Michael B. Jordan, Kerry Washington, Javier Bardem among stars set for TIFF talks

Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Foxx, and Kerry Washington are among the stars who will engage in on-stage conversations at next month's Toronto International Film Festival.

Organizers have announced another slate of events and films for this year's instalment, which runs Sept. 5 to 15. Jordan, Foxx and Washington will be part of the "In Conversation With" program at TIFF Bell Lightbox, which also includes Allison Janney and Antonio Banderas.

Jordan and Foxx will appear together to discuss the film Just Mercy, which will make its world premiere at the fest.

Washington will appear on behalf of American Son, Janney will represent Bad Education, and Banderas will speak about two films — Pain and Glory and The Laundromat.

The festival has also announced a special event with actor Javier Bardem on behalf of his environmental documentary Sanctuary, which will make its world premiere at the fest.

Bardem and director Alvaro Longoria will appear onstage after the premiere to do an extended conversation about the film and how to protect the Antarctic Ocean's resources.

Other special events in the lineup include a live performance by American folk-rockers the Lumineers after the screening of III, a visual companion to their upcoming third record of the same name.

And a screening of Varda by Agnès will be followed by a discussion by female filmmakers about the career of the late Agnès Varda.

TIFF Tribute Awards

Meanwhile, French-Senegalese director and actress Mati Diop — who became the first black female filmmaker to compete for the Palme d'Or at Cannes this year with her movie Atlantics — will receive the festival's inaugural Mary Pickford Award for an emerging, groundbreaking female talent. 

Diop will receive the Pickford honour, named after Toronto-born actress Mary Pickford, on Sept. 9 at the TIFF Tribute Gala, a new fundraising event the festival has established to support its year-round philanthropic cinema initiatives.

Previously announced award-recipients include actors Meryl Streep and Joaquin Phoenix as well as filmmaker Taika Waititi.

"We wanted to bring in some people who are recognized talents, major talents in film [and] give them honours for their body of work, but also for new films they have," TIFF artistic director Cameron Bailey told CBC News on Tuesday.

Each recipient represents "just the quality and excellence in the art of film. I think their work is aligned with our mission to transform the way people see the world through film. These are transformative artists and people — like Mati Diop and Taika Watiti — are doing work that really opens our eyes to other parts of the world and other stories that maybe haven't been on-screen as much before."

Other festival announcements made Tuesday feature the Short Cuts lineup, which includes the North American premiere of three-time Oscar-nominated filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos's drama Nimic, starring Matt Dillon as a professional cellist whose life takes a strange turn.

The festival also announced its TIFF Speaker Series, in partnership with the University of Toronto's Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy.

TIFF is also going paperless with this year's schedule, which will now only be available online, in an attempt to be more environmentally friendly. According to Bailey, the schedule will be downloadable, so patrons can carry it around on their phones.