What Happens When an Interview Is Filmed?Recording Memories from Conflict

Many elements come into play when filmmakers set out to record stories, such as the presence of the camera, who else is present in the interview setting, and how the subject positions that the interviewer and interviewee bring with them and/or take up affect the interviewer-interviewee relationship, and, therefore, the recording. Further, a high degree of trust is required in research projects in societies with legacies of political violence. I explore how these medium-specific conditions influence recordings by discussing films that I worked on in Northern Ireland and South Africa, both of which locations experience continuing instability related to their violent pasts. Specifically, I look at how my production crews and I used participatory practices to build trust among our interviewees.