Piers Handling on TIFF

How do you build a Canadian organization into a globally recognizable brand? There are great ideas everywhere and amazing local initiatives that are embraced by their community. When organizations scale, there’s a constant tension between the seed of something that is nurtured by a few people – and the magnetic pull to make it bigger, and to reach more people. There are some examples where scaling has resulted in an even stronger local and global community. The Toronto International Film Festival is one of these examples. Piers Handling was CEO of TIFF from 1992 - 2018. Piers is an Officer of the Order of Canada and has been awarded the Order of Ontario. He was named to France’s highest cultural insignia. We talk to Piers about his vision for bringing Canadian cinema to a global audience, the similarities and differences between TIFF, Cannes, and Sundance Film Festival, his “pinch me” moments as CEO, how and when directors like Steven Spielberg have launched their films at TIFF, and the 10-year journey to build a forever home to celebrate Canadian cinema – the TIFF Bell Lightbox.