The Festival isn’t the Destination
Updated: 2 days ago
By Julie Sisk | August 4, 2026
Because Venice and London are on the horizon, all week-long people have been asking me which film festival is my favorite. I addressed this previously by saying it is akin to asking someone which is their favorite child. For most, that is impossible to say.
When someone asks that question, they are usually trying to decide between Venice and London and possibly Cannes….and it's a fair question. Recently though, I’ve come to realize it might be the wrong question.
Because the festival isn't really the destination.
Cannes isn't simply the Croisette. Venice isn't just the Lido. London is more than Leicester Square.
All of them are the places where something remarkable happens.
For a few days each year, thousands of people who care deeply about cinema gather in one place. Filmmakers, critics, actors, students, programmers, journalists, and audiences from every corner of the world come together with a shared curiosity: What's the next great film?
The screenings matter, of course. But what stays with me are often the moments surrounding them and those happen at every festival. From Des Moines to Deauville…Cannes to Locarno. The fun part in attending is the interactions pre and post screening. Otherwise, you could stream the films in a few weeks’ time.
It’s the conversation as everyone spills out of a theater.
The spirited disagreement over coffee about a film neither of you can stop thinking about.
The chance encounter with someone whose perspective completely changes your own.
The walk to dinner when one conversation about a movie becomes a conversation about history, politics, family, or life itself.
Those moments can't be streamed.
I believe great films ask us to see the world differently and great festivals ask us to see one another differently.
In an age when nearly every film eventually finds its way onto a streaming platform, it would be easy to conclude that attending a film festival is no longer relevant.
Obviously, I disagree!
Watching a film at home is about the movie.
Experiencing a film festival is about becoming part of the conversation surrounding that movie—while it's still unfolding, while opinions are still forming, while filmmakers are there to answer questions, and while audiences from around the world are bringing their own experiences to what they've just seen.
That's why every festival has its own distinct character. Not because of its theaters or red carpets, but because of the community it creates.
When we travel with Take2Film, we certainly want our guests to see wonderful films. But just as importantly, we want them to experience everything that happens between the screenings: the conversations, the friendships, the unexpected discoveries, and the feeling of being present at a moment that exists only once.
In the end, the destination isn't Cannes, Venice, London, or Toronto.
The destination is a deeper appreciation of cinema—and of the people who love it enough to travel across the world to experience it together.
That's a journey worth taking.
– Julie
