The 40th annual Toronto International Film Festival was held from 10 to 20 September 2015. On 28 July 2015 the first wave of films to be screened at the Festival was announced. Jean-Marc Vallée's Demolition starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Naomi Watts was the opening night film; Mr. Right by Paco Cabezas was the closing night film.
The year's edition included two new sections called Platform and Primetime. At Platform, twelve films will be screened in front of a jury, with the best film of the program winning the C$25,000 Platform Prize. Film directors Claire Denis, Jia Zhangke, and Agnieszka Holland were selected as the jurors for this section. At Primetime, six high-quality television programs will be presented at public screenings with Question and Answer sessions with show creators. The lineups for the TIFF Docs, Vanguard, Midnight Madness, and Masters sections were announced on 11 August 2015. More than 100 films were added to the festival's programme on 18 August. The new program titled In Conversation replaced the Maverick section.
The Festival reported that TIFF 2015 had a record high industry attendance, with 5,450 delegates from 80 countries, a 7% increase over 2014.
Awards The festival's final awards were announced on 20 September.
Award Film Director People's Choice Award Room Lenny Abrahamson People's Choice Award, First Runner Up Angry Indian Goddesses Pan Nalin People's Choice Award, Second Runner Up Spotlight Tom McCarthy People's Choice Award: Documentaries Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom Evgeny Afineevsky People's Choice Award: Documentaries, First Runner Up This Changes Everything Avi Lewis People's Choice Award: Documentaries, Second Runner Up Al Purdy Was Here Brian D. Johnson People's Choice Award: Midnight Madness Hardcore Henry Ilya Naishuller People's Choice Award: Midnight Madness, First Runner Up The Final Girls Todd Strauss-Schulson People's Choice Award: Midnight Madness, Second Runner Up Green Room Jeremy Saulnier Platform Prize Hurt Alan Zweig Best Canadian Feature Film Closet Monster Stephen Dunn Best Canadian Short Film Overpass Patrice Laliberté Best Canadian First Feature Film Sleeping Giant Andrew Cividino Special Citation, Canadian Feature Film My Internship in Canada Philippe Falardeau Dropbox Discovery Program Filmmakers Award Black Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah FIPRESCI Discovery Prize Eva Nová Marko Skop FIPRESCI Special Presentations Desierto Jonás Cuarón Best International Short Film Maman(s) Maïmouna Doucouré Netpac Award for World or International Asian Film Premiere The Whispering Star Sion Sono
Juries Short film awards jury: Pascal Faure John Anderson Rizwan Manji
Canadian awards jury: Don McKellar Jacqueline Lyanga Ilda Santiago
FIPRESCI jury: Engin Ertan (president) Chris Alexander (film critic) Francisco Ferreira (film critic) Kerstin Gezelius Pierre Pageau Alissa Simon
NETPAC jury: Anne Misawa (chairperson) Heather Keung Nashen Moodley
Platform Prize jury (inaugural year): Jia Zhang-ke Claire Denis Agnieszka Holland
Programme
Gala presentations Beeba Boys by Deepa Mehta Demolition by Jean-Marc Vallée Disorder by Alice Winocour The Dressmaker by Jocelyn Moorhouse Eye in the Sky by Gavin Hood Forsaken by Jon Cassar Freeheld by Peter Sollett Hyena Road by Paul Gross Lolo by Julie Delpy Legend by Brian Helgeland Man Down by Dito Montiel The Man Who Knew Infinity by Matt Brown (director) The Martian by Ridley Scott Miss You Already by Catherine Hardwicke Mississippi Grind by Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden Mr. Right by Paco Cabezas The Program by Stephen Frears Remember by Atom Egoyan Septembers of Shiraz by Wayne Blair Stonewall by Roland Emmerich
