Dispatches from the Frontline: Filmmaker Safety and Wellbeing

Documentary and factual storytellers often work to uncover concealed histories and hidden truths. This work is demanding and can have profound impacts on the wellbeing of filmmakers and their teams. Without the backing of a union or a guiding code of ethics for our practice, this can place filmmakers at risk of personal, physical, or psychological harm. This can range from burnout to vicarious trauma, or to being ostracised from their communities, imprisoned, or exiled from their countries of origin.

Drawing on real life experiences, we will explore the risks across a range of contexts and what we need to have in place to mitigate them. From safety in the field to duty of care and aftercare plans; from cultural and filmmaker safety, to mental health and well-being strategies and resources. Join Joanna Natasegara (Violet Films), Keisha Knight (IDA) and Malikkah Rollins (Documentality) as they discuss best practice models to draw on to build a healthier nonfiction field that supports the wellbeing and safety of filmmakers.

Led by filmmaker and impact producer Alex Kelly, and building on the 2023 AIDC session The Documentary Participant: At What Cost?, this session is part of an ongoing discussion of ethics and their application in our practice.

 

Image Credit: The White Helmets (Netflix, 2016)