Movies aren’t the only things being promoted at the annual Toronto International Film Festival. Every manner of product and service will be hustled and hocked to the throng of film-crazed locals and visiting filmmakers and media over the next 10 days and that includes home decor.
The vignette above features B&B Italia’s Cloud sofa and Charles coffee table courtesy of high-end furniture retailer KIOSK: the company has partnered with publicists GAT (Toronto) and M.LINK (Los Angeles) to outfit a rented Yorkville townhouse, ground zero for the promotion of 17 festival films including Suck, London River, Bunny and the Bull and The Good Heart. Like a fashion designer who loans out a gown for a red carpet run, KIOSK has provided floor models to leverage some of TIFF’s buzz.
The fashion analogy is particularly apropos; French design house, Antik Batik, is also hitching a ride on the GAT + M.LINK promo train, hence the dress forms above with Tachinni’s super cool Moon chair by Pietro Arosio.
GAT’s Ingrid Hamilton has been setting up a TIFF shop in Yorkville for the past few years: “We always want to offer something a little different, where media and talent can feel comfortable,” she says. “This puts us in the heart of the Festival without paying Festival hotel rates.”
From now until TIFF wraps on September 19, four publicists will sleep and work on-site in a non-stop promotional frenzy. The front parlour, above, has been transformed into a publicity command centre featuring rented desks and Catifa 46 chairs from KIOSK. The third floor has been repurposed as a cushy screening room.
By tomorrow afternoon, a procession of actors, directors and journalists will be taking turns in Arper’s Catifa 70 chairs, above, as the publicity machine kicks into high gear. Downstairs, KIOSK has provided a Delphi sofa and lounger from Erik Jorgensen. “The brands KIOSK represents are international,” says Contract Sales Director Nathaniel Garcia, “so TIFF is a perfect platform for exposure. Our collaboration with GAT + M.LINK at their Hazelton Avenue headquarters gives us access to the right potential market.”
“KIOSK has been a dream come true,” says Hamilton. “They brought a super slick look to the house and it makes us totally proud to show it off.” Pictured below are B&B Italia’s Words chair, left, and the Hollow chair, right. Now that’s product placement!
September 9th, 2009 at 9:32 am
Good morning Chris, I read you every morning, I’ll try to post more often, I loved the piece on the Don Jail. In another life I was a process server, and attended personally at the door of one of the cells, to serve. I was an eerie place, overcrowded.
September 9th, 2009 at 9:45 am
That’s cool! I wish there was more information about furniture in public areas in general – in the TD towers lobby there’s the barcelona chair, the cantilever chair, and then some weird hybrid of the two. The information wants to be free! (Or something like that :-) )
September 9th, 2009 at 9:56 am
I wonder if they’ll be selling these pcs at clearance price after TIFF… we can only hope!
September 9th, 2009 at 9:57 am
Olya, so great to hear from you!!! I hope you are well and snapping lots of amazing photographs. Maybe even some for styleNorth?
September 9th, 2009 at 10:14 am
I wonder where they rented those desks… My work space is comprised of two old Ikea tables stuck back to back. I like the flexibility (one of them moves to become my “DR” table), but I’d really love a more elegant look (since it’s also my LR). It’s hard to find something I can buy two of at a very reasonable price.
Got any ideas….?
September 9th, 2009 at 1:33 pm
jo,
I’m not sure where the desks above come from (although I will ask). West Elm has some great looking, affordable desks and next week I’ll be posting about some very sweet offerings from Structube, including a beautiful, modern desk.
September 9th, 2009 at 5:46 pm
Chris, you always have all the information and just the right answer, thanks for that…Lois of I like it when you add your comments to ours *just a thought*