One of the most dangerous things that any person appearing in a documentary filmed in a conflict environment can face is that their appearance later becomes a direct reason for putting them at risk, for revenge, or even for losing their life!

I work in a country that has experienced long conflicts and borders countries where conflicts are still part of daily life, and I fully understand how an image can become a weapon in the hands of an authority or an armed group at a later time, which may not cross the mind of the filmmaker nor the person appearing in it.

The truth is that danger does not always come from negligence or bad intentions, but sometimes from underestimating the consequences and from focusing on the visual storytelling or the importance of the shot without enough thought about what could happen later.

One of the most recent examples is the documentary Retrograde, which I watched yesterday. It is an American documentary covering the final stages of the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan in 2021. The film shows some Afghan soldiers working alongside American forces, including an Afghan deminer whose face was shown and who was one of the characters in the film. According to an investigation published by The Washington Post, this person was killed after the events and following the release of the film!

Of course, this film had received an award that was later withdrawn because of the killing of the Afghan person who appeared in the film.

This story is not only evidence of an individual mistake but also a warning for us as filmmakers that protecting people inside the film is not a technical option or preference, but an essential ethical and professional responsibility.

Note: The fact that someone is alongside occupying forces is a complex issue that cannot be discussed here. The main idea is to protect your characters in the film, because human life is more important than the story!

Ali Omar – Documentary Filmmaker