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Air India 182 (film)

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Air India 182
Directed bySturla Gunnarsson
Produced bySturla Gunnarsson
David York
CinematographyKirk Tougas
Tony Westman
Edited byNick Hector
Music byJonathan Goldsmith
Production
company
52 Media
Distributed byCanadian Broadcasting Corporation
52 Media
Release date
  • April 17, 2008 (2008-04-17) (HotDocs)
Running time
97 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish

Air India 182 is a 2008 documentary directed by Sturla Gunnarsson,[1] and produced by David York. It is about the Air India Flight 182 bombing in 1985. The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation commissioned the film, which originally had the preliminary title Flight 182.[2] Gunarsson stated that he hoped the film would cause Canadians to contemplate domestic terrorism.[1]

The film includes interviews from family members of the deceased,[1] and other figures, including Ujjal Dosanjh, Eisha Marjara,[3] Lata Pada,[1] and Renée Sarojini Saklikar.[4] One of the associate producers, Judy Koonar, is Gunarsson's wife and of Punjabi origin.[5] The color white represents death in the Indian cultures, so the interviews were screened on a white background. The film also incorporates transcripts, re-enactments, and documents related to the case.[6]

The film premiered at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival in April 2008, and in June of that year it was screened at the Vancity Theatre in Vancouver. Dave Hayer attended the Vancouver screening. The CBC planned to air the documentary on June 22 with no commercials.[7]

Gunarsson argued that there were Sikh victims and therefore, as paraphrased by Charlie Smith of The Georgia Straight, "this wasn't a case of Sikhs attacking Hindus, because there were Sikh passengers."[1] Smith argued that the conclusion about the sectarian nature was opposite of that made by The Sorrow and the Terror: The Haunting Legacy of the Air India Tragedy.[1]

Cast

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Amateur actors play the victims and family members.[5]

Reception

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Monika Bartyzel of Moviefone wrote that the recreations added to the film because they "keep the story clear" and add "tangible [scenes that make the film] real".[6] She added that the scenes "[allow the audience] to become more intimately familiar with each person – terrorist, victim, and official – in a way that flushes out their stories."[6]

The film was shortlisted for the Donald Brittain Award for Best Social or Political Documentary[8] and won the Best Documentary Editing Award [9] at the 24th Gemini Awards and the inaugural Director's Guild of Canada's Allan King Award for Excellence in Documentary in 2009. [10]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Smith, Charlie. "Terror of Air India Flight 182 comes to small screen". The Georgia Straight. June 18, 2008. Retrieved on October 29, 2014.
  2. ^ CBC commissions documentary on Air India tragedy, CBC Arts, 21 June 2007.
  3. ^ "Air India 182 Press Kit" (Archive). Air India 182 (film) official website. p. 11/12. Retrieved on October 22, 2014.
  4. ^ "Air India 182 Press Kit" (Archive). Air India 182 (film) official website. p. 10/12. Retrieved on October 22, 2014.
  5. ^ a b Cole, Stephen. "The CBC docudrama Air India 182 is a startling reconstruction of a national tragedy" (Archive). CBC News. June 18, 2008. Retrieved on November 21, 2014.
  6. ^ a b c Bartyzel, Monika. "Hot Docs Review: Air India 182" (Archive). Moviefone. April 22, 2008. Retrieved on November 21, 2014.
  7. ^ "Air India documentary moves audience to tears" (Archive). The Vancouver Sun at Canada.com. June 15, 2008. Retrieved on November 21, 2014.
  8. ^ Glen Schaefer, "Geminis find Sanctuary in Vancouver-filmed fantasy series; Erin Karpluk, Gabrielle Miller also on list". The Province, August 26, 2009.
  9. ^ "Gemini Awards (2009)". IMDb.
  10. ^ "Skogland on top at DGCS".
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