Bell is breaking the fourth wall to thank Toronto International Film Festival audiences as it prepares to wrap up its longstanding relationship as the Toronto International Film Festival’s lead sponsor.

In the two spots, one based on a 19th century period drama and the other a slasher film, the actors address the viewing audience directly with the same kind of awe usually reserved for stars on the red carpet, be it to thank them for watching the movie or to praise their openness to exploring different genres of film.

“To recognize the amazing people that TIFF attracts every year, we thought it would be fun to flip the script and have the star of our film trailer gush over the audience – by breaking the fourth wall and asking the audience to take a selfie or showing off their TIFF fan tattoo,” says Marcus Sagar, group creative director at Leo Burnett, the agency responsible for the work.

Past Leo Burnett work in support of the Bell/TIFF partnership has celebrated hard-core movie lovers, cineastes who can recite iconic quotes on a dime and can list every movie by their favourite director in chronological order.

Bell announced last month that it would not be renewing its TIFF sponsorship at the end of 2023, having supported the festival since 1995 and currently holding naming rights to its downtown Toronto theatre. Bell has been looking to cut costs amidst a challenging year for the media industry, which saw it shutter six radio stations in June and eliminate 1,300 jobs.

In 2022, sponsorship dollars from all brands contributed around 28% of TIFF’s total revenues, or about $13.4 million.

While TIFF has been an attractive sponsorship property, attracting roughly 700,000 visitors to Toronto annually and a big roster of brand partners including Peroni, RBC, Buglari, Visa, Genesis and Canada Goose.

However, WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes in the U.S. have cast a shadow on this year’s festivities. The labour action means there will be fewer actors in attendance to promote their films, while Canadian actors union ACTRA plans to holding a solidarity rally.

Last month, TIFF’s chief operating officer and VP of partnerships both left the organization.