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An extraordinary work of both cinematic and political activism, 5 BROKEN CAMERAS is a deeply personal, first-hand account of non-violent resistance in Bil'in, a West Bank village threatened by encroaching Israeli settlements. Shot almost entirely by Palestinian farmer Emad Burnat, who bought his first camera in 2005 to record the birth of his youngest son, the footage was later given to Israeli co-director Guy Davidi to edit. Structured around the violent destruction of each one of Burnat's cameras, the filmmakers' collaboration follows one family's evolution over five years of village turmoil. Burnat watches from behind the lens as olive trees are bulldozed, protests intensify, and lives are lost. "I feel like the camera protects me," he says, "but it's an illusion."

5 BROKEN CAMERAS is a very powerful and emotional piece of filmmaking. Now, it was never your original intention to set out to make a documentary, is that correct?

EB: Actually, when I started filming my village in 2005 I was filming and documenting for many purposes. But after a few months, the idea of making a film came to me. I saw other films had been made about the subject so I decided not to do it at that time. Instead, I started to focus on my friends, my family, and my son growing up. It was like constructing the story.

GD: When Emad asked me to work with him, it was in 2009, a few months after the killing of Bassem Abu-Rahme - El Phil. The name of the project was "Elephant in Bil'in". I actually was skeptical, since the Bil'in moevement had been portrayed in the media a lot, (think of the 2006 film "Bil'in My Love"). I didn't think it would be logical to make another film on the characters of the village and the movement. Plus, I grew up with so many films that commemorate the deaths of soldiers (Israelis of course) that I didn't like the idea of making another film that commemorates death.

I had the idea of making a personal film that would tell Emad's narrative. I knew about his arrests, his cameras and his accident, and I knew that many of his brothers had been arrested and sent to jail. But I wasn't sure how much of this had been documented and could be used, and I also wasn’t sure what Emad would have thought of the idea.

When I saw the first tapes with images of an old man trying to stop a jeep from taking someone away to prison, I immediately became interested in knowing who the old man was, and I discovered it was Emad's father. I imagined what Emad felt like in that moment when he filmed his parents. I thought it was a reason to make a new film. What also convinced me was that Emad never told me it was his family because for him, the entire village is personal, regardless of whether it is your father, your neigbour, or your uncle. Even Phil and Adeeb carry the same family name and are therefore relatives. It means that everything can be linked to a personal moment, and this helped to tell the story.

Emad agreed to focus on himself and gave me the freedom to edit by myself and write the texts. We worked together for the first month in Bil'in, and during that time we had a lot of conversation from which the texts were written. I think the narration is an outcome of Emad's very direct, melancholic and somewhat flat tone with my reflections in an emotional/poetic style. Looking at the footage I found many gems, especially the rare moments of his family. Basically we used a lot of Emad's homemade footage of his family he never thought of including in the film, and the idea to tell the story through Gibreel's eyes came from me. I also thought that using the fact of Gibreel’s birth at the beginning of the movement and his subsequent growth was interesting to help create a sense of time. Some of the footage was extremely crucial in terms of building this structure: scenes of the family in the wall, or Gibreel with Phil.

During the next few years my role was also to guide Emad to look for new scenes that could help us. We needed to be able to link the home footage of the family more closely with the social events, since scenes like Emad's wife asking him to stop filming and Gibreel visiting the demonstrations had already been filmed before the structure of the whole film had been worked out.

For Emad, it wasn't easy to be exposed, especially in fragile moments like the hospital scenes; and above all, the house arrest footage, which he hid from me for some time. He was afraid to be seen as pathetic and weak; I am happy he was brave enough to understand the importance of these scenes.

You both worked together in directing and making this film. How did you two first meet? 

EB: In the beginning, the village was joined by activists from around the world and Israel. I saw Guy a few times. I remember one time when I was filming in the night, when the soldiers invaded the village, I saw him talking to the commander.

GD: Emad and I have known each other since 2005. I came with the first activists to Bil'in and started making short films. The people of the village were so warm that I had decided to make a feature documentary that would focus more on the village and less on the non-violent movement, which was already being documented by Shai Carmeli Pollack for a film that was released in 2006 ("Bil'in My Love").  "Interrupted streams" focused on a less known element of the occupation - the water. In order to do it I stayed with Alexandre Goetschmann , the Swiss co-director, for 2-3 months in Bil'in. In that period of time I got to know all the sentiments that come with living under occupation. It was an inspiring time. I couldn't have written the narration of "5 Broken Cameras" without all the meetings and time spent in the village in that autumn of 2005. 

