In addition to its regular film awards, whose winners were announced at the conclusion of the festival, the festival also announced the inaugural
TIFF Tribute Awards, a special program to honour distinguished lifetime achievement in film. Tribute Awards were presented to
Meryl Streep and
Joaquin Phoenix for acting,
Taika Waititi for directing, cinematographer
Roger Deakins for artisan film craft,
Mati Diop for emerging talent,
Participant Media for impact media, and
David Foster for special contributions to film. The first award recipients were announced on 12 September, with the major awards announced at the close of the festival on 15 September. In light of the fact that international filmmakers are rarely still in Toronto to accept their awards in person by the end of the festival, the organizers opted to cancel the traditional awards ceremony, and instead announced the award winners through TIFF's social media.
Nicolas Cage was awarded with the Creative Coalition's Spotlight Initiative Award for his role in
Color Out of Space. ==Programme==