People protest outside of Scotiabank Theatre about the documentary "Russians at War" playing at the Toronto International Film Festival, in Toronto, on Tuesday Sept. 10, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paige Taylor White
TORONTO – The Toronto International Film Festival says it’s not pulling a documentary about Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine from its schedule, despite protests from Ukrainian officials and the Ukrainian-Canadian community.
TIFF says it respects the concerns raised about “Russians at War,” but says the film should “in no way” be considered Russian propaganda.
Festival organizers say it’s their understanding that the documentary was made without the knowledge and participation of any Russian government agencies, and they believe the film merits a place in TIFF’s lineup.
TIFF’s statement comes a day after Ontario’s public broadcaster TVO, which helped fund the documentary, announced it was no longer supporting the film and would not be airing it in the coming months as planned.
The Ukrainian-Canadian Congress says it’s disappointed by TIFF’s decision to “double down” on screening “Russians at War.”
Ukraine’s consul general in Toronto and other Ukrainian groups in Canada have called on TIFF to pull the film, while dozens of people demonstrated outside an industry and press screening of the documentary on Tuesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
