Factory of Lies
Russia has launched an information war - introducing a new weapon. Hundreds of young
Russians are producing fake news from socialled "Troll Factories". From fake profiles lies are
spread by social media in US and Europe, trying to impact the public opinion. But some brave
Russian journalists are fighting back. Meet them in the documentary: "Factory of Lies".
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Jakob GottschauDirector
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Jakob GottschauWriter
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Jakob GottschauProducer
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Project Type:Documentary
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Runtime:58 minutes 40 seconds
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Completion Date:June 7, 2018
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Production Budget:250,000 USD
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Country of Origin:Denmark
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Country of Filming:Russian Federation, Sweden, United Kingdom
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Language:English, Russian
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Shooting Format:HD
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Aspect Ratio:16:9
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:No
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Student Project:No
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Movies on WarNorway
Norway
November 16, 2018
Official Selection -
Sebastopol Documentary Film FestivalSebastopol, CA
United States
March 29, 2019
North America -
World Film FestivalTartu
Estonia
March 20, 2019
Estonian -
American Documentary Film FestivalPalm Springs
United States
April 1, 2019
California -
6th International Documentary Festival of IerapetraCrete
Greece
July 1, 2019
Greece -
San Francisco Documentary Film FestivalSan Fransisco
United States
May 30, 2019 -
C H A G R I N D O C U M E N T A R Y F I L M F E S T I V A LChagrin Falls, Ohio
United States
October 4, 2019
Ohio -
Sands Film FestivalJACKSONVILLE BEACH, FL
United States
April 13, 2019
Florida
Distribution Information
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Danish Broadcasting CorporationCountry: DenmarkRights: All Rights, Free TVCountry: SwedenRights: Free TVCountry: IsraelRights: Free TV
Jakob Gottschau is a Danish documentary filmmaker. He has in recent years produced several films in which he has examined whether social media are a tool for democracy and liberation or for control and powerabuse. He has been in Egypt in 2012 - the year after the January Revolution, and in 2013 he visited China to explore the democratic debate on Weibo (the chinese Facebook). By 2015 he investigated Facebook's censorship policy and handling personal data. And in his latest movie from 2018 - 'The factory of
Lies', he portrays the infamous trolley factory in Saint Petersburg, Russia where 3-500 employees spread lies and false news in other countries.
I have previously produced and directed films about the internet and its impact on freedom of speech and democracy - most recently the movie “Facebookistan” and the documentary series, “Cyberwar”, which dealt with social media in repressive countries. The series was completed in the beginning of 2013, when the perception of the Internet's liberating role was (almost) intact. Today, we see the internet taking on a new role, where false stories are spread across country borders. This movie deals with the same basic and important question: Is the internet a tool for control or for liberation, is it strengthening democracy or the abuse of power. I think the issue on how Social Media is impacting our democracy and society as a whole is one of the absolutely most interesting questions to investigate.