Toronto International Film Festival

TIFF's first major original exhibition, David Cronenberg: Evolution, parallels David Cronenberg's evolution as a filmmaker with his longstanding fascination with the possibilities and perils of human evolution itself. Curated by TIFF Director & CEO Piers Handling, and divided into three major sections that provide a loosely chronological overview of Cronenberg's career, the exhibition traces the development of the director's evolutionary themes across his filmography through more than 300 original artifacts, visionary designs, and rare and unseen footage. The exhibition has traveled to five European cities since its inaugural opening at TIFF.

Approached by RPDI Architects to collaborate in the exhibit design pitch, our initial attempts were to capture a mood that encapsulate the thought processes of the director as he examines human behaviour in his films. Inspired by his philosophies, as well as the movie props that would eventually be on display, our office came up with numerous images. 

The design was conceived as a symbolic journey, exploring the dark, provocative mind of David Cronenberg. The centre of the exhibition was the metaphoric brainstem of the filmmaker, a curvilinear synaptic media installation featuring video clips of dozens of interviews designed as a cascade playing in sequence across a panoptic array of screens. Visitors enter the very centre of the exhibit, conceived as the brain’s inner chamber. This central space was a stylized media installation of screens made of abstract, stretched fabric featuring clips of Cronenberg throughout his career, describing his evolution as a filmmaker. (RPDI design philosophy for exhibit).