TIFF/Berlinale People: Philipp Gilly

While the Berlinale takes place over 10 days each February, TIFF is operating year-round with hundreds of screenings in its own movie theatres (our offices are on the floors above the theatre), with programmes and partner festivals occurring throughout the year AND by setting up a big film festival each September.
The Berlinale of course has an international jury awarding films which are part of the competition with a Golden or Silver Bear in several categories. At TIFF, I am curious to see the outcome of the People’s Choice Award this year, given to a feature film at the end of the festival by the audience.
And then there’s the weather: While winters in Berlin might not get as cold as in Toronto, February in Berlin is pretty chilly (you might see some of the talent running rather than walking the red carpet). Toronto in September though offers some of the most pleasant weeks of the year (I hope).

… and the biggest similarities?
Number 1: the size: both festivals screen between 300-400 films.
Number 2: both are public festivals, vying for the pole position as the biggest publicly attended film festival in the world.
Number 3: both festivals are firmly anchored in the cities they take place in, with TIFF having the Festival Street in front of the TIFF Bell Lightbox and Berlinale having Berlinale goes Kiez with screenings in local theatres all over the city.

It will have been a good TIFF 2019 for me when …:
I get to see films that take me on a journey to unexplored worlds and challenge my perspectives, and when I see some familiar faces from Berlinale. This will be my first time attending TIFF both as an audience member and working behind the scenes. From both perspectives, it will be great to finally see the films on the big screen presented by film teams from all around the world. Oh, and also when I finally stop dreaming about our insanely crammed scheduling board!

German film I’m looking forward to seeing at TIFF. And Canadian film:
I am definitely hoping to catch these two:
Nina Hoss being one of my favourite German actresses, I am excited to see Pelican Blood by Katrin Gebbe, in which she plays the lead character. The film will have its North American Premiere at the festival and the storyline sounds thrillingly scary. I am excited for Gebbe’s second feature after watching her first film Nothing Bad Can Happen which screened at Cannes in 2013.
Another film that sounds thrillingly scary for very different reasons is the Canadian production White Lie. The main character played by Kacey Rohl (some people might know her from the TV series Hannibal), is an undergrad student faking her cancer diagnosis for attention and financial gain. The two directors Yonah Lewis and Calvin Thomas also currently have Spice It Up playing at TIFF Bell Lightbox.

Craziest acting gig you’ve ever auditioned for:
I remember very vividly being invited to an audition in Berlin a couple of years ago. When I received the invitation, the e-mail mentioned that some “light” dance exercises would be part of the audition. Since my body is not very flexible, I double checked with the production assistant. He reconfirmed: you don`t need to be a dancer. Of course when I got there I saw everyone else looking like professional dancers all over the place. I tried my best but left after 30 minutes, sweating like a pig and feeling I was about to die.

If you weren’t preparing for TIFF2019 right now, you would be …:
That is a tough question. I love travelling. I have been to India and Nepal before and adored it. While other spots in Asia are pretty busy with tourists you can still find relaxed and laid-back spots in those two countries. It would be amazing to go there again, hang out at the beach, and do some yoga and trekking in the mountains.
Dream over.


interview by Jutta Brendemühl

images: by Keshia Saldanha courtesy P. Gilly