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

People walk by a Toronto International Film Festival sign on the opening day of the 49th TIFF in Toronto on Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paige Taylor White

The Toronto International Film Festival says it's pausing upcoming screenings of the controversial documentary "Russians at War" due to "significant threats" to festival operations and public safety.

The film about Russian soldiers' disillusionment at the front lines of the war in Ukraine was set to have its North American premiere at TIFF on Friday, with additional screenings on Saturday and Sunday. 

"This is an unprecedented move for TIFF,"  the festival said in a statement Thursday afternoon.  

"As a cultural institution, we support civil discourse about and through films, including differences of opinion, and we fully support peaceful assembly. However, we have received reports indicating potential activity in the coming days that pose significant risk; given the severity of these concerns, we cannot proceed as planned."

The film, a Canada-France co-production, has drawn the ire of Ukrainian officials and community organizations who called the documentary "Russian propaganda" – a claim TIFF firmly rejected. 

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland also denounced the use of public money to help fund and screen "Russians at War," which received $340,000 through the Canada Media Fund and was produced in association with Ontario's public broadcaster TVO. 

TVO's board of directors withdrew its support for the film this week and cancelled plans to air it on the network.

TIFF has said that the documentary is "in no way" Russian propaganda as it stood by its decision to include it in this year's programming. 

"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," festival organizers said Thursday. 

Toronto police said TIFF's decision to pause the screenings was "made independently by the event organizers and was not based on any recommendation" from police.

"We were aware of the potential for protests and had planned to have officers present to ensure public safety," a police spokesperson wrote in an email.

The film's producers said TIFF's decision to pause the screenings is "heartbreaking" and "shockingly unCanadian."

In an emailed statement, they said they expected any potential safety risks "would originate within Russia, not Canada."

The statement, signed "The producers of 'Russians at War,'" condemned Freeland, other Canadian politicians and various Ukrainian officials in Canada who criticized the film or called for its removal from TIFF's lineup.  

"Their irresponsible, dishonest, and inflammatory public statements have incited the violent hate that has led to TIFF's painful decision to pause its presentation of (the film)," they said. 

In "Russians at War," Canadian-Russian filmmaker Anastasia Trofimova follows soldiers and medics at the front lines of Russia's invasion of Ukraine as some of them express doubts about the war and question their roles in it. 

Trofimova has said the film is "antiwar" and that her goal was to show a part of the conflict that has not been seen in either Russian or western media. She has also said she believes Russia's invasion is illegal and unjustified. 

Trofimova and the film's producers, who include Cornelia Principe and Sally Blake, have said that the majority of the criticisms have come from people who haven't watched the documentary.

The CEO of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, which helped organize protests against the film in Toronto, told The Canadian Press this week that he hasn't watched the documentary but that the congress was "confident" in calling it propaganda based on film reviews and the fact Trofimova used to work for Russia Today, a state-controlled media company. 

Ihor Michalchyshyn said that puts into doubt Trofimova's claims that the documentary was made without knowledge or support of the Russian government.

Trofimova has told The Canadian Press that her work for RT involved producing documentaries on topics mostly unrelated to Russia and that she filmed "Russians at War" at great risk.

Ukraine's consul-general in Toronto, Oleh Nikolenko, said in a social media post Thursday that suspending the film's screenings at TIFF "is the only right decision."

The Ukrainian Canadian Congress said its community will still hold a "lawful and peaceful demonstration" against the film on Friday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.