When Bigger is Dangerous: Filming on the Frontlines of the Arab Spring

Director Gini Reticker and EP Abigail Disney set out to document the roles of key women in the Arab Spring uprisings and their aftermath. By the summer of 2013, the political climate in Egypt was changing on the ground, and the team decided to adapt their production to capture the unfolding story. The Trials of Spring became a cross platform project comprising six short films and a feature film focused on Egypt and namely Hend Nafea, a young woman who is arrested, beaten, tortured, and ultimately sentenced to life in prison for participating in a Cairo protest. No Film School sat down with the producer Beth Levison and Egypt field producer & cinematographer Siam Mohamed to talk about communication halfway across the world, safety, humor, and cinematography in the face adversity.

NFS: Siam, how did you work with Beth and Gini Reticker (the director) to coordinate what you needed to capture on the ground in Egypt?

Siam Mohamed: Even though we were sometimes filming in the streets in dangerous conditions, there was an understanding between us. Beth made sure everything was insured, the people were safe, how many people there were, what their code names were to make sure that everything was a safe as possible if anything happened. She made us feel that you backed up, so that if you got pinned down, you would have assurances.

First, we have to put as our priority the main character. Right away I learned how we could capture quickly, and how to work under difficult circumstances. It’s not my favorite way or doing something, but for certain projects and people it’s worth doing. This is one of the projects that are worth it.

Beth made sure everything was insured, the people were safe, how many people there were, what their code names were...

Beth Levison: Siam was, in many ways, our eyes and ears on the ground. We were in touch with the three main characters in the film: Hend, Mariam, and Mama K. Siam was our main point of contact with Mama K. A lot of times Siam would let us know what was happening, if we didn't know ourselves. We would make the decision whether or not to shoot. There was a team here in New York but often when we decided to shoot, Siam would assemble his team in Cairo. When he says he felt protected and taken care of by us on our end, there was also an absolute trust by us in Siam and his team that they would get what we needed. It was a very symbiotic relationship that probably was cemented and lubricated with a lot of communication. We’re really did bridge the distance in an amazing way.

We were constantly weighing the macro of Egypt with the micro of Hend, and how could we best tell Hend’s story...We did what you're always doing in documentary — you’re sort of beating out the story by trying to figure out what you need. What might happen?

NFS: What factors would be needed for a green light to shoot?

Beth: We made decisions about what to shoot by grappling with what was in service to the story of our characters. It’s funny because there had been a lot of protests in the two+ years we had been shooting. A lot of gatherings and protests. We have to evaluate, ok do we need another protest? We were thinking about was crucial to Hend’s story, but also what was going on in the big picture of Egypt to add another layer. We were constantly weighing the macro of Egypt with the micro of Hend, and how could we best tell Hend’s story. It was a constant evaluation. We were having to think on our feet. We did what you're always doing in documentary — you’re sort of beating out the story by trying to figure out what you need. What might happen? Thinking about the story, we knew who we were following, and so it became more clear about what would be in service to them.

It’s funny, we’d never really met until the world premiere, but we already knew each other on a profound level.

Siam: Sometimes being able to look at the recent cut, and understanding myself where we are, helped a lot to understand. Ah, ok, the cut is like this. It informs me for my next shoot. Beth helped a lot by showing me or explaining the cut we have. Recently, six months ago, I saw the rough cut to the final cut. It helped to understand, why do we need to shoot this next thing, exactly? The communication allowed us to progress forward. This project was really different, because I’ve worked on other projects and occasionally been left out of that. With this project, I really felt like knew the rest of the team in New York really well from our constant communication.

Beth: It’s funny, we’d never really met until the world premiere, but we already knew each other on a profound level.

We had announced that we were a production company, but there is a constant feeling that you are working under adversity. We had to just remember: you can’t give everything up during conflict.  

NFS: On this production, you're filming someone who is working against the ruling authority as it were. What do you have to keep in mind when filming, essentially, the inside of a revolution?

SIAM: There is something to be said about filming like this in Egypt. Most of the time, we went through the efforts to have the right papers. It didn’t matter in the end how legal your papers were. We had announced that we were a production company, but there is a constant feeling that you are working under adversity. We had to just remember: you can’t give everything up during conflict.  

If you see the media in Egypt, you think something is happening. So for me, what was important was the idea of working within your environment. Sometimes we would film on the ground, working sometimes when you have papers, other times not. You always find an alternative solution to move forward. It’s a constant feeling that even though you are doing something very innocent, you think, wow, we have to shoot this thing and get the hell out of here. You have to balance that feeling that you are doing something wrong, that you are breaking the law. And it’s never that clear or firm — it’s unpredictable. After awhile, you gain the experience. You understand that you are in this kind of zone. And you organize yourself. It’s this kind of experience you have to get used to. After awhile, I could manage it, at least in most situations.

We could not just abandon him — we had to be there for him, as well as for Hend. We didn’t want anything to happen to her in the course of shooting. There were many times we weren’t on the ground; it was incredibly intense and incredibly stressful. 

Beth: We were definitely concerned on this end, because it felt very unpredictably. There were times that we were told that we could shoot. We would get all the paperwork. We would get things notarized. We would send them to Siam. We wanted to shoot in the courtroom, and it seemed like we’d be able to. But then they wouldn’t let Siam in. Sometimes we were concerned the equipment would get confiscated, or Siam might get in trouble. That constant communication was as a result of concern in some ways. Siam was on the ground, getting the material. We could not just abandon him — we had to be there for him, as well as for Hend. We didn’t want anything to happen to her in the course of shooting. There were many times we weren’t on the ground; it was incredibly intense and incredibly stressful. 

