First of all, I can't fathom the purpose the three "artists" would have in filming themselves killing and decapitating a cat. If that's "art" then God help us all.Fur flies over cat-killing film
Animal rights activists have held a protest in Canada at the premiere of a documentary about three artists who videoed themselves killing a cat.
Demonstrators urged ticket-holders at the Toronto Film Festival to boycott Casuistry: The Art of Killing a Cat.
The documentary shows interviews with artists, police and activists - but not the animal's mutilation and death.
The three artists taped the skinning and decapitation of a cat in 2001 and later pleaded guilty to animal cruelty.
Director Zev Asher chose to show the court transcript of the text of their videotape throughout the documentary.
He told Reuters news agency that this was the best way to convey "the stark horror that these guys were involved in".
However animal rights activists say the film gives a platform to the cat killers.
"Shame on the international film festival for allowing this to go on," said Suzanne Lahaie of Freedom for Animals, a Toronto group.
Festival organisers declined to drop the documentary, saying it did not glorify the torture of animals.
Two scheduled screenings are going ahead, organisers said, despite the fact that a staff member was told by an anonymous phone caller that he would be skinned alive.
The artists - Jesse Power, Anthony Wennekers and Matt Kaczorowski - said their intent was to make an anti-animal cruelty film, reasoning that skinning a cat would expose the slaughter of factory-reared animals.
Secondly, to make a film about what they did and giving them any sort of recognition for that act is almost as bad. Their excuse (in bold) is one of the lamest backpedals I've ever heard.
Lastly, and I don't want this to sound like a call for censorship, but I tihnk to feature this film at a film festival is in extremely bad taste.
