The rescheduled screening of a controversial documentary about Iran went off without a hitch at the Library and Archives Sunday evening, nearly three weeks after it was cancelled because of the threat of protest.
The audience packed into the sold-out theatre at the LAC to see Iranium, a film presented by the Free Thinking Film Society about Iran's nuclear program.
"I want to thank everybody for coming out on Super Bowl Sunday to show how important free speech is in this country," said the society's president Fred Litwin.
There was a heavy police presence at the screening, with members of the Ottawa Police Service and RCMP in and around the building. At least four OPS officers were in the theatre for the entirety of the film.
"This is the most policed event I've been to," said Daniel Waselnuk, who has been to many of the Free Thinking Film Society's screenings. "They're not usually this well attended. It sure beats the Superbowl."
On Jan. 17, the day before the film was first due to be screened, Library and Archives staff informed Litwin that the screening had been cancelled because of complaints from the Iranian embassy.
Litwin then contacted Heritage Minister James Moore, who instructed Library and Archives to show the film.
"You don't stifle the free speech of Canadians because you get complaints," Moore said to the crowd Sunday evening, who greeted him with applause and a standing ovation. "The Iranian embassy will never dictate what movies are shown in Ottawa."