Anger after Toronto film festival pulls invite for October 7 documentary, citing legal concerns, other 'known risks'
'The topic of creators' rights is something I work with regularly,' said Talia Harris Ram, a producer on the film, per the Times. 'There's no legal problem with showing these clips, which were already streamed live on October 7. From an intellectual property standpoint, they are clearly in the public domain.'
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Canada's Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) said in its own statement: 'It is unconscionable that TIFF is allowing a small mob of extremists — who use intimidation and threats of violence — to dictate what films Canadians can see at the festival.' It added: 'This shameful decision sends an unmistakable message: Toronto's Jewish community, which has long played an integral role at TIFF, is no longer safe or welcome.'
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In an email sent to tens of thousands of Canadian Jewish community members and allies on Wednesday, the CIJA called on supporters to contact TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey and urge him to reverse the decision and include The Road Between Us in the festival program. 'It is a stain on the festival's reputation and a blow to the values Canadians hold dear,' the email said.
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The group Canadian Women Against Antisemitism has also released a statement on social media, calling on supporters to demand that TIFF reverse its decision, and to 'tell Ontario and Canada: No more funding for cultural capitulation.' (The provincial and federal government are both TIFF sponsors.)
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TIFF released the following statement: 'The invitation for the Canadian documentary film The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue was withdrawn by TIFF because general requirements for inclusion in the Festival, and conditions that were requested when the film was initially invited, were not met, including legal clearance of all footage.
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'The purpose of the requested conditions was to protect TIFF from legal implications and to allow TIFF to manage and mitigate anticipated and known risks around the screening of a film about highly sensitive subject matter, including potential threat of significant disruption.
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'As per our terms and conditions for participation in the Festival, TIFF may disqualify from participation in the Festival any Film that TIFF determines in its sole and absolute discretion would not be in TIFF's best interest to include in the Festival.'
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Last year the film Russians at War was denounced as Russian propaganda by Ukrainian groups, then-Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and others. TIFF defended its inclusion in the festival, but then cancelled screenings and ultimately gave the film a limited release only after the festival ended.
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CTV News
8 hours ago
- CTV News
‘Russians at War' team on ‘shocking' backlash to film and direct-to-audience release
Anastasia Trofimova is seen the film "Russians at War" in this undated handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout - Anastasia Trofimova Anastasia Trofimova risked her life to make 'Russians at War' — and then spent the next year fighting to have the film shown. Now, after months of cancellations, protests and threats, the controversial documentary will bypass traditional channels and release directly to audiences on Tuesday. The film, which follows Russian soldiers on the front lines of the war in Ukraine, drew a standing ovation at its Venice world premiere in 2024 but quickly became a lightning rod. Its North American debut at TIFF last year was met with demonstrations from pro-Ukraine groups who called it Russian propaganda. Its screenings had to be rescheduled due to 'significant threats to festival operations and public safety.' The blowback continued throughout the year, with festivals including Athens and Zurich withdrawing the film due to mounting protests and security concerns. Meanwhile, TVO scrapped plans to air the documentary after the backlash, leaving it without a distributor. 'I was getting death threats and all sorts of abuse,' says Trofimova of the backlash. 'It was shocking. You go to the war against all odds, you bring back a story, you go deeper than other people because you're that much more obsessed about it, and you are getting attacked by people who have not been even close to the war, but they're telling you what it's like.' The Russian-Canadian director points out that many of the film's detractors said they hadn't seen the film and didn't intend to. 'They're refusing to see the film, but have very strong opinions on it. So that's been a bit surprising,' she says on a video call. In 'Russians at War,' Trofimova embeds herself with Russian troops on the front lines of the conflict in Ukraine, capturing their personal experiences and perspectives. While some have praised it for its unfiltered portrayal of soldiers' realities, others have criticized it for lacking historical and political context about the invasion, raising concerns that it might whitewash the actions of the Russian military. The film's producer Cornelia Principe says the direct-to-audience release is 'partly by design, partly by necessity.' 