The world looked on in horror this week as an attempt to evacuate civilians out of the war-torn city in eastern Aleppo was halted. The four-year conflict between the Syrian Army and rebels forces have seen thousands die, with many still trapped in the rubble-filled city.
The Syrian Civil Defense, also known as the White Helmets — a group of volunteer rescue workers that rush in after attacks to try and save people amid the ruins — have responded to the humanitarian crisis. And their efforts are the subject of the short documentary The White Helmets, which is one of the 10 short docs that have made the shortlist for Oscar consideration.
The film, currently available on Netflix, was directed by Orlando von Einsiedel and produced by Joanna Natasegara, who both were Oscar-nominated for their 2015 documentary feature Virunga. They originally expected their new film would also be a feature-length documentary, but then a sense of urgency took over and they opted to move forward more quickly with a short film.
The Hollywood Reporter talked to von Einsiedel and Natasegara about the risks in making the film, their experiences with the White Helmets (“these are people like us”) and the impact of repetitive news coverage (“You start to lose empathy for the situation”).
Continue reading on The Hollywood Reporter.