Pretenders goes to TIFF!
September 23, 2026“I couldn’t have made Pretenders without Onsight. The team was always on top of whatever we threw at them. Over a two-year period, I had all types of archive coming in and they never flinched. Final post was a potential nightmare but they made it dreamy. Thank you.” – Joss Crowley, Director
Feature documentary Pretenders premiered at Toronto Film Festival (TIFF) on Sunday 13th September. It reveals a raw and unapologetic side of the formidable Chrissie Hynde from her turbulent youth, through the heights of her fame and her evolution to becoming the icon we all know and admire.
Director and Producer Joss Crowley, together with Producers Dan Braun, Ian Grenfell and Line Producer Melissa Morton-Hicks built an in-depth insight into the world of a rockstar through extensive interviews with Hynde herself, alongside archival footage featuring Sir Paul McCartney, Vivienne Albertine and Elvis Costello among other icons from the world of Rock’n’Roll.
At OnSight we first hosted the offline edit for Tim Thompsett ahead of working alongside the production team, who gathered and recovered a wealth of archive material, before we completed preparation work ready for the finishing post. This includes some long lost tapes of the original four-piece lineup touring North America during their initial burst of fame. OnSight’s Loren Jayln Kett worked as Archive editor on updating the editorial timeline with all of the newly supplied master archive material.
Senior Colourist Andy Lee completed a P3 grade ahead of the film’s theatrical debut at TIFF and an SDR grade for future home entertainment deliverables. Senior Online Editor Adam Sample, working alongside Online Editor Sam Langshaw, managed the online workflow, while Alfie Mitchell oversaw technical operations with support from OnSight’s team of edit assistants. Senior Post Producer Jade Townsend oversaw the project throughout, coordinating the team and delivery through the final stages of post-production.
Photo Credit- Ebet Roberts
