I just watched this. The masking definitely gives a different, more human feel to the documentary by allowing you to be able to see people's faces throughout, even when you know they're faked....
I just watched this. The masking definitely gives a different, more human feel to the documentary by allowing you to be able to see people's faces throughout, even when you know they're faked. Some shots looked pretty seamless, while in others the replacements were definitely obvious and had an “uncanny valley” quality to them. I didn't read this article until afterwards, where they mention that they blurred the faces prior to replacement in order to make the facial replacement more obvious, so it seems like that effect is actually intended so that the audience is continually reminded that the person's identity is being masked.
Spoilers
The facial masking is both functional and thematically relevant all the way through. It has the pragmatic purpose of hiding the refugees' identities, and it acts as a recurring visual motif for having to remain closeted. There's a particularly powerful scene where these culminate and converge: one of the film's subjects, referred to as "Grishna" throughout, decides to go public with the torture he experienced in Chechnya prior to becoming a refugee. He holds a press conference, and as he introduces himself by his real name -- Maxim Lapunov -- the facial replacement dissolves in the shot to reveal his real face for the first time. It would have been an incredibly powerful moment regardless (the bravery to go public under such threat is incredible), but the visual unmasking that accompanies it adds such a powerful resonance that I couldn't not cry. I'm tearing up again thinking about it as I write this.
Anyway, apart from any technical discussion, the film is excellent and highlights some incredible people doing selfless and dangerous work to protect LGBT people from absolutely horrid persecution. It is well worth a watch.
I just watched this. The masking definitely gives a different, more human feel to the documentary by allowing you to be able to see people's faces throughout, even when you know they're faked. Some shots looked pretty seamless, while in others the replacements were definitely obvious and had an “uncanny valley” quality to them. I didn't read this article until afterwards, where they mention that they blurred the faces prior to replacement in order to make the facial replacement more obvious, so it seems like that effect is actually intended so that the audience is continually reminded that the person's identity is being masked.
Spoilers
The facial masking is both functional and thematically relevant all the way through. It has the pragmatic purpose of hiding the refugees' identities, and it acts as a recurring visual motif for having to remain closeted. There's a particularly powerful scene where these culminate and converge: one of the film's subjects, referred to as "Grishna" throughout, decides to go public with the torture he experienced in Chechnya prior to becoming a refugee. He holds a press conference, and as he introduces himself by his real name -- Maxim Lapunov -- the facial replacement dissolves in the shot to reveal his real face for the first time. It would have been an incredibly powerful moment regardless (the bravery to go public under such threat is incredible), but the visual unmasking that accompanies it adds such a powerful resonance that I couldn't not cry. I'm tearing up again thinking about it as I write this.
Anyway, apart from any technical discussion, the film is excellent and highlights some incredible people doing selfless and dangerous work to protect LGBT people from absolutely horrid persecution. It is well worth a watch.