the red carpet at the toronto international film festival

tonight was a wonderful forey into the world of the toronto international film festival

the film was so much fun. we went to see the world premier of trust the man

there was even a red carpet. i guess no other colour would do.

it was so different than going to a movie at your local cineplex. it's hard to describe how, just little nuances that made it different.

part of that was that it was in a theatre, a theatre where normally there would have been plays, rather than a movie theatre.

in fact, if i were to sum up how it felt different that would be it. it felt more like going to a play than it did going to a movie.

people were more engaged.

the energy in the space was amazing.

people laughed louder.

people clapped at moments they would have never clapped if they just saw it at silver city.

the actors came out and talked at the end. it would appear david duchovny is a really funny guy, who knew. i don't mean stand up comic funny, i mean real person who you'd like sitting around having a pint funny. quick witted. it was great.

it wasn't the passive experience that going to the movies usually is. this was theatre, no doubt about it, active, passionate theatre. it is an interesting lesson in how much the audience makes the play for me. but i digress...

the question and answer thing at the end was lovely, trite though most of the questions were, it was still interesting to see how the director and actors answered. i (of course) had my hand up to ask a question, but kept getting overlooked. that is until the end, the final question, when the facilitator (not sure what else to call her) pointed to me. very clearly pointed to me. as did someone else on stage (maybe justin bartha? i don't know, i didn't actually see, it was my stunningly sexy date di who told me that part).

and yet, despite the clarity of the pointing, some other person asked a question. she started asking the question before the person pointing to me had finished talking. there was no inturupting. i don't remember what her question was, but i'm sure it wasn't as good as mine. no where near as interesting. well, no where near as interesting to me anyway, and that is what is important after all.

pardon? what was that? what was i going to ask? oh, yes, glad you asked. well...

the director, bart freundlich, mentioned in his opening spiel that it was not only the world premier, but also the first time any of the actors had seen the movie.

that led me to what i imagine is a hard question, but one i'm dying to know the answer to...

what does it feel like to see that for the first time? in film scenes are filmed out of order, there is no chronological sequence for the filming, it's all about what will fit in the schedule when. so, when the actors see the film for the first time, they see the story for the first time. unlike on stage where we are rehearsing for ages, and see (or, experience i guess, since it would be difficult to *see* it if you're on stage) the play in it's entirety, or at least in chronological order, several times before it is ever introduced to an audience. so, what is that like, to experience it for the first time?

honestly, i'm not sure that it's an answerable question, but i wanted to ask, i wanted to hear what they had to say.

and so, i have posted it here on my blog on the oh-so-likely chance that david duchovny or julianne moore or justin bartha or maggie gyllenhaal or any of the other fine actors who were in this film read my blog and are dying to satisfy my curiousity which was so rudely pre-empted this evening...