a statement to Bell Media’s CTV News.
Bell said in a statement that earlier this year, “We decided that the end of 2023 would be the right time to step back from our partnership with TIFF and opted not to renew our sponsorship in order to invest in other opportunities that are core to our business.”
The festival is scheduled to kick off its 11-day run on September 7, featuring Hayao Miyazaki’s animated feature film, “The Boy and the Heron,” as its opening act. The Apple Original Film ‘Fingernails’ will debut at TIFF on September 12.
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Can’t wait to see the next Oligarch backed “sponsor”! Let’s take bets!