TORONTO – Jason Reitman says it’s “amazing” to screen his film about the origins of “Saturday Night Live” in Toronto, given the sketch comedy institution’s Canadian roots.
The Canadian-American filmmaker’s feature film “Saturday Night” screened at the Toronto International Film Festival on Tuesday.
Vancouver’s Gabriel LaBelle plays “SNL” creator Lorne Michaels in the film, which dramatizes the chaotic 90 minutes before the show’s very first episode on October 11, 1975.
Reitman says Michaels has a gift for spotting “overlooked talent,” which he believes stems from the producer’s Toronto background and his Canadian perspective on the world.
The “Juno” director adds that his father, filmmaker Ivan Reitman, ran in the same circles as Canadian actors Dan Aykroyd and Valri Bromfield and musicians Howard Shore and Paul Shaffer, all of whom were in the early days of “SNL.” were involved. “
Reitman says Canadian humor is embedded in the show’s DNA and the world is glad the country has given it “so many great comedians and musicians.”
“Lorne was able to constantly evolve and understand, ‘What’s the next level of comedy? Where are we going from an evolutionary perspective?’” says Reitman.
“He’s been doing this for 50 years and I think part of it has to do with his Toronto origin story and his Canadian perspective on the world.”
TIFF runs through Sunday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2024.
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