First of all, I’m so bummed that I wasn’t in Toronto for TIFF.  It has always been the highlight of my year as it signals the busy but fun award season.  But darn you COVID!  Still, the best of the fest emerged and Chloé Zhao’s quasi-documentary life journey “Nomadland” took the top honors.  Here’s the full list of winners:

TIFF 2020 People’s Choice Award: Chloé Zhao’s Nomadland
Watch a special thank you message from Chloé here!

First Runner-up: Regina King’s One Night in Miami…
Second Runner-up: Tracey Deer’s Beans

TIFF 2020 People’s Choice Documentary Award: Michelle Latimer’s Inconvenient Indian

TIFF 2020 People’s Choice Midnight Madness Award: Roseanne Liang’s Shadow In The Cloud

IMDbPro Short Cuts Awards
IMDbPro Short Cuts Award for Best Film: Naïla Guiguet’s Dustin

IMDbPro Short Cuts Award for Best Canadian Film: Paul Shkordoff’s Benjamin, Benny, Ben

IMDbPro Short Cuts Share Her Journey Award: Tiffany Hsiung’s Sing Me a Lullaby

IMDbPro will provide each winner with a bursary of $10,000 and a one-year membership to IMDbPro.

Amplify Voices Awards 
Amplify Voices Award for Best Canadian Feature Film: Michelle Latimer’s Inconvenient Indian

Amplify Voices Award: Chaitanya Tamhane’s The Disciple

Amplify Voices Award: Philippe Lacôte’s Night of the Kings

Canada Goose presents the Amplify Voices Awards to the three best Festival feature films by under-represented filmmakers. Each winner will receive a cash prize of $10,000, made possible by Canada Goose.

Shawn Mendes Foundation Changemaker Award
The 2020 Changemaker Award winner is Kelly Fyffe-Marshall’s short film Black Bodies.

Presented by the Shawn Mendes Foundation, this award honours a Festival film that tackles issues of social change, and is selected by TIFF’s Next Wave Committee. The winner will receive a $10,000 cash prize.

FIPRESCI and NETPAC
International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) Prize:
Dea Kulumbegashvili’s Beginning

Network for the Promotion of Asian Pacific Cinema (NETPAC) Award:
Tarzan and Arab Nasser’s Gaza mon amour