'It was important for us to get it out there so people can see it, because part of the controversy is coming from places where people haven't seen the film,' explains the Oscar-nominated producer behind 2022's 'To Kill a Tiger.' Principe says 'Russians at War' is still being shopped to European broadcasters and will air on British Columbia's Knowledge Network this fall as part of a series of films about the war in Ukraine. Lawyers representing the film threatened TVO with legal action last year for pulling the film, but Principe says both parties have since reached 'a mutually satisfactory settlement of our dispute and have agreed not to comment further.' She says her production company, Raja Pictures, has reclaimed the film's rights. The film is available to rent worldwide at except in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus, where producers plan to offer it for free at a later date. Principe says they took inspiration from the Oscar-winning documentary 'No Other Land,' about the Israel-Palestine conflict, and 'Union,' which follows Amazon workers' fight to unionize — both titles faced distribution hurdles and ultimately went the direct-to-audience route. Trofimova says the intense backlash to 'Russians at War' revealed just how vulnerable films can be to organized attacks. 'It was shocking how easy it is to attack a film. If you are an interest group, if you're a state, if you're a corporation, it's not that hard to get screenings cancelled or to muddy the waters around what it's about,' she says. 'How do we make complex films and get them out there, despite the fact that they will most likely be attacked by some sort of interest group?' Principe worries about the chilling effect such pressure could have on creative freedom. 'Are we leading to situations where filmmakers will self-censor, where broadcasters will self-censor, where festivals will self-censor and not take on difficult things?' Still, Principe says she and Trofimova 'listened to what people were saying.' In response to criticism that 'Russians at War' lacked sufficient context on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, they added an introductory card to the direct-to-audience version noting that the invasion is 'the deadliest conflict on European soil since WWII' and that war crimes investigations by the International Criminal Court are underway. As for those still reluctant to watch the film, Trofimova says: 'Watch it when you're ready.' 'It's not a film where it's like 'gotcha.' It's not a film where I aimed to dehumanize someone. It's a document of history and this war is scary. And this war, it is a tragedy and it's still continuing. And when you watch it, just know that it's continuing,' she says. 'I hope, on the human part, we can see each other as people, and I hope that once you see what war looks like, anyone who has any illusions will understand a little bit more.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 12, 2025. Alex Nino Gheciu, The Canadian Press
CBC
11 hours ago
- CBC
TIFF pulls documentary about Oct. 7 attack from lineup over security and rights concerns
The Toronto International Film Festival has pulled from its lineup a documentary detailing one family's experiences of the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas over footage rights and security issues, according to multiple news outlets. In an emailed statement, the filmmaking team behind the documentary The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue, acknowledged the cancellation and told CBC News that they were "shocked and saddened" by the festival's decision. "Ultimately, film is an art form that stimulates debate from every perspective that can both entertain us and make us uncomfortable. A film festival lays out the feast and the audience decides what they will or won't see," the statement said. "We are not political filmmakers, nor are we activists; we are storytellers. We remain defiant, we will release the film, and we invite audiences, broadcasters, and streamers to make up their own mind, once they have seen it." The film, by Canadian director Barry Avrich, tells the story of Noam Tibon, a retired IDF general who is on a quest to save his son and his family during the attack that sparked the nearly two year long war between Israel and Hamas. Tibon's story has been told before in the media, including on CBS's 60 Minutes. His son, Amir Tibon, who is a journalist, also recounted the events from his own perspective in a book. He moved his family to a border kibbutz — then Oct. 7 happened 10 months ago One year after the Oct. 7 attacks, Israeli journalist Amir Tibon tells CBC's Matt Galloway about what happened when Hamas-led militants attacked his Israeli border kibbutz and how his father, a retired IDF general, raced through danger to save his family. According to Deadline, which was first to report the news, TIFF withdrew its invitation for the film to participate in the festival in part because some requirements for inclusion were not met, including the "legal clearance of all footage." "The purpose of the requested conditions was to protect TIFF from legal implications and to allow TIFF to manage and mitigate anticipated and known risks around the screening of a film about highly sensitive subject matter, including potential threat of significant disruption," the festival said in a statement to The Associated Press and Deadline. The ultimate dis-invitation, according to Deadline, came over the legal clearance and identification of footage of the attack that was filmed by Hamas. CBC News made multiple requests to TIFF for comment on Wednesday, but the festival did not respond. Groups condemn decision The move has drawn condemnation from a number of organizations and officials. Creative Community for Peace, an entertainment industry organization that educates about antisemitism, called the decision to pull the film "deeply disturbing." "They are choosing to censor a Jewish story of survival and attempting to erase the experiences of survivors of the worst attack on Jews since the Holocaust," the statement read in part. "This decision is part of a growing trend of silencing Jewish and Israeli voices under the excuse of 'security concerns.' " The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs' CEO, Noah Shack, also decried the