Source:
https://scmp.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/article/1755142/asian-documentary-filmmakers-worry-about-human-cost-their
Lifestyle/ Arts & Culture

Asian documentary filmmakers worry about the human cost of their work

Documentaries may bring about social and political changes in Asia but filmmakers worry their subjects maybe negatively affected by the exposure

A still from the documentary The Act of Killing by Joshua Oppenheimer.

Indian filmmaker Balaka Ghosh seems to be summing up the predicament faced by so many documentary makers in Asia when she says it wasn't so much the making of her most recent production that gave her sleepless nights, but the thought of the impact its release might have on its subjects once she had packed up her cameras and gone.

"You point your camera at these people, and in many cases, they open up to you and let you into their lives," she says. "But the worry for us - particularly in Asia - is what we leave behind when the film is screened. We are often dealing with such sensitive subjects and cultures that can often be quite secretive. What will the film's impact be on these people who have been so generous with their time? How will it affect their standing in their own society and the people they have to deal with every day?"