Seen from Canada
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“Russians at War,” a documentary about a Russian battalion on the Ukrainian front, will not be screened at the Toronto festival. Its Russian-Canadian director Anastasia Trofimova is accused of wanting to “whitewash the responsibility of Russian soldiers.”
As the stars return, a year after the writers’ and actors’ strike, the Toronto International Film Festival is embroiled in a controversy that goes beyond cinema. The programming, then the sudden cancellation of the documentary Russians at Warsees two facets of Canada opposed: on the one hand its deep relationship with the Ukrainian people and its waves of immigration from the end of the 19th century, and on the other its visceral attachment to freedom of expression and creation.
After its debut at the Venice Film Festival two weeks ago, Russians at War, The documentary by Russian-Canadian Anastasia Trofimova was supposed to have its North American premiere at the Canadian festival. But things went from bad to worse when the Ukrainian consul in Toronto became outraged, accusing the film of “whitewashing the responsibility of Russian soldiers who commit war crimes”. Then, it was the turn of Chrystia Freeland, number 2 in Justin Trudeau’s government, herself of Ukrainian descent, to share her “concerns”.
Under pressure
“It is not normal that Canadian public funds finance the presentation and production of a film like this,” lashes out at the minister. The French-Canadian film was co-financed by the Canada Media Fund, a public institution. It is also associated with TVO, a public channel in the province of Ontario. TVO initially defended “an anti-war film” before… distancing himself. “We heard the com
