85 minutes – Drama, Comedy,
Language: English
Festival release date: September 6, 2024 – TIFF (World Premiere)
Release date: TBA
Production companies: Wildling Pictures, Hawkeye Pictures
Canadian distributor: Paying for It Productions
International distributor: Loco Films

Paying For It was adapted by writer-director Sook-Yin Lee and co-writer Joanne Sarazen from Chester Brown’s 2011 graphic novel.  Brown, the director’s ex-boyfriend, detailed his experiences with sex workers after their relationship ended. Daniel Beirne plays Chester, a young man liberated by the idea of sexual relationships without any emotional entanglements. There’s a highly impactful subplot delivered by author-producer Andrea Werhun, who highlights the impact of Toronto’s never-ending push to renew itself and the impact this has on the city’s younger generation. “Artists are pushed out, indie places are continuously priced out,” she said. “We don’t have places to make art anymore. This film is a historical record of a Toronto that is at real threat of being lost.”