What if the Toronto International Film Festival just called Taylor Swift up?
What would, and did happen: Taylor Swift is now set to give a keynote address during a special event at TIFF's 47th season
Back when it was still August, Taylor Swift (by her own decree) never needed anything more than the salt air and rust on your door—that is, one presumes, until the Toronto International Film Festival came knocking. Now, in a crossover event tailor-made for the Swiftie behind this tweet, TIFF will offer a special “In Conversation With… Taylor Swift” event as part of its upcoming programming. Swift will join the 47th iteration of the festival for a keynote address on Friday, September 9, ahead of a screening of All Too Well: The Short Film.
Naturally, Swift’s keynote will introduce the first-ever screening of her All Too Well: The Short Film in 35mm—the cinematic video has drawn both critical acclaim and fan hysteria since its release last November. After the introduction and screening, TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey will join Swift in an “engaging conversation about filmmaking and the visual aspects of her music.”
“We love the intersection of film and other art forms, and Taylor Swift is a brilliant visual thinker,” said TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey in a Friday statement. “We’re excited to hear Taylor’s version of how absorbing influences from cinema led to her creating All Too Well: The Short Film.”
Although the “All Too Well (10 Minute Version)” film may be the latest mountaintop Swift has conquered, she’s a master of absorbing influences and predicting trends, from country-pop crossover to folk to the indie-sleaze renaissance. All Too Well: The Short Film may be the sweeping, romantic video that has modern Swift fans enraptured, and they’re absolutely right and true for that. But for any Swift fan who had YouTube access in 2008, another video comes to mind first in the “cinematic” category: “You Belong With Me.” There’s no need to pit two great music videos against each other but the point stands—Swift has had a directorial vision from day 1. Whatever magic the pop maven has been putting in over a decade of memorable videos just keeps clearing—props to TIFF for giving her a lectern to discuss it.
Tickets for “In Conversation With…Taylor Swift” will go on sale to TIFF members on September 3, and to the rest of the world on September 5. They will be available for purchase via this link.