Rudy Buttignol, an independent broadcasting executive with over five decades of experience and many important awards under his belt, has recently joined the first edition of the Al Jazeera Documentary Industry Days, as a moderator. Buttignol talks to us about coming on board the programme and the opportunities that platforms like these can bring to the auteurs behind the docs.

Cineuropa: It is your first time in Sarajevo and your first time at the AJB DOC Film Festival. What are your first impressions?
Rudy Buttignol: The opening screening at the Kovači Multimedia Centre was perfect, as not even the rain ruined the mood. I mean, open-air cinema is always great. The location was nothing short of amazing – just to think of where we are, both historically and geographically! Besides that, the subject of the film itself, Girl Gang [+lire aussi :
critique
interview : Susanne Regina Meures
fiche film], was quite interesting, and the view was a great added bonus.

How did you find the pitches that you were tasked with moderating [see the news]? Is there one that really impressed you?
I found that almost all of the projects had something charming about them, but I was most captivated by the presentation by Srđan Šarenac. The Cinema under Siege pitch was very interesting. It brings a powerful message about what humans need in times of trouble – something to lift their spirits. Besides food and water, of course. But they also need cinema – they need that for their soul. You can see Šarenac has pitching experience from before. He was sharp and very precise. I think that his project shows potential and has a very bright future.

Other than that, did you notice anything else? Anything that the projects had in common, or any differences between them?
The auteurs covered some interesting topics. They were right on point – covering the issues of today, such as violence against women, men and children. Some of the settings were a bit exotic, such as rural areas, and those details just add to the fact that they can become great films. The whole weekend brought a great mix of subjects.

But it’s not just about mixing the topics and artistic approaches. The motto of AJD is “The voice of the voiceless”, after all…
Some of these films come from countries we rarely hear from, such as Azerbaijan or Algeria. They are made by filmmakers who do not often put their stories on display, but who are deeply important as they are also a part of our society. And they deserve to be heard just as much as the others. This brings a whole group of people we are not usually exposed to. These are the stories we need to hear in order to be able to understand the world better.

What does this event represent, as seen from the position of an executive who is well established in the film and TV industry?
It is opening doors for the filmmaking groups, TV networks and streamers that want to show diverse programmes to their audiences. It is a breath of fresh air for the whole industry. This is bringing a whole spectrum of stories from countries we have not heard from before. Basically, nobody has done this before, and now, Al Jazeera is doing it. And I think Al Jazeera is exactly the right place for starting something as meaningful as this.