More than 1000 entertainment professionals have signed an open letter released by the non-profit entertainment industry organization Creative Community for Peace criticizing the Toronto International Film Festival’s handling of the film “The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue.”
The letter was sent following the festival disinviting the film and then, following some backlash, offering to work with the filmmakers to meet the requirements of the festival and re-adding it to the lineup. According to those who criticized the move, the festival was “appeasing anti-Israel and antisemitic activists’ intent to silence Jewish voices” by omitting it and never offered an apology for its initial decision.
According to the statement, “TIFF’s attempt to disinvite the documentary is part of a growing trend of silencing Jewish and Israeli voices under the excuse of ‘security concerns.’ Rather than standing steadfast against violent intimidation and protecting filmmakers, TIFF gave cover to those who make threats.”
Modi Wiczyk and Asif Satchu, co-founders of MRC, said in an official statement, “TIFF has championed ‘American Fiction,’ ‘Fair Play,’ ‘Knives Out’ and ‘The Blackening,’ some of MRC’s most provocative and complex films. We are glad that TIFF has reconsidered to ensure that the festival continues to be a haven for art and artists that embody diverse perspectives – especially on contentious topics.”
CCFP Executive Director Ari Ingel said in an official statement, “This incident is not an anomaly—it is part of a disturbing pattern that has emerged since October 7th, in which Israeli and Jewish creatives in film, television, music, sports and literature are confronted with barriers no other community is made to face. The deliberate effort to marginalize and silence Jewish voices in the arts worldwide is intolerable, and it cannot be allowed to persist.”
The letter states: “While the film has been reinstated after a significant public backlash, the festival has not offered a sincere apology or explanation for the harm it created for the Jewish community.”
The letter concludes: “We call on the Board of Directors to question the leadership of TIFF, to platform Israeli voices moving forward and to choose dialogue over exclusion and peace over prejudice.”
Below are a list of some of the signatories:
Amy Schumer, Actress; Debra Messing, Actress; Mayim Bialik, Actress; Sherry Lansing, Former CEO of Paramount Pictures; Rebecca De Mornay, Actress; Jennifer Jason Leigh, Actress; Howie Mandel, TV Host; Jerry O’Connell, Actor; Gary Barber, Chairman and CEO, Spyglass Media Group; Ben Silverman; Chairman & Co-CEO, Propagate Content; Haim Saban, Chairman and CEO, Saban Capital Group; Modi Wiczyk, Co-Founder, MRC; Michael Rotenberg, Partner, 3 Arts Entertainment; Nancy Mendelson Gates, Agent, Partner, UTA; Susan Rovner, Former Chairman of NBCUniversal Television and Streaming; Jonathan Baruch, President, Rain Management Group; Marty Singer, Attorney, Lavely and Singer; Patti Felker, Felker Toczek Suddleson Abramson McGinnis Ryan; Fred Toczek, Partner, Felker Toczek Suddleson Abramson McGinnis Ryan; Jacob Fenton, Partner, United Talent Agency; Nancy Spielberg, Producer; Rick Rosen, Co-Founder, Endeavor; Lawrence Bender, Producer; Howard Owen, Founder and Co-CEO of Propagate Content; David Renzer, Former Chairman/CEO Universal Music Publishing; Erik Feig, CEO Picturestart; Neil Blair, Partner, The Blair Partnership; John Ondrasik, Five for Fighting; Leo Pearlman, Co-CEO, Fulwell Entertainment; Fernando Szew, CEO, FOX Entertainment Global; David Kohan, Showrunner and Executive Producer; Blair Kohan, Partner and Board Member, United Talent Agency; Julie Greenwald, Former CEO/Chairperson Atlantic Records Group; Emmanuelle Chriqui, Actress; Todd Moscowitz, Founder and CEO of Alamo Records and Santa Anna Label Group; David Draiman, Artist; Danny Cohen, President of Access Entertainment; Kevin Yorn, Attorney; Tracy Ann Oberman, Actress and Playwright; Orly Marley, President, Tuff Gong Worldwide; Ryan Kavanaugh, Relativity Media; Matisyahu, Artist; and over 1000 others.
You can read the full letter below:
We, the undersigned members of the entertainment industry, are deeply concerned about the Toronto International Film Festival’s (TIFF) initial decision to disinvite the documentary “The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue,” and its subsequent communications. This is the only documentary scheduled for this year’s program that puts forward Israel’s narrative.
This follows the 2024 festival, which likewise didn’t platform a single Israeli documentary that didn’t disparage the country. In contrast, TIFF 2024 featured three anti-Israel documentaries, with four more slated for 2025.
Last year, Creative Community for Peace and other entertainment industry leaders urged TIFF leadership to provide a platform for Israeli and Israeli-themed projects. TIFF leadership “assured” us they would do so “even in difficult times like this.” That assurance was apparently a lie.
Not only did TIFF omit “The Road Between Us” from the initial slate announcement, but TIFF pressured its filmmakers to change the film’s title—only to then cancel its participation.
While the film has been reinstated after a significant public backlash, the festival has not offered a sincere apology or explanation for the harm it created for the Jewish community.
Furthermore, the initial claim that the project couldn’t be screened because the filmmakers didn’t have the rights to footage Hamas – a Canadian designated terrorist group, broadcast to the world on October 7, 2023, when they massacred, raped, brutalized, and kidnaped thousands of innocent people from toddlers to Holocaust survivors — strains credibility.
As did the claim that the cancellation was for security reasons—when anti-Israel productions face no such barrier and instead of ensuring a safe environment, TIFF caved to these violent demands that only increased a sense that the Jews of Canada don’t count.
This incident was clearly a surrender to an antisemitic campaign determined to silence Jewish and Israeli voices, at a time when antisemitism in Canada is surging to historic levels. TIFF’s decisions this past week have only deepened and legitimized that hostility.
Documentaries and Film Festivals have the power to affect lives and effect positive change in the world. They can bridge cultural divides and bring people together through a shared love of the arts.
We call on the Board of Directors to question the leadership of TIFF, to platform Israeli voices moving forward, and to choose dialogue over exclusion and peace over prejudice.
