Bell Lightbox, the future headquarters for the Toronto International Film Festival Group, is set to join the ranks of the world’s leading innovative cultural institutions. Structured around the experience and history of cinema, the dominant medium of the twentieth century, Bell Lightbox will adopt multiple strategies for engaging a diverse public in our continuing journey with film. The moving image will provide tools for active learning programmes designed for adults and youth, a jumping-off point for social networking and a focus for fun and contemplation. We look forward to our first artistic commissions and the announcement of our premiere shows, which will bring to life this building that has been so long-awaited by lovers of cinema and the visual, aesthetic and media culture it has inspired.
Construction of Bell Lightbox began on February 1, 2007. A five-storey podium building located on Reitman Square in the heart of Toronto’s downtown entertainment district, Bell Lightbox is designed by world-renowned Toronto-based architectural firm KPMB. The building includes five cinemas, two galleries, three learning studios, and an enhanced film reference library and archive. In its size and ambition, Bell Lightbox is set to take TIFFG into new areas of exploration and discovery while allowing us to remain true to our commitment to the history and culture of cinema.
The campaign to build Bell Lightbox is generously supported by founding sponsor Bell. The Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario each have contributed $25 million to realize Bell Lightbox. A gift of more than $22 million has been confirmed from the Reitman family –acclaimed filmmaker Ivan Reitman and his sisters Agi Mandel and Susan Michaels – and The Daniels Corporation, who together form the King and John Festival Corporation. The project is also supported by RBC as Major Sponsor and Official Bank, VISA, Copyright Collective of Canada, NBC Universal Canada, The Allan Slaight Family, The Brian Linehan Charitable Foundation, CIBC, and many other individuals and corporations. The TIFFG Board of Directors, staff and many generous individuals have also contributed to the campaign.
The Toronto International Film Festival Group is a charitable, not-for-profit, cultural organization whose mission is to transform the way people see the world. Its vision is to lead the world in creative and cultural discovery through the moving image.