Netflix Acquires ‘State Of Silence,’ Documentary That Exposes Shocking Threat To Mexico’s Bravest Journalists, Executive Produced By Diego Luna
EXCLUSIVE: Netflix has acquired U.S. and Latin American rights to State of Silence (Estado de Silencio), Santiago Maza’s documentary on the perilous threat facing investigative journalists in Mexico.
Actor-activist Diego Luna executive produced the film which made its world premiere at Tribeca Festival in June, followed by an international premiere at Sheffield DocFest in the U.K. La Corriente del Golfo, the production company founded by Luna and Gael García Bernal, produced the documentary.
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“State of Silence traces the harrowing journeys of four courageous journalists as they navigate treacherous terrain in their unwavering pursuit of truth and authenticity,” notes a synopsis of the film. “Through this deeply personal exploration, the narrative urgently underscores the endangered state of press freedom in Mexico… State of Silence is a film that offers an intimate portrayal of the dire situation in Mexico, transcending borders to become a representation of a global issue that requires urgent attention.”
Since 2000, 167 journalists have been killed in Mexico as a presumptive result of their work, according to Article 19, an independent and nonpartisan group that advocates for freedom of expression. Another 32 journalists have gone missing.
“These incidents are embedded in a context of political violence in which criminal and state actors are constantly vying for influence,” maintains the Global Initiative Against Transnational Crime, an NGO based in Geneva. “The dominant narrative, which places the blame on cartels, conveniently absolves the state of its significant role in jeopardizing journalists’ safety.”
The film explores the constant risk to any reporter who attempts to document corruption or wrongdoing, a predicament that has driven journalists into hiding or into exile in the United States.
“After three different political administrations and more than 20 years of empty promises, the violence against journalists in Mexico remains constant,” the filmmakers state. “The dangerous collusion between organized crime and corrupt local governments, known as the narco political system, has turned the country into one of the most violent places in the world for those who practice journalism, where 99% of murder cases against reporters remain unsolved.”
In an interview with Deadline, Luna expressed solidarity with journalists who are defying the threat to their own safety in service of the public’s right to know.
“[In Mexico] we live in the most dangerous country for journalists on this continent. It’s insane. It’s ridiculous. We need [journalists] so badly, facing these new challenges we have as a society; we need someone out there telling the stories that matter and being critical about the place we live in. We need those voices,” Luna said. “For me, it’s really important that we don’t normalize what’s happening today to the journalists in Mexico. And I believe film is a great tool to do that because it makes numbers go back to stories, to personal stories.”
Maza’s directing credits include the documentary features El Encierro and El Baby, and the documentary series El Tema and Reasonable Doubt: A Tale of Two Kidnappings. Pan y Circo, a nonfiction series built around dinner-table conversations about society and culture, featured Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal, among others.
At a recent screening at WME in Beverly Hills, Maza described Luna’s instrumental role in the realization of State of Silence.
“Diego was the one that made it happen, especially in the early stages where it’s just an idea, it’s just a yearning. ‘We want to do this, but we don’t know how.’ And just putting together these first conversations with journalists, the resources, the connections that opened up the gate so that we could go out and actually do this,” Maza explained. “He was very supportive of the creative process and at the same time he allowed us — me and the whole team — to do what we know how to do… He was very much involved from day one and he still is.”
At the Q&A, Maza paid tribute to brave investigative journalists like Jesús Medina, Juan de Dios García Davish, María de Jesús Peters and Marcos Vizcarra who appear in the film. He said the most shocking thing he observed while making the documentary “was the indifference and the solitude that the journalists face and that Marcos mentions in the movie. Because when you become close with these persons, you obviously respect them and admire them and you realize what they do and you [think] it has to be amazing, the level of success or just the recognition that you can get with your work,” Maza said. “And then you go to their offices, their spaces that they work in, and it’s so empty and some spaces are sad to be in because you only have like three people that are so committed and no one is helping them… Even despite that reality, they just keep doing what they do.”
State of Silence is a production of La Corriente del Golfo, in association with Luminate and Ford Foundation. The film is directed by Santiago Maza and produced by Abril López Carrillo; post-producer is Priscila Doncel Albores. Executive producers include Diego Luna, Santiago Maza, Gael García Bernal, and Joris Debeij. Cinematography is by Odei Zabaleta; editors are Sebastián Nu?o and Jonás García. BEAK> composed the original score.
Rosa Bosch International is handling international sales of the documentary. Luna is represented by Elyse Scherz at WME, Hirsch Wallerstein Hayum Matlof and Fishman and IDPR.
No anticipated premiere date on Netflix has been announced, but at the WME screening Luna said it might happen in October.
Watch the State of Silence trailer here:
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