Alec Baldwin’s ‘Rust’ Faces Backlash Ahead Of Camerimage Premiere

It is unclear whether “Rust” star Alec Baldwin will be in attendance at the film’s premiere, but that hadn’t stopped the Camerimage film festival from receiving backlash all the same.

Film festival organizers have expressed a desire to host a panel after the movie’s first screening to pay tribute to late cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and discuss film safety standards.

However, some in the industry feel that it might have been more appropriate to screen one of Hutchins’ earlier films, instead of the one that took her life.

On October 21, 2021, a gun held by actor Alec Baldwin went off, striking and killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and hospitalizing director Joel Souza. Baldwin faced an involuntary manslaughter charge for his role in the shooting, but the trial was dismissed in July after a judge found that the prosecution knew about evidence that was not handed over to the defense – a violation of the Brady rule. She decided that the only appropriate remedy was to completely drop criminal charges against the actor.

Meanwhile, armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter and was sentenced to a state maximum of 18 months behind bars. In September, her lawyers fought for her release from prison and tried to get her a new trial based on the new evidence presented at Baldwin’s trial. However, his request was denied.

Although Halyna Hutchins was a regular at the event when it was held in the past, her peers do not want to see her last film screened there, especially when it is unclear how much of her work actually ended up in the final film. The scene in the church, which had been being rehearsed at the time of her death, was ultimately cut from the film. Production moved from New Mexico to Montana following the shooting, and cinematographer Bianca Cline was brought on board to finish the project.

On Instagram, film festival organizers announced the screening with the following caption:

“Almost three years after the tragic death of Halyna Hutchins, a Ukrainian cinematographer who was part of the festival family, Camerimage is set to honour her memory and remind the world of her legacy. During this year’s edition of the EnergaCAMERIMAGE Festival, a special World Premiere screening of the film Rust will take place, followed by a unique panel discussion with the film’s director Joel Souza, cinematographer Bianca Cline, and Stephen Lighthill, Halyna’s mentor from her beloved film school, AFI.”

It seems that many in the industry did not approve of the decision to screen Hutchins’ final film as a tribute to her legacy. “I’m all for memorializing Halyna and her beautiful work but not by screening and thereby promoting the film that killed her,” Oscar-nominated “Black Panther” DoP Rachel Morrison posted in the comments.

At the time of this writing, the comment had gotten almost 350 likes by others in the industry, including “Normal People” DoP Suzie Lavelle who also commented, “Promoting a film that shot with unsafe practices — leading to the death of its cinematographer — reconsider please.”

Another user ventured that it was Halyna Hutchins’ family who wanted the “Rust” screening to pay tribute to the late cinematographer. “Apparently, her family wants this screening to happen. They say it was her dream to have a film screen at Camerimage,” one user shared. “Her mentor, a former ASC president, is part of the panel. It seems to me that the important people are OK with this.”

Melina Spadone, an attorney for Rust Movie Productions, sent a statement to Deadline following their first report announcing that the film would be screened at the festival this November.

“Rust Movie Productions is honored that our film will make its world premiere at the EnergaCAMERIMAGE Festival this November, a perfect stage to honor Halyna Hutchins,” Spadone said in her statement. “Her remarkable talent and vision are embedded in every frame of the film, and we’re grateful for the opportunity to showcase her work and let audiences experience the beauty and creativity she captured through her lens.”

Camerimage organizers also made their own statement regarding the controversial release of “Rust” at the film festival.

“The filmmakers will discuss events surrounding the film, offering insight into continuing production after Halyna’s death,” Camerimage organizers said in a statement. “Maintaining Hutchins’ artistic vision, as tremendously challenging as it was for the entire crew, was really important to the filmmakers, hoping to fulfill their duty to complete her work.”

In another statement, Camerimage organizers said, “Halyna’s story will serve as a starting point for a conversation about the role of women in cinematography and their contributions to the art of filmmaking,” adding: “Another key topic of the discussion will be safety on set.”

Poland’s Camerimage International Film Festival takes place from November 16 through November 23 at the UNESCO World Heritage city of Toruń, Poland. The film festival’s full lineup will be released in early November.