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Welcome to Chechnya

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Welcome to Chechnya
Official poster
Directed byDavid France
Written by
  • David France
  • Tyler H. Walk
Produced byDavid France
Alice Henty
Askold Kurov
Joy A. Tomchin
Cinematography
  • Askold Kurov
  • Derek Wiesehahn
Edited byTyler H. Walk
Music by
Production
companies
Distributed byHBO Films
Release dates
  • January 26, 2020 (2020-01-26) (Sundance)
  • June 30, 2020 (2020-06-30) (United States)
Running time
107 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguagesEnglish
Russian
Chechen

Welcome to Chechnya (Russian: Добро пожаловать в Чечню, romanized: Dobro pozhalovat' v Chechnyu) is a 2020 documentary film by American reporter, author and documentarian David France.[1] The film centers on the anti-gay purges in Chechnya of the late 2010s, filming LGBT Chechen refugees using hidden cameras as they made their way out of Russia through a network of safehouses aided by activists.[1]

It had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 26, 2020 and was released on June 30, 2020, by HBO Films.

Production

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The film follows the work of activists rescuing survivors of torture in Chechnya. To avoid exposing their work, it was shot in secret, using hidden cameras, cell phones, GoPros, and handycams.[2]

Further complicating the production of the film was the need to protect the identities of interviewees. France wanted to put a real human face on the story, so conventional techniques of disguising one's appearance, such as blurring their faces, filming them in darkness or hiring actors to stage re-enactments were not enough. Eventually he opted for advanced facial replacement techniques using artificial intelligence and novel visual effects technology so the viewer could see real faces displaying real emotions while still protecting the identities of the speakers.[3] The approach is a "game changer in identity protection", according to Documentary Magazine, and a brand new tool for documentary filmmakers.[4] To protect the identities of the interviewees, they could not move the footage across the internet nor work on it in an open studio setting. Instead, they edited the film in a windowless room in order to keep with security protocols.[5]

One of the refugees, Maxim Lapunov, is publicly identified in the film, as he sought, and failed, to get legal redress from Russian authorities.[6]

The mysterious disappearance of gay Chechen singer Zelim Bakaev after a visit to Grozny for his sister's wedding in August 2017[7] also receives a brief mention in the film.

Release

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The film premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival,[8] and screened at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival. It was released on June 30, 2020 by HBO Films.[9][10]

It was shown at the Adelaide Film Festival in October 2020.[11]

Reception

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The film received universal critical acclaim, holding an approval rating of 100% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 72 reviews, with an average rating of 8.7/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "An illuminating and urgent call to action, Welcome to Chechnya portrays the horrors of the mass persecution of the LGBTQ+ community in the Chechen Republic with tenacity and tenderness."[12] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 86 out of 100 based on 17 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[13]

Accolades

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Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
Sundance Film Festival February 1, 2020 U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Editing Tyler H. Walk Won [14]
U.S. Documentary Competition Grand Jury Prize David France Nominated
Berlin International Film Festival February 28, 2020 Teddy Activist Award David Isteev, Olga Baranova, Maxim Lapunov Won
March 1, 2020 Panorama Publikumspreis (audience award) for Best Documentary David France Won
Ljubljana LGBT Film Festival December 20, 2020 Pink Dragon Audience Award Welcome to Chechnya Won [15]
GLAAD Media Awards April 8, 2021 Outstanding Documentary Nominated [16]
Visual Effects Society Awards April 6, 2021 Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature Ryan Laney, Eugen Bräunig, Maxwell Anderson, Johnny Han and Piers Dennis Nominated [17]
Directors Guild of America Awards April 10, 2021 Outstanding Directional Achievement in Documentary David France Nominated [18]
British Academy Television Awards June 6, 2021 Best International Programme David France, Alice Henty, Askold Kurov and Joy A Tomchin Won [19]
Hollywood Critics Association August 29, 2021 Best Broadcast Network or Cable Docuseries, Documentary Television Movie, or Non-Fiction Series Welcome to Chechnya Won [20]
Primetime Emmy Awards September 18, 2021 Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking Alice Henty, David France, Joy A. Tomchin, Askold Kurov and Igor Myakotin Nominated [21]
Cinema for Peace awards February 24, 2023 The Most Valuable Documentary of the Year Welcome to Chechnya Won

References

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  1. ^ a b Mike Fleming, Jr. "HBO Documentary Films Lands Sundance-Bound ‘Welcome To Chechnya’, About Harsh Plight Of LGBTQ Community In Russian Republic". Deadline Hollywood, December 12, 2019.
  2. ^ Patricia Thompson, "How Hidden Cameras Captured a Daring Rescue in 'Welcome to Chechnya'". Documentary Magazine, August 26, 2020.
  3. ^ Anne Thompson, "Sundance 2020: How VFX Pulled 'Welcome to Chechnya' Out of the Shadows – Exclusive". IndieWire, January 22, 2020.
  4. ^ Patricia Thompson, "Digital Disguise: 'Welcome to Chechnya''s Face Veil Is a Game Changer in Identity Protection". Documentary Magazine, June 30, 2020.
  5. ^ Steinmetz, K., "'It Only Ends When They're Dead.' David France on His Chilling HBO Documentary Welcome to Chechnya". Time, June 30, 2020
  6. ^ "Gay man takes Russia to Europe's rights court over Chechnya LGBT+ attacks". The Independent. 2019-05-24. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
  7. ^ O'Toole, Sean (2017-10-21). "New Reports of Gay Singer Abducted and Murdered in Chechnya". HuffPost. Retrieved 2020-12-20.
  8. ^ Lawson, Richard (January 22, 2020). "The 18 Movies We're Dying to See at Sundance". Vanity Fair.
  9. ^ Dry, Jude (May 20, 2020). "'Welcome to Chechnya' Trailer: David France's Groundbreaking LGBTQ Documentary". IndieWire. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
  10. ^ "'It Only Ends When They're Dead.' David France on His Chilling HBO Documentary Welcome to Chechnya by Katy Steinmetz". 30 June 2020. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
  11. ^ "Final days of Adelaide Film Festival serves up more winners". InDaily. 20 October 2020. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  12. ^ "Welcome to Chechnya (2020)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on February 10, 2020. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
  13. ^ "Welcome to Chechnya (2020)". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on February 29, 2020. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  14. ^ Hipes, Patrick (February 1, 2020). "Sundance Film Festival Awards: 'Minari' Scores Double Top Honors – The Complete Winners List". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 2, 2020.
  15. ^ "Zmagovalec občinstva na 36. festivalu LGBT filma". Festival LGBT filma. Društvo ŠKUC. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  16. ^ Ramos, Dino-Ray (January 28, 2021). "GLAAD Unveils Nominees For 32nd Annual GLAAD Media Awards; Deadline's New Hollywood Podcast Honored With Special Recognition Award". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  17. ^ Pederson, Erik (March 2, 2021). "VES Awards Nominations: 'Tenet', 'Midnight Sky', 'Extraction', 'Soul' & 'Mandalorian' Among Titles In Visual Effects Hunt". Deadline. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  18. ^ "DGA Awards 2021". DGA. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  19. ^ "BAFTA TV 2021: The Winners and Nominations for the Virgin Media British Academy Television Awards and British Academy Television Craft Awards". www.bafta.org. 2021-04-28. Retrieved 2021-06-07.
  20. ^ "Ted Lasso, The Handmaid's Tale, and Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist lead Inaugural HCA TV Awards Nominations – Hollywood Critics Association". Retrieved July 11, 2021.
  21. ^ "Welcome to Chechnya". Emmys.com. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
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