In the nights, soldiers would enter the village to arrest kids. Every other night, a knock on the door, with a terrified whisper of "Jesh, jesh"—meaning soldiers—would awaken Alex and I, and we would use our cameras to film the event. One night, after many nights of arrests, all the villagers came out shouting "Alla Akbar". The soldiers felt threatened and pulled their guns out, aiming them at the people. I was shouting in Hebrew that there were Israelis present. Luckily, nothing happened. In the morning, the military radio (which is one of the main radio stations in Israel) reported that there was a night demonstration in Bil'in with 40 Israelis. I was the only one.

Our presence was critical, for as long as there were foreigners—especially Israelis, the response of the army was more moderate. That's why Bil'in, which has seen so many Israeli activists throughout the years, felt a little more protected. 

This was the period in which I met Emad. He was the only camera man of the village filming in those nights. When other cameramen or journalists left, he was there to document what was taking place. In this way, he became an important figure for the movement.

He was supported by the other video-activists like me and Shai Carmeli Pollack, as well as the many other people who sent him empty video tapes or helped with fundraising to repair his cameras.

But only in 2009 did Emad approach me to do a film together. I think the amount of trust he put in me was thanks to the deep understanding I had for the occupation after spending so much time in Bil'in, but it was also due to the amazing commitment of the Israeli activists who were committed to resist—many of whom paid the price for this support.

How did the editing process take shape? With over five years worth of filming, how much footage did you begin with? 

EB: I had about 700 hours of footage. We started the editing after 5 years of filming, but I think the problem was always in the editing. I told Guy that we needed to take on another editor. So, a few months before the film was finished, we received additional funding and we made the final edit in France with the help of another editor [Véronique Lagoarde-Ségot] and the editing problem was solved.

GD: We had three editing phases. A short period of building the first sequences which were made in Bil'in. Emad did not have permission to enter to Israel. During this period, we talked about the main ideas and narratives, I was looking at a lot of footage and Emad was doing the digitalizing. We also had quite a lot of conversation to enable us to start writing the texts. 

The second phase was a year and a half in which I did the editing at home on my own, while meeting Emad a few times a month to guide him in looking for new footage and sometimes to show him sequences. In this period of time a rough cut was created and reedited. We attended an editing development seminar in IDFA summer school together in which the opening shot was the main focus. The film is based on 7 years of filming (not 5) with more then 700 tapes, 200 hours of footage from other cameramen that was used mainly to show Emad in the different situations or to show some events from different perspectives. The main challenge was to be able to show the repetitive effect of the movement, like the arrests, demonstrations, and cameras breaking, but in a way that there was a sense of development, so that the scenes did not become boring. I think we were able to do it thanks to the collaboration of French Producer Serge Gordey and the great Editor Veronique Lagoarde Segot. In the last two months of editing in France, Veronique brought all her sensibilities to the film and helped us shape the story-telling, the sense of development and the right tone for every scene. We worked on the first 20 minutes more than half of the time, because it was important to give all the information and context needed for the rest of the film, and at the same time preserve the tone and style, trying always not to be didactic.

What is going on in Bi’lin now? Do you continue to film? Have you or your camera sustained any injuries since you finished your film?

EB: The people in the village are still demonstrating against the new wall. I am still filming. My sixth camera was not injured but it has stopped working and I have to find a new one.

What’s next for you? Do you have any upcoming projects?

EB: My project now is to focus on 5 BROKEN CAMERAS and to take it to the people everywhere. It's important to write the message but more important to send it. For me, the film is a message that took me seven years of my life to make. I will keep filming and maybe make part two of 5 BROKEN CAMERAS.

GD: My next project is called "Mixed Feelings" it will be on an acting school in Tel Aviv and a teacher that teaches acting to the new Israeli generation. At one point in the film the Gaza war starts and that provokes a conflict between the students and the teacher that almost leads to the end of the school.

New York, NY - January 10, 2013 - The critically acclaimed Palestinian and Israeli co-production 5 BROKEN CAMERAS, co-directed by Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi and distributed in the United States by Kino Lorber Inc., has been nominated by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences in the Best Documentary category for the 85th Academy Awards®.

5 BROKEN CAMERAS has also won the top prize (Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Filmmaking) at yesterday's Cinema Eye awards, presented at The Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, Queens. Michael Moore gracefully accepted the award for co-Directors Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi.