TIFF suspends screening of film on Russian soldiers after threats
CBC
The Toronto International Film Festival has announced it will pause all upcoming screenings of the film Russians at War.
The first-person documentary by Russian Canadian filmmaker Anastasia Trofimova spurred protest from Ukrainian officials and community groups who say the film amounts to propaganda. The feature was set to have its North American premiere at the Scotiabank Theatre at 2:30 p.m ET Friday. Additional screenings scheduled for Saturday and Sunday will be paused.
The move is a reversal for the festival, which said earlier this week the film was "in no way" Russian propaganda and that screenings would go ahead as planned.
Organizers on Thursday blamed "significant threats to festival operations and public safety," in a statement.
"This is an unprecedented move for TIFF," they said.
"This has been an incredibly difficult decision. When we select films, we're guided by TIFF's mission, our values, and our programming principles. We believe this film has earned a place in our festival's lineup, and we are committed to screening it when it is safe to do so."
The film's consulting producer, Sean Farnel, called the move "heartbreaking."
He called on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to "fully investigate this affront, from within a sovereign government, to our democratic values in a free media.
"We had assumed those risks would originate within Russia, not Canada."
The Toronto Police Service said the decision was made independently by event organizers, and was not based on any recommendation.
In Russians at War, Trofimova follows soldiers and medics on the front lines of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which the United Nations estimates has killed more than 11,700 civilians and injured another 24,600 since February 2022.
Trofimova told Metro Morning's David Common she filmed a Russian battalion over seven months without Moscow's permission — putting her at risk of criminal prosecution.
She said her attempt to focus on and humanize Russian soldiers was a way to combat further anger and violence.
"In this war, which is full of this complete fog where both sides don't see each other, I had the chance to lift the veil a little bit on the reality of one of the sides that no one, especially Canadians, has heard from for the last two-and-a-half years," she said Wednesday.
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