Special Presentations 45 Years by Andrew Haigh About Ray by Gaby Dellal Angry Indian Goddesses by Pan Nalin Anomalisa by Charlie Kaufman and Duke Johnson Beasts of No Nation by Cary Fukunaga Being Charlie by Rob Reiner Black Mass by Scott Cooper Body by Małgorzata Szumowska Born to Be Blue by Robert Budreau Brooklyn by John Crowley The Club by Pablo Larraín Colonia by Florian Gallenberger The Danish Girl by Tom Hooper The Daughter by Simon Stone Desierto by Jonás Cuarón Dheepan by Jacques Audiard Equals by Drake Doremus Families by Jean-Paul Rappeneau The Family Fang by Jason Bateman Guilty by Meghna Gulzar I Saw the Light by Marc Abraham I Smile Back by Adam Salky Into the Forest by Patricia Rozema The Idol by Hany Abu-Assad The Lady in the Van by Nicholas Hytner Len and Company by Tim Godsall The Lobster by Yorgos Lanthimos Louder Than Bombs by Joachim Trier Ma Ma by Julio Medem Maggie's Plan by Rebecca Miller Mia Madre by Nanni Moretti The Meddler by Lorene Scafaria Mountains May Depart by Jia Zhang-ke Mr. Six by Guan Hu Mustang by Deniz Gamze Ergüven Office by Johnnie To Our Brand Is Crisis by David Gordon Green Parched by Leena Yadav Room by Lenny Abrahamson Sicario by Denis Villeneuve Son of Saul by László Nemes Spotlight by Tom McCarthy Summertime by Catherine Corsini Sunset Song by Terence Davies A Tale of Love and Darkness by Natalie Portman A Tale of Three Cities by Mabel Cheung Trumbo by Jay Roach Truth by James Vanderbilt Un plus une by Claude Lelouch Victoria by Sebastian Schipper Ville-Marie by Guy Édoin The Wave by Roar Uthaug Where to Invade Next by Michael Moore The Witch by Robert Eggers Youth by Paolo Sorrentino
Vanguard Collective Invention by Kwon Oh-kwang Demon by Marcin Wrona Endorphine by André Turpin Evolution by Lucile Hadžihalilović February by Oz Perkins Hellions by Bruce McDonald Lace Crater by Harrison Atkins Love by Gaspar Noé Men & Chicken by Anders Thomas Jensen The Missing Girl by A.D. Calvo My Big Night by Álex de la Iglesia The Nightmare by No Men Beyond This Point by Mark Sawers Veteran by Ryoo Seung-wan Zoom by Pedro Morelli
TIFF Docs Al Purdy Was Here by Brian D. Johnson A Flickering Truth by Pietra Brettkelly Being AP by Anthony Wonke Bolshoi Babylon by Nick Read Dark Horse by Louise Osmond Guantanamo's Child: Omar Khadr by Patrick Reed, Michelle Shephard He Named Me Malala by Davis Guggenheim Heart of a Dog by Laurie Anderson Hitchcock/Truffaut by Kent Jones Horizon by Bergur Bernburg, Friðrik Þór Friðriksson In Jackson Heights by Frederick Wiseman It All Started at the End by Luis Ospina Janis: Little Girl Blue by Amy J. Berg Je suis Charlie by Emmanuel Leconte, Daniel Leconte A Journey of a Thousand Miles: Peacekeepers by Geeta Gandbhir, Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy Miss Sharon Jones! by Barbara Kopple The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble by Morgan Neville Nasser by Jihan El-Tahri Ninth Floor by Mina Shum Our Last Tango by German Kral P.S. Jerusalem by Danae Elon The Reflektor Tapes by Kahlil Joseph Return of the Atom by Mika Taanila, Jussi Eerola Sherpa by Jennifer Peedom This Changes Everything by Avi Lewis Thru You Princess by Ido Haar Welcome to F.L. by Geneviève Dulude-De Celles Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom by Evgeny Afineevsky Women He's Undressed by Gillian Armstrong A Young Patriot by Du Haibin
Short Cuts Canada 4 Quarters by Ashley McKenzie Bacon and God's Wrath by Sol Friedman The Ballad of Immortal Joe by Héctor Herrera BAM by Howie Shia Benjamin by Sherren Lee Beyond the Horizon by Brian J. Noth Boxing by Grayson Moore and Aidan Shipley Boy by Connor Jessup Bring Me the Head of Tim Horton by Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson and Galen Johnson Casualties of Modernity by Kent Monkman Clouds of Autumn by Trevor Mack and Matthew Taylor Blais Dogs Don't Breed Cats (Les chiens ne font pas des chats) by Cristina Martins Dredger by Phillip Barker The Guy from New York by Jean-François Leblanc It's Not You by Don McKellar Komkom by Kevin Papatie A New Year by Marie-Ève Juste Nina by Halima Elkhatabi O Negative by Steven McCarthy