decision, which he saw as the festival bending to the prospect of protests. "This shameful decision sends an unmistakable message: Toronto's Jewish community, which has long played an integral role at TIFF, is no longer safe or welcome," he said in a statement. Israel's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gideon Sa'ar, also called the decision "vicious and sickening" in a post on X. And Stan Cho, Ontario's Minister of Tourism, Culture and Gaming, said in a statement posted to social media that he believed freedom of expression is "integral to the arts." TIFF pulled another documentary last year The festival also drew controversy last year over its decision to run — then pull — a documentary that followed Russian soldiers fighting in the war against Ukraine. The film, called Russians At War by Russian-Canadian director Anastasia Trofimova, attracted protesters who called the film Russian propaganda. After the festival paused screenings due to "significant threats," the film was quietly screened toward the end of the festival. Russians At War follows soldiers and medics on the front lines of the war, something the filmmaker says she did without the government's permission, which puts her at risk of criminal prosecution. Sean Farnel, a producer on the documentary who managed the film's distribution at festivals, told CBC News that the dis-invitation of The Road Between Us felt like "total deja vu," given what his team went through last year. He says decisions like these are becoming "endemic" within the arts world, and that it's increasingly difficult for documentary filmmakers to secure funding to tell difficult or provocative stories. "I think we all have to come together and figure out a way to present such work constructively, safely, because that's what festivals, that's what filmmakers do" Farnel said. His team recently made Russians At War available directly to audiences through a website that he says gives the film context. He says he feels fortunate that filmmakers at least have the option of circumventing the usual distribution channels in this way to give people a chance to view their work in the event that festivals are unwilling or unable to present it.
CTV News
12 hours ago
- CTV News
Les Grands Feux to light up the night sky with a patriot tribute to Canada
Large firework display over the Ottawa River for the International Sound of Light fireworks competition (Les Grands Feux du Casino Lac-Leamy). (Karen Hogan/iStock/Getty Images) Another fireworks showcase is set to light up the sky tonight over the Ottawa River at Les Grands Feux du Casino Lac-Leamy but this time, it's Canada's time to shine. The annual summertime festival is back for it's 28th year. 'It's the culmination of years worth of preparation,' said Les Grands Feux CEO Julie Moffatt. 'We work year-round to create those magic moments, so my team getting together, having ideas and seeing them take place and become real is really what drives us.' This year, the international friendly competitions feature light shows from Japan, Australia, Mexico, and for the first time since 2022, Canada. 'It was important for us specifically this year with everything that's going on in terms of the social and economic situation,' says Moffatt. 'It was a decision that Royal, our pyrotechnic firm, and ourselves took very seriously.' Canada's team is excited to showcase their talents to the nation's capital. 'Canada is home to some of the best designers in the world…We have a tendency of matching our fireworks very well to the music. We have generally very lively and entertaining soundtracks and great products,' said Fireworks Spectacular president and Canadian team member Brad Dezotell. Les Grands Feux A barge where fireworks will be launched from at Les Grands Feux festival. (Kimberley Fowler/CTV News Ottawa) Canada's showcase will also come alive with an original soundtrack composed entirely by two local artists, Julien Provost and Mathieu Donais from Gatineau, Que. It's the first time the team has collaborated with Canadian musicians for this competition. 'When Brad from Fireworks Spectacular called us, we were super excited,' says Provost. 'We base our show really like a movie so there's an intro, there's a trigger moments and ups and downs. It's really like a roller coaster of emotions.' Donais says organizers gave them four days to put the show together. 'As music producers, we love the challenge,' Donais said 'We do our best to queue around synchronized kind of moments, and then we let them pick the moments where it blows up.' Each team sets up about 5,000 fireworks for their show on a barge in the middle of the Ottawa River that's wired to a computer board. 'At the festival, they actually will have some things already pre-installed, not the fireworks themselves, but the mortars and the equipment in certain positions, which helps us out a lot so we're not starting from scratch,' says Dezotell. 'In the first day, they drop all of the shells at this festival and then we begin working on the lower-level fireworks that you see across the front of the barge… Once we get to day three, each and every firework are tested beforehand to be sure that it's talking to the board. After that, the computer does all the work for us.' The dazzling displays thrill audiences in Gatineau and Ottawa with Parliament Hill in the backdrop. 'We're happy that our show can be seen from other places around the city,' says Moffatt. 'That's the beauty of such a magnificent show, but really the site (at the Canadian Museum History) is the best place, because you get to hear the music and the combination that goes with the fireworks.' While the fireworks are the pinnacle of the experience, the festival also has special entertainment at the museum grounds, including tasty culinary experiences, live music, light installations and family-friendly activities. Les Grands Feux du Casino Lac-Leamy wraps up with The Grand Finale on Saturday.
