TORONTO — When the Toronto International Film Festival rolls out the red carpet to welcome Hollywood's top stars this week, it will do so with dozens of new brand supporters that organizers hope will put to rest any notions the event has lost some of its corporate cachet.
TIFF said Tuesday the number of companies backing this year's iteration of the festival reached 94, a number that is up 25 per cent from 2023 and includes 37 new backers including water purveyor Flow, mouthwash label Listerine and food firm Beyond Meat.
While major sponsors Bell and Bulgari are missing from this year's roster, TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey said last week that the number of partners they've gained shows the public just how highly regarded the event remains.
"I think they will see the confidence the business community holds in...TIFF," he told The Canadian Press.
TIFF did not disclose the monetary value of any of its deals, but Bailey has said the amount raised is "enough to do what we need to do."
Bailey's remarks come nearly a year after lead sponsor and 28-year backer Bell revealed 2023 would be its last as a TIFF partner. The telecommunications firm said it was pulling its support “to invest in other opportunities that are core to our business.”
Also gone is luxury jeweller Bulgari, which reportedly inked a three-year deal in 2022 for “major sponsor” status but was not listed in this year's festival material and did not respond to requests for comment.
The departures put pressure on TIFF to prove its fundraising prowess after it emerged battered by the COVID-19 pandemic and Hollywood strikes that last year stripped most red carpets of stars.
It answered the challenge by keeping hold of 57 past backers including major sponsors Royal Bank of Canada and Visa, along with contributors Dyson, L'Oreal, Marriot Bonvoy and Canada Goose.
But perhaps the buzziest new addition is Rogers, which will serve as the festival’s "presenting sponsor." The new role has the telecommunications giant backing a glitzy pre-TIFF bash in the tony Yorkville neighbourhood and lending its name to the Oscar bellwether People's Choice Awards. Its branding will also be front-and-centre during pre-screening trailers and as stars including Elton John, Angelina Jolie and Cate Blanchett are expected to walk red carpets.
The partnership announced in August put to rest speculation around who would step in to fill the funding hole left by Bell, which supported TIFF events year-round in addition to the 11-day festival. The Rogers deal, however, covers only the 2024 festival — a shift one associate marketing professor says won't escape notice by TIFF-goers.
"This is not going to have an immediate effect but this is something that creates doubt in the minds of your consumers and causes them to consider the future," said Joanne McNeish of Toronto Metropolitan University.
The Rogers partnership didn't surprise marketing maven Natasha Koifman — a stalwart of the TIFF scene thanks to her NKPR agency's annual festival-timed parties and gifting lounge. She said there are only so many companies with the stature, size or coffers to replace Bell.
The length of the deal, however, puzzled her.
Brands usually prefer to sign deals that span at least three years, so they can learn how to maximize value over time, she pointed out.
"The first year is like you're courting," she said. "The second and third year, you're starting to date."
She wouldn't be surprised if Rogers eventually extends its stay, especially because next year's festival will be TIFF's 50th.
Bailey said "the door is open" for Rogers to stay on but such a decision likely won't be considered until after this year's festival.
In the meantime, he said TIFF is satisfied by the partners it has deals with but is always open to more opportunities.
"I wouldn't say we ever stopped looking," he said.
"We've had a terrific year, one of our best in recent memory, but of course, the conversations continue."
Many of those discussions have a new importance this year, he acknowledged, because the arts sector in Canada is seeing a "more challenging" funding environment.
"Some of the corporate partners who have been supporting the arts for years are changing strategies," Bailey said earlier at the festival's Canadian lineup announcement.
"Some of the private donors who've been supporting the arts for years are changing strategy or maybe just aging out and the next generation is not yet fully there."
It's been a rough year for many arts festivals. Just for Laughs filed for creditor protection and cancelled its festival recently, citing millions in unpaid debts. Documentary festival Hot Docs announced it would temporarily close its flagship Toronto theatre and lay off staff for about three months as it coped with a deficit.
TIFF has had its share of troubles, too. It resorted to pared-back, digital and drive-in screenings to get through the pandemic only to see a pair of film industry strikes lessen the star power on hand at last year's edition.
This year is expected to mark a return to TIFF's usual fanfare and glamour thanks to a slew of hotly-anticipated screenings including Francis Ford Coppola’s self-funded passion project “Megalopolis," musical documentary "Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band" and Palme d'Or winner "Anora."
To withstand "some of those headwinds" others have faced, Bailey said TIFF has relied on its "proven track record."
It was able to rally about $13.4 million from sponsors for the 2022 festival in that year alone and in April's federal budget, Ottawa handed TIFF $23 million over three years.
"But we have to be nimble, we have to be responsive," Bailey cautioned.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 3, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:BCE, TSX:RCI)
— with files from Alex Nino Gheciu in Toronto.
Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press