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The first Friday of the Toronto International Film Festival now unofficially belongs to George Clooney and Tilda Swinton, who star in Burn After Reading, directed by the Coen brothers. Their film premieres on the same night Michael Clayton (which also starred the pair) did in 2007.

The difference this year is that the cast also includes Brad Pitt, Frances McDormand and John Malkovich, making this a bona fide pentagon of power. So it's no surprise that an invitation to the exclusive after-party is considered TIFF's ultimate score.

Alas, even the most well-connected Torontonians will be met with a "Good luck and good night" if they think they can figure out a way into this Focus Features fete.

The good news is that party-hopping scenesters have enough to keep them entertained that night. I, for one, have no idea how I'll be able to hit all four major festivities on Sept. 5, starting with the annual Holt Renfrew bash, which is being co-hosted this year by GQ magazine and designer John Varvatos. Special musical guest MGMT registers as a decidedly edgy choice for the luxury retailer, but then again, fashionistas take pride in their knowledge of emerging talent.

Across town, the music takes a decidedly mainstream spin at the eTalk Festival Party at CTV headquarters, where P. Diddy will headline and Lindsay Lohan's BFF Samantha Ronson is set to DJ. Royal Bank of Canada (the exclusive bank of TIFF) is throwing an environmentally friendly, Bullfrog-powered party (with as-yet unannounced musical performers) in honour of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who gives new meaning to the term jolly green giant.

But only Richard Branson can make an out-of-this-world impact while simultaneously raising awareness for his Virgin Unite charity. Model Petra Nemcova, who was wooed away from OneXOne (which is back this year on the Monday night) shares the marquee with Kate Hudson. Although not technically part of TIFF, the event, which takes place at Muzik, is open to anyone willing to shell out $75. Plus, a pre-VIP cocktail hour will reveal a bevy of Branson's starry pals.

And because no evening during the festival's duration can end before the magic hour of 4 a.m., there will be countless intimate and playful goings-on at such hot-spot boîtes as Amber, Ultra, Nyood, the Drake and One at the Hazelton Hotel where - insider tip - the underground gym, pool and spa are probably the best, albeit hardest to get into, spots to see famous faces in their most au naturel states.

If it isn't already apparent, the gist of this forthcoming social diary will be a mix of big-ticket events that have little to do with films (the Walk of Fame and the Best Buddies galas come to mind) and the studios' smaller celebrations that are thrown to toast the actors and filmmakers (Guy Ritchie's RocknRolla dukes it out with Passchendaele on opening night).

Magazines and entertainment TV shows are reliably getting in on the action; InStyle returns to the Windsor Arms on Tuesday, Entertainment Tonight Canada will be back at Casa Loma for multiple evenings and eTalk will be just about everywhere.

What makes this year's onslaught of soirées ever so slightly different is the crossover of sports, fashion and music with film. Expect to read juicy bits about basketball players LeBron James and Steve Nash, designers Valentino and Dean and Dan Caten of DSquared2, and musicians John Legend and Ronson, who will be accompanied by Lohan at Ultra on TIFF's final Friday, Sept. 12.

There are nearly 250 feature films being shown at the festival and probably as many parties. Suffice it to say, I will be burning the candle at both ends.

Watch for Amy Verner's daily coverage of the film festival's party circuit, beginning Thursday in The Globe and Mail.

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Our TIFF coverage

Watch for our coverage of the 33rd Toronto International Film Festival over the next two weeks:

Simon Houpt's blog will anchor globeandmail.com's TIFF hub, where you can find up-to-date film reviews, festival tips and breaking news.

Our critics Liam Lacey and

Rick Groen emerge from the dark screening rooms to offer daily picks on the best films you probably don't know about, but have to see.

On Friday in Globe 7, we'll run dozens of starred film reviews of all the top gala films, hidden gems and must-avoids this year.

Our team of reporters will be swarming the press conferences, film screenings and parties to capture the festival buzz, every day.

Johanna Schneller returns as the Festivalgoer, bringing you fresh insight into the industry behind the festival machine.

