The Anonymous Mask (Arte, March 2024)
Series “I saw the Sign” by Arte, WDR and Labo M
https://www.arte.tv/de/videos/115512-005-A/i-saw-the-sign/
Anonymous: a grinning mask becomes a symbol of people’s resistance to oppression. The documentary follows the traces of this iconic mask, which was popularized by the film “V for Vendetta” before it was discovered by the hacker group Anonymous at the end of the 2000s.
The documentary series “I saw the Sign” tells the fascinating story of the Anonymous mask, also known as the mask of Guy Fawkes, an English Catholic revolutionary from the 17th century. How did this globally recognised protest symbol, which was first used in a comic book in the 1980s and later picked up by Hollywood, come about before being chosen by a group of anarchist hackers?
In 2008, a group of hackers set their sights on Scientology. Their accusation: censorship. They protested first with massive online attacks, then with demonstrations in front of Scientology buildings around the world, including New York, Berlin and Paris. However, the protesters have to protect themselves from the organisation’s lawyers, who are known for relentlessly pursuing their critics. The Anonymous group needs a mask! And fast – but which one?
David Lloyd, the creator of the Anonymous mask, and early Anonymous members tell the story of a mask that has entered popular culture. The “Chanology” campaign against Scientology made Anonymous and the mask famous. Since then, it has become an indispensable
“In the Name of Law & Order” (Arte, May 2023)
“Au nom du maintien de l’ordre” is now online on ARTE in two episodes (2 x 52 min).
The documentary looks at policing doctrines from Seattle in 1999 to the Gilets Jaunes and the Hamburg G20. A film by Paul Moreira (Premières Lignes) with whom Marc Meillassoux (DeepDocs) worked on the German chapter (Investigation, camera).
How did we evolve from policing to crowd control that resembles low-intensity warfare? The documentary examines the new doctrines of policing, giving the floor to numerous witnesses and specialists, including police officials and vendors of “reduced lethality weapons”. Combining their disarmingly frank comments with sometimes harsh immersion in processions in France, Germany and the United States, these two episodes demonstrate that this evolution in the control of demonstrators, symbolized by the massive and uncontrolled use of rubber bullet weapons, is the result of schemes thought out and accepted by police hierarchies.
‘Cover your Online Tracks’ (Deutsche Welle Jan. 2022)
The German National TV Deutsche Welle will air the documentary ‘Cover your Online Tracks’ on Jan. 13 2023 (52 min). Our investigation looks into how different groups and communities (low risk users, schools, researchers, journalists, minorities) can learn to protect and secure their online privacy and intimacy by using certain technologies and adopting secure online behaviours. The documentary will be available in English, Spanish, Arabic and Hindi. It is also available in German, French, Italian, Polish on Arte TV.
‘Roots – How to Save the Earth’ (Arte, Aug. 2022)
We have been working on the series ‘Roots – How to Save the Earth’ for the European Broadcaster Arte. The series addresses the problem of greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture (a quarter of all emissions). Journalist Pierre Girard takes us to meet farmers from all over Europe who offer surprising, new or very old methods to take care of the earth, and tackle environmental problems… at the root. We especially worked on the the topics of “Soil Desertification” and “Sustainable Agriculture”. The series is available in 6 languages (in English below).
‘Disappear’ (Arte, Mar 2022)
Disappear has been aired on arte ARTE on Nov. 24 2021 (52 min) and is now available on Arte.tv with subtitltes in six languages in its original version (80 min).
“Our freedoms are evaporating before our very eyes”, warns a young Hong Kong researcher. Every day, the personal data we leave on the tools provided free of charge by the #Gafams – instant messaging, social networks, browsers, search engines, online mapping and geolocation services, etc. – undermines our right to privacy. – undermine the right to privacy. To varying degrees, digital activity exposes us to a host of risks: hacking, commercial, police or state espionage, cyber-bullying, etc. So how do we escape online surveillance and malicious intent?
What is DeepDocs?
Deepdocs produces documentary films reflecting on social and technological shifts with a focus on humanities. Deepdocs films are independently produced, with an effort made to diversifiy the production resources and in a desire to improve critical thinking and empower our audiences.
Deepdocs promotes Creative Commons licences, alternatives to copyright licences, in order to democratize culture.
