Under TIFF artistic director Cameron Bailey, Toronto has become the place to premiere an Oscar-bait film. Since he’s taken the helm, audience attendance has steadily grown and the festival has cemented its place as the city’s top cultural event. Bailey, No. 15 on our list of Toronto’s 50 Most Influential People 2012, chatted with us about his first job, his extensive knowledge of hospital food and the movie he thinks has had the most impact this year. Though he says he doesn’t have a personal motto, if he did, he thinks it would be: “Work harder. Do more. Get better.” Either way, it’s working.
Movie debuts and closed-door distribution deals may be the driving forces behind the Toronto International Film Festival, but it’s the late-night soirées and off-hours socializing that we really wait to see every September. From cute celebrity couples cooing in the corner to a private rendezvous between Jennifer Lawrence and Kristen Stewart to the hot mess that was the Spring Breakers post-premiere party, TIFF is just as much about nonstop star-studded gloss as it is about the, you know, films. With that in mind, we offer a quick roundup of some of the best bashes from the film fest’s opening weekend. 
