The Empire Club of Canada
Thursday, February 21, 2013
The Empire Club of Canada Presents:
Piers Handling, Director and Chief Executive Officer, TIFF With TIFF Takes on the World
Piers Handling is the Director and Chief Executive Officer of TIFF. He has held this position since 1994, responsible for leading both the operational and artistic growth of the organization.
TIFF has a $33 million annual operating budget and employs more than 150 full time staff. For the last four years, TIFF has been named one of the Greater Toronto Area’s Top Employers. Under Handling’s direction, the organization has grown to become an internationally institution. In 2010 TIFF opened its own permanent home which presents daily programming. TIFF Bell Lightbox, houses five cinemas, two exhibition galleries, and educational and learning studios. He led the $196 million fundraising campaign. Handling has curated numerous film retrospectives and presented programmes of Canadian cinema at The Sundance Film Festival, the British Film Institute, the Havana Film Festival and sat on festival juries including Cannes, Tokyo, Rotterdam, San Sebastian, Torino, and Istanbul.
Prior to joining the Toronto International Film Festival in 1982, Handling began his career at the Canadian Film Institute, ultimately becoming Deputy Director. After leaving the CFI, he taught Canadian cinema at Carleton University in Ottawa and Queen’s University in Kingston. He has published extensively on Canadian cinema and edited numerous books. Handling has been honoured with the Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres, France’s highest cultural insignia. In 2003, he was named CEO of the Year by the Canadian Public Relations Society. He holds three Honorary Doctorates from Ryerson University, York University and OCAD University, and has sat on a number of Boards and advisory Councils including Festivals and Major Events, the Canadian Film Centre, Tafelmusik, Luminato, Telefilm Canada’s Feature Film Advisory Committee, and Ontario’s Minister of Culture’s Advisory Council for Arts and Culture
Speaker:
Piers Handling, Director and Chief Executive Officer, TIFF
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