They're not exactly squeezing Brad Pitt and George Clooney out onto the street, but documentaries are grabbing a larger share of the spotlight than usual at this year's Toronto International Film Festival. In addition to festival opener From the Sky Down - the U2 documentary by Davis Guggenheim - documentary royalty such as Werner Herzog, Morgan Spurlock, Wim Wenders and Alex Gibney will all unspool premieres over the next week.
"We've opened up more seats in our theatres for documentaries than ever before and put them in bigger venues than ever before," said Thom Powers, documentary programmer for the festival.
Several blocks away from U2's red carpet première Thursday, more than a thousand people crammed into a festival theatre for the world première of Into the Abyss, a documentary by Cave of Forgotten Dreams director Herzog.
Spurlock, who gained fame with 2004's Super Size Me, will premiere his latest offering, Comic Con: Episode IV - A Fan's Hope, about the wildly popular annual pop culture conference in San Diego.
Wenders will unveil Pina, about influential dance choreographer Pina Bausch, while Gibney will premiere The Last Gladiators, which examines the world of hockey fighters.
With the U.S. election year looming, Nick Broomfield's Sarah Palin - You Betcha! - billed as a quest for the "real" Sarah Palin in her home state of Alaska - promises to be a big draw.
Herzog received a standing ovation even before the lights dimmed. Into the Abyss follows the filmmaker as he interviews the main players in a triple murder that took place in tiny Conroe, Texas, 10 years ago. Initially focusing on the two men imprisoned for the murder - including one set to be executed eight days after the interview - Herzog broadens his focus to include family and friends of both the victims and the killers, as well as prison officials who deal closely with the condemned.
