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TIFF pauses screenings of documentary about Russian soldiers due to ‘significant threats’

The Toronto Film Festival says it has been forced to pause the screenings of a documentary about Russian soldiers this weekend, citing “significant threats to festival operations and public safety.”

In a statement on Thursday, the festival said it received reports about potential activity in the coming days that could pose significant risk and decided not to proceed with showing “Russians at War” on Saturday and Sunday.

TIFF initially said it was not pulling the documentary from its programming despite a protest this week, calling for the festival to scrap the screenings. Ukrainian officials have said the film amounts to Russian propaganda, a claim denied by the Canadian-Russian director.

“While we stand firm on our statement shared yesterday, this decision has been made in order to ensure the safety of all festival guests, staff, and volunteers,” TIFF said on Friday.

“This is an unprecedented move for TIFF.”

The organization called it a difficult decision and reiterated its belief that the documentary earned a place in the lineup.

TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey told CP24 on Wednesday that the documentary is an “anti-war film” and not Russian propaganda.

“We feel it’s an important look at what’s going on on the ground. This is a Russian-Canadian filmmaker and she has gotten access to some soldiers who are fighting there and who are really confused and disillusioned by having to fight there, who don’t want to be there, who want this war to end desperately. And we thought that was an important context for the film,” Bailey said.

“Many of the people who have been opposed to it that we’ve heard from have not yet seen the film, and I hope that when people see it, they’ll understand why it’s important to get that perspective.”

With files from The Canadian Press

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