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Friday, August 15, 2025
Toronto film fest to screen Oct. 7 doc initially nixed over ‘copyright concerns’
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The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) announces that it will screen a documentary about the October 7 onslaught, reversing a decision announced earlier this week to cancel the event over what it claimed were copyright concerns stemming from the fact that the filmmakers did not receive permission from the Hamas terrorists whose clips are featured in the film.
The documentary in question is “The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue,” which tells the story of Maj. Gen. (res.) Noam Tibon, who set out to save his son, journalist Amir Tibon, and his son’s family as they were attacked by Hamas-led terrorists at their home on Kibbutz Nahal Oz near the Gaza border. The film was created by Canadian filmmaker Barry Avrich.
In a joint statement announcing the decision to screen the film after all, TIFF CEO Cameron Baily and Avrich say they had “heard the pain and frustration expressed by the public” following the initial decision to scrap the film.
“We have worked together to find a resolution to satisfy important safety, legal, and programming concerns. We are pleased to share that The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue will be an official TIFF selection at the festival this year, where we believe it will contribute to the vital conversations that film is meant to inspire,” the statement continues.
“In this case, TIFF’s communication around its requirements did not clearly articulate the concerns and roadblocks that arose and for that, we are sorry,” it adds.
Please see the following statement from TIFF and the Filmmaker regarding The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue. pic.twitter.com/e3Peik2es1
— TIFF (@TIFF_NET) August 15, 2025
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