Siam: Nothing was linear. I tried many times to feel like, ok this could go in normal linear way, but it never was! It was a great misadventure. Sometimes we wouldn’t have papers, and they’d say, sure come in. Then we’d have papers, but they would say, no you can’t come in. Some guy says you can’t. You don’t know him, and he’s not here right now, but he says you can’t come. I had a few heavy burdens calling or emailing Beth to let her know when we weren’t able to get in to places. She never asked me why or how, it was understood. It was not linear as it should be.

Beth: Our saying was that producing in the region was producing with jello — your best laid plans wouldn’t stick. We were constantly working with that.

Any camera, an FS7 or a bigger, more professional looking camera, could get us in trouble. The professional media were often victims to the authorities...Bigger was more dangerous.

NFS: With this jello nature of the production, was there some crucial equipment that worked out best for you?

Siam: We shot on a 5D Mark III, and at the end a little on the C300. They both look like photo cameras to the untrained eye in Egypt. That was our main goal. Any camera, an FS7 or a bigger, more professional looking camera, could get us in trouble. The professional media were often victims to the authorities. Our main solution was to go small with the cameras. It was a constant throughout. Bigger was more dangerous.

For sound, we recorded always separately, and had small bags with us so they wouldn’t be visible that we had all these gadgets. We didn’t want to look strange or draw any attention, so people didn’t think, "What the hell is going on?" In this way, we discovered that people are not threatened by the camera — they would look at it, and then forget about it. If people would ask questions, we would say we were shooting something very small, like a graduation project. If you look like you are under 30, if someone asks you what you are doing, you say you are doing a graduation project! They leave thinking these people are probably amateurs who don’t know what they are doing. That worked for us!

Beth: For the films that were not shot in Egypt, we also shot on the 5D because that was the camera that was the most easily available in the region. And as Siam mentioned, it was also is discreet. Towards the end when there were opportunities to use the C300 we did because we felt the post process went more smoothly with it. When we shot in Libya, Syria, and Tunisia, we sent directors in to the region. In those cases we did use the C300. On top of the chip having better quality and more to work with, having synced sound was easier to work with.

Siam: Having sound synched from the start you don’t spend so much time. And when it comes to color correction, you don’t have so much high contrast you have to correct for.

Beth: Ergonomically, the C300 is easier for many people to shoot on. You can roll it for longer without having to stop and start, and for verite that can have advantages.

Make sure you are working with people who you trust implicitly, to the bone. You are going to find yourself have to make very difficult decisions -- it’s easier to make those with people you trust and whose creative instincts you also respect and share.

NFS: When you talk about trying to be discrete and low on the radar, what was the dynamic with your subjects, women who played roles the Arab uprisings, during production?

Siam: The main thing was to explain how the film was not only one point of view, but that there were many aspects of the film. It wasn’t a campaign or an advertisement, but telling the story of their relationship to the politics. The goal would be to understand the main characters, to shed light on who these women are, and have their stories reach more people in relation to the focal politics. The role of women in the uprisings and the relationship of sexual harassment to them were important. There was something Gini told me in New York when we first met about how there’s a clear line between how sexual harassment and how and why women are targets in wartime. That inspired me. I’m not going along complacent with this. I can explain to others who can be engaged in the discussion. My relationship with the subjects in the film can grow and have an important role. We have a responsibility to introduce their stories in a complex way. That’s how Gini approached me with the project, and it was the main thing that made me feel this was very important.

Beth: One approach that we took was to shoot a lot of our footage with the main characters indoors. We didn’t want to showboat out and about with them, shooting exteriors, because it would put them at risk. So a lot of that footage is in the domestic space, a space we all felt safe and comfortable.

You should understand what you are going to do, even if you have to risk your life to do it.

NFS: What advice do you have for filmmakers who may want to tell a story that’s unfolding in a tumultuous environment?

Beth: My advice is to pick your team really wisely. Make sure you are working with people who you trust implicitly, to the bone. You are going to find yourself have to make very difficult decisions -- it’s easier to make those with people you trust and whose creative instincts you also respect and share. When you are working in a situation like ours, where you are working with a field producer, and that person is making those split second decisions, you want them to make the right ones.

It’s also really important to listen to the people on the ground. Consider their experience and expertise as you make decisions, because you have to make safe decisions as well.

Also, from a producing standpoint, research your insurance and get it.  Everybody who worked with us felt that we were looking out for them — we weren’t taking them or their equipment for granted. If anything happened, we had their back. As the producer, knowing I had that insurance, even though it wouldn’t bring a person back, at least knowing their gear was insured was an important psychological net. Be prepared for anything to happen. You always do in documentary, but the unpredictability in these tumultuous zones is even more so. I worked 20+ years in the field, and I never worked as much and as hard as I did on this project.

Finally, don’t get too hung up on the technical, because like any other film, story is king.

Siam: Mainly, just understand the context before you approach something. In my kind of work, as a cinematographer or director on other projects, it’s very essential. It makes the whole approach to a project very different. In the end, you are trying to make something new, tackling something in a new area. Go for it, but make sure you understand the context of a whole situation. It’s not only about getting permission, but having good motivations, really wanting to be heard. It will drive you to make something important that will resonate with people. You’d be surprised at the impact of your work. I never imagined all of these things that are coming out of The Trials of Spring. You have a chance to tell people’s stories that might otherwise have been overlooked, and those people may have been overwhelmed and given up. It’s valuable and important. You should understand what you are going to do, even if you have to risk your life to do it.

Thank you, Beth and Siam!

You can watch all six of the short films created under The Trials of Spring flagship completely free on The New York Times, and if you'd like to see the feature film, find a screening (or host one) through their official site, and follow The Trials of Spring on Facebook or Twitter @TrialsOfSpring for updates on the digital release.

Source: Trial of Spring