Toronto Film Festival Denies Blocking Oct. 7 Doc Over Censorship, Says Legal Team, Filmmaker Working to Screen It

The CEO of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) said late Wednesday that efforts are being made to ensure the screening of a documentary about the Hamas-led deadly massacre in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, after receiving backlash for removing the film from the festival’s lineup.

TIFF CEO Bailey Cameron also denied claims about censoring “The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue.”

“I want to be clear: Claims that the film was rejected due to censorship are unequivocally false,” Bailey said in a released statement. “I remain committed to working with the filmmaker to meet TIFF’s screening requirements to allow the film to be screened at this year’s festival. I have asked our legal team to work with the filmmaker on considering all options available.”

The festival will run from Sept. 4-14, and the film is currently not listed on the festival’s official website.

The documentary from Canadian director Barry Avrich follows grandfather and retired IDF Maj. Gen. Noam Tibon as he rescues his family, including two granddaughters, from Hamas terrorists who invaded their home in Nahal Oz during the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack across southern Israel. Tibon also rescued survivors of the Nova Music Festival and helped wounded Israeli soldiers. His heroic efforts were highlighted by “60 Minutes” in October 2023. During the attack, Hamas murdered 1,200 civilians and took 251 others as hostages back to the Gaza Strip. Fifty hostages are still held captive by Hamas in Gaza.

Avi Issacharoff and Lior Raz, the co-creators and writers of the Israeli television series “Fauda,” revealed last year that they are scripting a film about Tibon’s heroism. Tibon has also written opinion pieces for The Algemeiner in previous years and his son published a book about Tibon’s rescue mission on Oct. 7.

Deadline revealed on Tuesday that “The Road Between Us” was removed from the lineup of films being screened at TIFF, because filmmakers did not have “legal clearance” to use footage terrorists themselves filmed while murdering thousands during their deadly rampage. Festival organizers told Deadline in a statement that the film was “withdrawn by TIFF because general requirements for inclusion in the festival, and conditions that were requested when the film was initially invited, were not met, including legal clearance of all footage. The purpose of the requested conditions was to protect TIFF from legal implications and to allow TIFF to manage and mitigate anticipated and known risks around the screening of a film about highly sensitive subject matter, including potential threat of significant disruption.”

Tibon called the decision “absurd and bizarre,” and accused TIFF of “succumbing to pressure and threats” to conceal the truth about what happened during the Oct. 7 attack. “The atrocities committed by Hamas cannot be erased or denied,” he added. The team behind “The Road Between Us” also slammed the reasoning, telling Variety in part: “We are shocked and saddened that a venerable film festival has defied its mission and censored its own programming by refusing this film.”

The move was also condemned by several Jewish groups – including StandWithUs Canada, the Canadian Centre for Jewish and Israeli Affairs, Combat Antisemitism Movement, and Friends of Simon Wiesenthal — and the pro-Israel entertainment industry organization Creative Community for Peace. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar also criticized the move in a post on X, saying there “was no ‘legal clearance’ from Hamas for their GoPro massacre videos.”

“This festival would have asked Hitler or Goebbels for copyright on Auschwitz footage,” said Sa’ar. “This vicious and sickening decision must be cancelled immediately!”

In a statement late Wednesday, Bailey rejected the censorship claims, saying that the misunderstanding “calls for compassion and sensitivity, and I recognize the concerns it has raised among members of the Jewish community and beyond.” He then apologized for “any pain this situation may have caused.”

“It was never my intention to offend or alienate anyone,” he said. “At TIFF, we believe in the transformative power of film to foster understanding and dialogue, especially during challenging times.”

“My intention was to screen ‘The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue,’ which is why I extended the invitation for the film to participate in this year’s festival,” he added. “Given the sensitive and significant nature of the film’s subject, I believe that it tells an important story and contributes to the rich tapestry of perspectives in our lineup – stories that resonate both here at home and around the world … While we are not a political organization, TIFF will always strive to present our programming in a safe, inclusive environment.”