Behind the Screens 6: TIFF Party Round-up

Productivity is down across the city today as many recover from a TIFF party weekend to remember (or not).

The Star details the weekend’s biggest star-studded event — the A Dangerous Method after party at the Grey Goose Soho House — as well as the best of food, music and more from a sampling of the dozens of parties that have taken place since Thursday. 

Best party to make you feel like you were in a dream sequence: Grey Goose Soho House pop-up party, Saturday night

Albert Brooks, Ryan Gosling and George Clooney at the Grey Goose Soho House party Saturday. (Alexandra Wyman/Getty Images for GREY GOOSE Vodka)

It wasn’t just the effect of vodka cocktails — by 1 a.m., there were so many A-list celebrities circulating one’s sense of reality got a little shaky. A-listers don’t often outnumber the rest of us.

On Saturday night Bono, George Clooney (and rumoured lady friend Stacy Keibler), Ryan Gosling, Keira Knightly, David Cronenburg, Evan Rachel Wood, Jon Hamm and girlfriend Jennifer Westfeldt, Anna Faris, Jonah Hill, Bryan Cranston, Emily Blunt, Kirsten Dunst, Neil Young, Albert Brooks, Alexander Skarsgard, Emile Hirsch, Sarah Gadon, Kate Mara, Jimmy Kimmel, and Arcade Fire’s Win Butler and wife Régine Chassagne all partied in the entertainment district warehouse building. Highlights included:

— Seeing Clooney and Keibler head over to where three ping pong tables were set up hand-in-hand. For one promising moment, it seemed we were about to see the competitive side of Keibler, a former wrestler, and be treated to a game (sadly, they were just finding the back entrance to make an invisible escape).

— Watching Hill, bottle of Stella in hand, bob his head approvingly as DJ Zen blasted “Empire State of Mind,” and Wood fidget with that black hat she wore all weekend.

— Seeing Cranston with hair (for Breaking Bad fans, it’s a bit of a shock).

— Talking to a now grown-up, but still baby-faced, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, better known as the adorable, drum-playing child of Liam Neeson in Love, Actually. At TIFF with his new film Death of a Superhero, it was Brodie-Sangster’s first time in Toronto.

— Woman’s washroom banter that indicated this was no regular party: including “Is that a Fall ’09?” and “Who’s your agent?” being asked on the assumption everyone at the party was an actor.

— Wendy Gillis

Best food: No surprise here. With dozens of booths all around the sprawling Windsfield Park grounds, the noshing was best at Sunday’s Canadian Film Centre barbeque. Those in attendance could start off with pulled pork sandwiches and skewers of shrimp served in shot glasses from Per Sé catering, move on to barbequed Lick’s burgers, then finish it off with mini cupcakes or cups of gelato. The alcohol was great too — Jackson Triggs, Stoli and Mill Street among the providers — but it being the Sunday of the first TIFF weekend, coffee and water were overwhelmingly the drink of choice.

— Wendy Gillis

Best live music: This might be a little early, considering that Festival Music House, the Canadian music industry showcase, starts up tonight, but so far, Cee Lo Green's performance at the Alliance Films party on Friday night is our best of fest. Brought in with a partnership with AOL, he was backed by a DJ Rashida on the turntables, the Crazy artist belted through an hour long set, which of course, ended with F--- You and had the very well dressed crowd singing along.

— Raju Mudhar

Best sweets: The Woman in the Fifth afterparty at Roosevelt Room. Sure, Ethan Hawke was a treat for the eyes, but bonus points go to David Rocco for throwing Portuguese custard tarts into the mix. The celebrity chef’s finger food menu also included beef crostini with red cabbage and soaked applewood cheddar, thai style shrimp roll and salmon tartar.

— Wendy Gillis

Best place to dance with no one watching: Post-premiere party for Paul Williams’ Still Alive. Great oldies tunes (Ticket to Ride and Empty Heart were among the playlist) and a small crowd at Cherry Cola’s Rock ‘n Rolla caberet and lounge made for a good place to break out the Twist. It would have been even better if the open bar hadn’t ended a good 25 minutes earlier than promised.

— Wendy Gillis

Best place to dance with everyone watching: As per usual, the Drake remains a place to see and be seen throughout TIFF. At Sunday night’s Rising Stars party — featuring a foursome of up-and-coming Canadian talent, including A Dangerous Method’s Sarah Gadon, as well as TIFF co-director Cameron Bailey — a large crowd of 20-something dolled-up hipsters made for great dance partner selection.

— Wendy Gillis

Most improved celebrity wrangling: Entree to the George Stromboulopoulos party at The Hazelton Hotel was much more civilized than last TIFF, which was a total clustergrope. Last year, celebs were literally pushed through the huddled masses on the sidewalk by handlers to gain admittance to the party at One. Most just gave up. This year, they had cordoned off a red-carpet area well, policed by muscular security and guests entered unmolested through a side door.

— Rita Zekas

TIFF’s big partier: Maybe it’s just his big presence (he actually played ping-pong on Saturday) but it seemed Dave Matthews was everywhere, from The Woman in the Fifth (which he produced) afterparty at Roosevelt Room, to the Vitamin Water rooftop lounge (hanging with Colin Farrell) and of course, at Soho House, along with every other celebrity in town.

— Wendy Gillis