10th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival –
Images of the 21st Century
March 7-16, 2008
PRESS RELEASE
Workshop: “Guerilla” Filmmaking
Sotiris Danezis
“Guerilla Filmmaking” was the title of the workshop presented by the documentary filmmaker and journalist Sotirs Danezis in the morning of Wednesday, March 12, at the John Cassavetes theater in Warehouse 1 at the port, as part of the 10th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival. During the workshop, the journalist explained to the public what it means to make documentaries in war zones, what difficulties the director faces, and what choices he has to make. He also spoke about techniques that make shooting under difficult circumstances easier, about the ethics of documentaries, and how the truth behind events is revealed.
Dimitri Eipides, Artistic Director of the 10th Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, speaking about Sotiris Danezis, said: “I congratulate Sotiris Danezis on the fantastic work he is doing. He is a top notch journalist who puts himself in danger and travels the world in order to bring these shocking images, which are good for us to see so that we can react”.
Sotiris Danezis, commenting on the dangers faced by himself and his colleagues during the “War Zone” shoots stressed: “The danger is part of our work, but not one of the most important things. They don’t usually shoot as soon as they see us… The truth is that we have the time and the ease to shoot the scenes and get the interviews we want to. Surely the production of “War Zone” is not synonymous with danger. It is, however, a bunch of other things, such as not obeying any rules and to try and do your work as well as circumstances allow. It is appearing in areas where no one would ever expect you to appear, to demand more of the image, to negotiate with dangerous rebels, to think about how to mislead totalitarian regimes and expose their fascism, to speak with the press offices of multinational companies who are not particularly pleased to meet you. A war zone means you have to get used to working from early in the morning until late at night, to count every shot and to constantly work on the structure and the script in your mind, to be open to the unexpected, what we call the “spice”, to record reality through a particular perspective, your perspective, to back up your opinion. It also means working with the director, the camera man, the editor, the music composer, all together, as though you were all one person. And if at some time during this whole process you find yourself in a tough spot, you have to listen to your instinct and not your vanity. A war zone means meeting interesting people up close, to invade their lives for a short while, to make many friends and as many enemies, to be impassioned about telling a story.”
Sotiris Danezis did not neglect to stress that during the five years of “War Zone’s” presence on television, more than 40 episodes have been broadcast. He said that through them: “We have tried to shed light on the unseen parts of the world with missions to the 4 corners of the globe, we crossed many borders illegally, we met people who were not always friendly to television crews, we provoked reactions from certain governments and embassies in Athens. What concerned us and still concerns us is to pass on the message about what we wanted to say, for it to be obvious and clear”.
During the workshop, representative segments of “War Zone” from Somalia, West Sahara, Burma, Colombia, Alaska and Afghanistan were screened. Sotiris Danezis commented on them, explaining all the elements that are necessary for the making of such a documentary. He also spoke about the importance of fixers, the key people, as he called them, who ensure the safe transport of the television crew to the areas of the world where the shootings take place, and to the so-called minders, the representatives of the state who “watch” you during every such mission.
Regarding the extremely difficult moments of filming violent executions, Sotiris Danezis stressed that it wasn’t easy for anyone in the crew, that these are shocking moments during which the crew feels chaos and emotional breakdowns in their souls.
Finally, Sotiris Danezis noted that “the purpose and basic parameter of the series is to give the viewer the chance to be informed and to think about things that are happening elsewhere in the world”.
The Sotiris Danezis tribute is supported by:
MUNICIPALITY OF THESSALONIKI
The conference-masterclass-workshop program is supported by:
ERT 3
