TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey apologizes for handling of doc about Oct. 7 rescue mission
TORONTO — The CEO of the Toronto International Film Festival is apologizing for pulling and then reinstating a film about a retired Israeli general's rescue mission during the Hamas attacks on Oct. 7, 2023.
In his first public remarks since the controversy unfolded last week, Cameron Bailey said he was sorry for the 'hurt, frustration and disappointment' that their communication caused.
Speaking at a pre-festival event touting homegrown fare, Bailey said he regretted any 'mischaracterizations' of the film.
He also said the organization is working now to clarify information and 'repair relationships.'
'The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue' from Montreal native Barry Avrich will screen at the festival on Sept. 10.
The documentary is described on TIFF's website as a 'rescue thriller' in which Avrich combines new interviews with footage from Oct. 7, recounting retired general Noam Tibon's journey to rescue his son and his family from an attack by Hamas.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 20, 2025.
Alex Nino Gheciu, The Canadian Press
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CTV News
17 minutes ago
- CTV News
Life without cash: Is it a problem?
More venues are going cashless, leaving many asking if it's a new way of life or a future problem? CTV Windsor's Bob Bellacicco finds out.
CBC
21 minutes ago
- CBC
Jaws turns 50 this year. What makes this movie so iconic?
Social Sharing For 50 years, Jaws has been entertaining moviegoers. But 27-year-old Steven Spielberg faced problem after problem on the set of his breakout film about a murderous shark. A new Disney+ documentary, JAWS @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story, explores how these problems helped shape the movie's unforgettable score, frightening practical effects and compelling sense of adventure. Today on Commotion, superfans and film critics Norm Wilner and Tomris Laffly join guest host Rad Simonpillai to talk about how Jaws changed the way we see cinema — and the ocean — forever. We've included some highlights below, edited for length and clarity. For the full discussion, listen and follow Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud on your favourite podcast player. WATCH | Today's episode on YouTube: Rad: Tomris, I wanted to talk about the fact that Jaws is not the only shark movie. We've had so many shark movies. We've had so many other Jaws movies! So what is it about Jaws? Tomris: I mean, look, if the greatest shark movie is made in 1975, people had 50 years to try to do something as good or better — and they haven't even come close to it. First of all, the horror is orchestrated so perfectly, it's about the unknown monster. The orchestration and the symphony that these characters bring to the movie is just impeccable. Because I feel like every good horror movie should have a heart, should have a centre based in character. You are scared because you are scared [for] the person you care about. If you don't care about that person whose lens you're seeing the movie through, you're not actually going to be scared. You're just going to shrug it off as mindless entertainment, but no, you actually care about these people. That's why it works. And also some of those shots are just mind boggling, even today, are unmatched. I'm once again going to go back to the Roy Scheider scene on the beach — the zoom and the split diopter — when he's trying to just orchestrate in his head what's happening. No shark movie after that gave me anything like that. I mean, it's based on cheap thrills and sometimes it's fun, this big, mega creature or the super, mega shark comes and bites you. But none of it has been as rooted in character as Jaws has been, which is what makes it a perfect shark movie. Rad: Norm, talk to me about John Williams's music there and its legacy. What do you think that that really added to Jaws? Norm: Oh, everything. I don't think the film works without the score. The film is this incredible accident that none of it should have happened the way it happened, we should not have the movie that we have. If the accidents hadn't happened, if the [mechanical] shark had worked, I don't doubt Spielberg would have made a pretty good monster movie — but that's all it would have been. I don't think it would have had the impact that it ultimately did have. And the score, which is ultimately, it's two notes. And every single person on the planet over the age of 10 knows what that music is. It's remarkable because the simplicity is the thing that drives it. Williams saw this thing as a predator, as an animal, but it's also matching the push of the camera and the sweep of the cinematography. It works in tandem with the film to give the shark a character that it otherwise wouldn't have. Because we are stuck with a prop that doesn't work. Even when you do see the mechanical shark, it's inanimate. The fins don't move, the tail doesn't smash, they roll it on a gimbal when it eats the little Kintner boy on the raft, it's just the prop circling on a big gimbal. Sometimes you see it rise up out of the water and the mouth opens, that's the only thing they could get it to do before it shorted out. Then you have this incredible cover in Quint's speech about how sharks have lifeless eyes like a doll's eyes. The music is the life. The music is the animation of the animal. It's the personality, it's the cues to the audience to be worried before the people are in the movie. It's a great way of raising suspense before there's any need for it.
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
‘A tricky situation': SaskTel steps back as title sponsor of the Saskatchewan Jazz Festival
For the first time in nearly 30 years, SaskTel won't be attached to the name of the Saskatchewan Jazz Festival. The Crown corporation has held naming rights since 1998, part of a sponsorship package of $150,000 a year. ADVERTISEMENT Shannon Josdal, executive director of the festival, said organizers are busy searching for a new title sponsor and developing new branding. 'It puts us in a tricky situation, and it's a vulnerable situation,' Josdal said. 'We're the 10th jazz festival in Canada to have lost our title sponsor in about the last two years or so. This is something that's been endemic to the industry.' Josdal said there's no bad blood with SaskTel, pointing to the company's ongoing support over the decades. In an email to CTV News, SaskTel said it will still be involved in the festival, just at a smaller scale. 'This change is in no way a reflection of the quality or impact of the Saskatchewan Jazz Festival, which we continue to respect and admire,' SaskTel said. By backing off as title sponsor, SaskTel said it's better positioned to 'develop sponsorship agreements with other organizations and consider supporting new events and causes across Saskatchewan.'
