The Documentary Sales Company 
Deckert Distribution presents:
Persons of Interest

Persons of Interest

Country of production
USA

Year of production
2003

Format
DigiBeta

Length
57 min

Directors
Alison Maclean and Tobias Perse

Production
The Documentary Campaign

After the September 11th terrorist attacks, More than 5000 people, mainly non-US nationals of South Asian or Middle Eastern origin, were taken into custody by the U.S. Justice Department and held indefinitely on the grounds of national security. Muslim immigrants were subject to arbitrary arrest, secret detention, solitary confinement, and deportation. Many were denied access to legal representation and communication with their families.

During a period when the state department has made every effort to depersonalize these detentions, refusing to reveal the names or even the number of immigrants detained, the voices of those affected, their testimonials and experiences become our only window into the human cost of post 9-11 immigration policies.

Following an unconventional format "Persons of Interest" is a series of encounters between detainees and directors Alison Maclean (Jesus' Son) and Tobias Perse in an empty room that functions as an interrogation room, home, and prison cell. Through interviews, family photographs, and letters from prison, the directors have fashioned a compelling and poignant film, allowing these victims a to tell their own stories.
 

Original Language: English, Arabic, Spanish
English Subtitles