Red carpet Vinsanity,
Tribute to NBA star’s legacy celebrates Raptors and city
During the Saturday premiere of The Carter Effect, the Princess of Wales Theatre welcomed rap royalty and sovereigns of sport — with thousands swarming the street to see the likes of LeBron James, Drake and Chris Bosh.
Drake fans were met with bitter disappointment when the rapper, an executive producer on the film, arrived late and hurried from his car into the theatre without indulging the crowd. “Come back here!” disgruntled admirers yelled. One used the star’s lyrics against him: “We started from the bottom, now we’re here!”
But, for sports fans, The Carter Effect premiere was a window into the otherwise artistically inclined Toronto International Film Festival — as well as a moment to celebrate their city, and the legacy of one of the Raptors biggest stars.
“Toronto basketball started with Vince Carter. It really blew up with Vince Carter,” said Gerome Lacambra, who arrived early to get in line. He credited Carter with kick-starting his own love of the sport.
Carter, an eight-time NBA all-star about to start his 20th season in the league, is the focal point of director Sean Menard’s latest documentary. After joining the Raptors in 1998, Carter’s thrilling rise to notoriety, as he became known among basketball fans worldwide for his spectacular leaps and dunks, brought the city of Toronto along for the ride.
“The Toronto Raptors are the only Canadian basketball team,” Keith Bisnauth explained from his space beside the rail, which held back the crowds.
“And I think without Vince Carter, they would have been sort of phased out. Like the Vancouver Grizzlies.”
When the director walked out and saw Bisnauth and his friend Rohit Kumar standing in their jerseys he gave the pair of pals two tickets for the screening.
Luke Timmons, 15, was yet another first-timer at the fest drawn in by a love for basketball.
His sister,17-year-old Josilin, is a big movie fan and as an argument-avoiding compromise, their mom, Catherine, took the pair with a friend to Saturday’s premiere.
But not all the basketball lovers in the crowd were new to TIFF.
Jayson Deleos, who came to Cana- da from the Philippines in 2010, has been to the festival with his wife every year since 2011 — but this year was special.
“Back home in the Philippines, basketball is very big,” he said. “And Toronto became famous to the Philippines because of Carter.”