SEPT 11, 2026 · Toronto
BIG DAY OUT
The room where creators, culture and cinema collide.
An entertainment-first afternoon inside the Toronto International Film Festival — project reveals, comedy, live hosting, creator moments and brand activations built into the show.
This isn't another industry mixer
During festival week, the city fills with panels and parties. We built a show instead.
It's a show, not a session
Scripted moments, live hosting, comedy, reveals and audience interaction. The room is entertained, not lectured.
Nobody is behind a table
There is no panel row, no name-card podium. The day is staged like production, with brands built into the story.
Everything is filmed
Content is created in the room — short-form, portraits, interviews and a recap film that lives long after festival week.
It's Official Festival programming
BIG DAY OUT sits inside the Toronto International Film Festival, on the industry's biggest week of the year.
The run of show
Three acts. One room. Stay for the arc.
This isn't a drop-in mixer — the day moves through three acts. Arrive on time and stay for the arc. What's inside each act is revealed live, on the day.
Gallery — Find the frame
The room opens. Hosts set it in motion and the day begins to build. What's coming stays under wraps — you find out when the room does.
Activations — Fight for the moment
The show moves through live beats, reveals and hosted moments. Titles, cast and announcements land here, on the day — not before.
Showcase — Look, listen, vibe, connect
The room releases into activations, portraits and the conversations that follow. Stay for the arc.
Who's in the room
Roughly 300–350 people who make things happen in film, culture and content.
Featured participants
In the room
The creators, performers and storytellers helping shape BIG DAY OUT. Additional featured participants and project announcements to come.
The companies behind it
Producers, storytellers and builders who already move Canadian culture.
Ron & Aussie Productions
Storytelling that moves culture forward.
Role at Big Day Out
Presenting Production Partner
MISC Productions
Backing bold Canadian storytellers.
Role at Big Day Out
Presenting Production Partner
Launch North
Building the next generation of Canadian creative ventures.
Role at Big Day Out
Innovation & Entrepreneurship Partner
I Thought It Was Just Me — The Podcast
Comedy. Culture. Conversation.
Role at Big Day Out
Official Creator Partners & Hosts
Your hosts
Jayne Kamara & Shawna Stewart
BIG DAY OUT is hosted live by Jayne Kamara and Shawna Stewart — the voices behind I Thought It Was Just Me — The Podcast. They bring their own audience into the room and carry the day out of it, through episodes, clips and creator-led coverage.
The people behind the moment
Built by storytellers who make things people actually watch.
BIG DAY OUT is produced by SS Collective Studios and powered by Big Picture — the team behind I Thought It Was Just Me — The Podcast and a growing slate of original programming. Hosted live by Jayne Kamara and Shawna Stewart, whose audience follows them into the room.
Why creators are part of the story
The industry's next audience is already in the room — and they publish the same day.
They bring reach
Creators arrive with communities that trust them. What happens in the room travels the moment it happens.
They make the content
Instead of one recap post, the day produces dozens of native pieces across platforms and formats.
They give brands a reason to be there
A partner isn't sponsoring a backdrop — they're inside content people choose to watch.
What a brand can do here
More interesting than sponsorship. Closer to production.
Partnerships here are designed, not sold off a rate card. We start from what you want people to feel, then build the moment around it.
Own a moment in the show
A named segment, a stage beat, a reveal introduced live. Your brand is part of the run-of-show, not the signage.
Build a physical activation
A lounge, a studio, a tasting, a fit-check station — something guests take part in and film themselves inside.
Create content in the room
Short-form, interviews and portraits produced on the day with creators who already have an audience.
Put product in real hands
Sampling, gifting and hospitality with an audience that shares what it experiences, in the week Toronto watches.
Official sponsors
Want to see more?
The deeper opportunity lives behind one door.
Request partner access and we'll open your partner room — the full picture of how a brand fits into BIG DAY OUT.
The full executive overview
The people behind the moment
Activation possibilities built for your category
Creator amplification plan
Audience, reach and content outcomes
How to get involved and what happens next
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