The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) has withdrawn a documentary concerning the October 7 attack because Hamas did not authorize the use of footage captured by the attackers on bodycams, according to reports from Israeli media.

The festival planned to screen ‘The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue’, a film by Barry Avrich, which recounts the experiences of retired IDF General Noam Tibon during and after an assault that resulted in the deaths of approximately 1,200 individuals and the abduction of 251 others.

Israel’s Foreign Minister, Gideon Sa’ar, criticized the festival’s organizers, equating the decision to pull the movie due to a lack of Hamas ‘consent’ to seeking Adolf Hitler’s approval for Auschwitz footage, as reported by i24NEWS.

Initially, the film was set to be featured, detailing Tibon’s efforts to rescue his family amid an attack by Hamas-led militants at their Kibbutz Nahal Oz residence on October 7.

The documentary employed bodycam footage recorded by the terrorists during the event, marking it as the deadliest day in Jewish history since the Holocaust.

TIFF decided to cancel the film’s screening due to potential disruptive anti-Israel demonstrations at the festival, running from September 4-14, along with copyright issues, according to Deadline.

‘The invitation for the Canadian documentary film “The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue” was withdrawn by TIFF because general requirements for inclusion in the festival, and conditions that were requested when the film was initially invited, were not met,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 organisers said in a statement.

‘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.

‘As per our terms and conditions for participation in the festival, ‘TIFF may disqualify from participation in the Festival any Film that TIFF determines in its sole and absolute discretion would not be in TIFF’s best interest to include in the Festival.’

Tibon, an ex-IDF general and a staunch critic of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s  judicial overhaul, drove from his Tel Aviv home to southern Israel on the morning of October 7 to help the communities attacked on the border. 

Since that day, he has been vocal about his opposition to the Israeli government.

The filmmaking team behind the documentary told Deadline: ‘We are shocked and saddened that a venerable film festival has defied its mission and censored its own programming by refusing this film. 

‘Ultimately, film is an art form that stimulates debate from every perspective that can both entertain us and make us uncomfortable. 

‘A film festival lays out the feast and the audience decides what they will or won’t see. 

‘We are not political filmmakers, nor are we activists; we are storytellers. We remain defiant, we will release the film, and we invite audiences, broadcasters, and streamers to make up their own mind, once they have seen it.’

Reacting to the film’s cancelation, the documentary’s subject Tibon said it was ‘absurd and outrageous’.

‘The Toronto festival surrendered to pressure and threats, choosing to silence and erase October 7. 

‘Barry Avrich’s documentary tells a human, not political, story, documenting the grim reality of Israel’s darkest day. The claim that it cannot be screened because it lacks “usage rights” for Hamas footage from that day is absurd and outrageous – and an insult to the victims.

‘Freedom of expression is the courage to present and hear challenging content, even if it is uncomfortable for some audiences.’

Last year, TIFF received backlash from Ukrainian activists because of its antiwar documentary ‘Russians at War’, which was labelled Russian propaganda by its critics. 

The festival cancelled the film’s screening before showing it days later with heightened security.

Pro-Palestinian activists also disrupted Israeli filmmaker Shemi Zarhin’s film, ‘Hamada’, while Israeli demonstrators, critical of the government, picketed Alexandra Bloom’s screening of ‘The Bibi Files’ about Netanyahu using leaked interrogation footage.

‘The Road Between Us’ was originally invited to play at TIFF subject to certain conditions, including changing its name from ‘Out of Nowhere: The Ultimate Rescue’, and getting legal clearance to use footage filmed and livestreamed by Hamas terrorists, Deadline reported.

The filmmakers were asked to confirm clearance of the footage, provide a letter of indemnification – legally accepting liability for any copyright violations – as well as well provide added security for the screening.

When the documentary team reportedly did not comply with the conditions, producers got an email formally uninviting the film from the festival by TIFF boss Cameron Bailey on August 12.