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Gala presentations

All gala screenings take place at Roy Thomson Hall

Passchendaele

Directed by: Paul Gross

Starring: Paul Gross, Caroline Dhavernas, Joe Dinicol, Meredith Bailey, Jim Mezon, Gil Bellows

Screening: Thursday, Sept. 4,

8 p.m.

The Secret Life of Bees

Directed by:

Gina Prince-Bythewood

Starring: Queen Latifah, Dakota Fanning, Jennifer Hudson, Alicia Keys, Paul Bettany

Screening: Friday, Sept. 5,

6:30 p.m.

Burn After Reading

Directed by: Joel Coen,

Ethan Coen

Starring: George Clooney, Frances McDormand, John Malkovich, Tilda Swinton, Brad Pitt

Screening: Friday, Sept. 5,

9:30 p.m.

Dean Spanley

Directed by: Toa Fraser

Starring: Jeremy Northam, Sam Neill, Bryan Brown, Peter O'Toole

Screening: Saturday, Sept. 6,

1:30 p.m.

Rachel Getting Married

Directed by: Jonathan Demme

Starring: Anne Hathaway,

Rosemarie DeWitt, Mather Zickel, Debra Winger

Screening: Saturday, Sept. 6,

6:30 p.m.

La Fille de Monaco

Directed by: Anne Fontaine

Starring: Fabrice Luchini, Roschdy Zem, Lousie Bourgoin

Screening: Saturday, Sept. 6,

9:30 p.m.

Singh is Kinng

Directed by: Anees Bazmee

Starring: Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Om Puri, Sonu Sood, Neha Dhupia, Javed Jaffrey

Screening: Sunday, Sept. 7,

1:30 p.m.

The Duchess

Directed by: Saul Dibb

Starring: Keira Knightley, Ralph Fiennes, Charlotte Rampling,

Dominic Cooper, Hayley Atwell

Screening: Sunday, Sept. 7,

6:30 p.m.

The Other Man

Directed by: Richard Eyre

Starring: Liam Neeson, Antonio Banderas, Laura Linney

Screening: Sunday, Sept. 7,

9:30 p.m.

Nothing But the Truth

Directed by: Rod Lurie

Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Matt Dillon, Angela Bassett, Alan Alda, David Schwimmer

Screening: Monday, Sept. 8,

6:30 p.m.

One Week

Directed by: Michael McGowan

Starring: Joshua Jackson,

Liane Balaban, Campbell Scott

Screening: Monday, Sept. 8,

9:30 p.m.

Pride and Glory

Directed by: Gavin O'Connor

Starring: Ed Norton, Colin Farrell, Jon Voight

Screening: Tuesday, Sept. 9,

6:30 p.m.

A Year Ago in Winter

Directed by: Caroline Link

Starring: Karoline Herfurth,

Josef Bierbichler, Corinna Harfouch

Screening: Tuesday, Sept. 9,

9:30 p.m.

The Lucky Ones

Directed by: Neil Burger

Starring: Rachel McAdams,

Tim Robbins, Michael Pena

Screening: Wednesday, Sept. 10, 6:30 p.m.

Fifty Dead Men Walking

Directed by: Kari Skogland

Starring: Ben Kingsley, Jim Sturgess, Kevin Zegers

Screening: Wednesday, Sept. 10, 9:30 p.m.

Public Enemy Number One

Directed by: Jean-François Richet

Starring: Vincent Cassel, Cécile de France, Gérard Depardieu

Screening: Thursday, Sept. 11, 6:30 p.m.

Who do you Love

Directed by: Jerry Zaks

Starring: Alessandro Nivola,

David Oyelowo, Chi McBride

Screening: Thursday, Sept. 11, 9:30 p.m.

The Loss of a Teardrop

Diamond

Directed by: Jodie Markell

Starring: Bryce Dallas Howard, Chris Evans, Ellen Burstyn

Screening: Friday, Sept. 12,

6:30 p.m.

The Good, the Bad,

the Weird

Directed by: Kim Jee-woon

Starring: Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun, Jung Woo-sung

Screening: Friday, Sept. 12,

9:30 p.m.

Stone of Destiny

Directed by: Charles Martin Smith

Starring: Charlie Cox, Kate Mara, Robert Carlyle, Bill Boyd

Screening: Saturday, Sept. 13, 8:00 p.m.