Wavelengths 88:88 by Isiah Medina Afternoon by Tsai Ming-liang Arabian Nights: The Restless One by Miguel Gomes Arabian Nights: The Desolate One by Miguel Gomes Arabian Nights: The Enchanted One by Miguel Gomes Bunte Kuh by Ryan Ferko, Parastoo Anoushahpour and Faraz Anoushahpour Eva Doesn't Sleep by Pablo Agüero The Event by Sergei Loznitsa Engram of Returning by Daïchi Saïto The Forbidden Room by Guy Maddin and Evan Johnson Fugue by Kerstin Schroedinger Invention by Mark Lewis La Giubba by Corin Sworn and Tony Romano No Home Movie by Chantal Akerman The Other Side by Roberto Minervini The Sky Trembles and the Earth is Afraid and the Two Eyes Are Not Brothers by Ben Rivers
Discovery A Patch of Fog by Michael Lennox The Ardennes by Robin Pront Beast by Tom McKeith and Sam McKeith Black by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah Born to Dance by Tammy Davis Closet Monster by Stephen Dunn Dégradé by Tarzan and Arab Nasser Desde allá by Lorenzo Vigas Downriver by Grant Scicluna Eva Nová by Marko Škop Fire Song by Adam Garnet Jones Five Nights in Maine by Maris Curran The Here After by Magnus von Horn Ixcanul by Jayro Bustamante James White by Josh Mond Keeper by Guillaume Senez Les Cowboys by Thomas Bidegain Meghmallar by Zahidur Rahim Anjan Mountain by Yaelle Kayam My Name Is Emily by Simon Fitzmaurice The Paradise Suite by Joost van Ginkel The Rainbow Kid by Kire Paputts River by Jamie M. Dagg Semana Santa by Alejandra Márquez Abella Sleeping Giant by Andrew Cividino Spear by Stephen Page Very Big Shot by Mir-Jean Bou Chaaya The Wait by Piero Messina We Monsters by Sebastian Ko Wedding Doll by Nitzan Gilady
Contemporary World Cinema 25 April by Leanne Pooley 3000 Nights by Mai Masri An by Naomi Kawase The Apostate by Federico Veiroj As I Open My Eyes by Leyla Bouzid Baba Joon by Yuval Delshad Box by Florin Șerban Campo Grande by Sandra Kogut Chevalier by Athina Rachel Tsangari A Copy of My Mind by Joko Anwar Cuckold by Charlie Vundla Embrace of the Serpent by Ciro Guerra The Endless River by Oliver Hermanus The Fear by Damien Odoul Frenzy by Emin Alper Girls Lost by Alexandra-Therese Keining Granny's Dancing on the Table by Hanna Sköld A Heavy Heart by Thomas Stuber Homesick by Anne Sewitsky Hong Kong Trilogy: Preschooled Preoccupied Preposterous by Christopher Doyle Honor Thy Father by Erik Matti How Heavy This Hammer by Kazik Radwanski Invisible by Lawrence Fajardo In the Room by Eric Khoo Incident Light by Ariel Rotter I Promise You Anarchy by Julio Hernández Cordón Ivy by Tolga Karaçelik Jack by Elisabeth Scharang Journey to the Shore by Kiyoshi Kurosawa The Kind Words by Shemi Zarhin Koza by Ivan Ostrochovský Lamb by Yared Zeleke Last Cab to Darwin by Jeremy Sims Let Them Come by Salem Brahimi Magallanes by Salvador del Solar Mekko by Sterlin Harjo Much Loved by Nabil Ayouch Murmur of the Hearts by Sylvia Chang My Internship in Canada by Philippe Falardeau One Breath by Christian Zübert One Floor Below by Radu Muntean Our Loved Ones by Anne Émond Parisienne by Danielle Arbid Paths of the Soul by Zhang Yang The People vs. Fritz Bauer by Lars Kraume Price of Love by Hermon Hailay Rams by Grímur Hákonarson Schneider vs. Bax by Alex van Warmerdam Song of Songs by Eva Neymann Sparrows by Runar Rúnarsson Starve Your Dog by Hicham Lasri The Steps by Andrew Currie Story of Judas by Rabah Ameur-Zaïmeche Stranger by Ermek Tursunov Thank You for Bombing by Barbara Eder The Treasure by Corneliu Porumboiu Truman by Cesc Gay The Waiting Room by Igor Drljaca The Whispering Star by Sion Sono
Midnight Madness Baskin by Can Evrenol The Chickening by Davy Force and Nick DenBoer The Devil's Candy by Sean Byrne The Final Girls by Todd Strauss-Schulson The Girl in the Photographs by Nick Simon Green Room by Jeremy Saulnier Hardcore by Ilya Naishuller The Mind's Eye by Joe Begos Southbound by Radio Silence, Roxanne Benjamin, David Bruckner & Patrick Horvath SPL II: A Time For Consequences by Soi Cheang Yakuza Apocalypse by Takashi Miike
Masters 11 Minutes by Jerzy Skolimowski The Assassin by Hou Hsiao-hsien Bleak Street by Arturo Ripstein Blood of My Blood by Marco Bellocchio Cemetery of Splendour by Apichatpong Weerasethakul Every Thing Will Be Fine by Wim Wenders