| Listed below are the various projects that CF&R have either produced or been involved with by providing footage or consulting. Check back regularly as we update and pull material from our archives. |
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Chechnya: Separatism or Jihad? (CF&R/KBYU)
Chechnya: Separatism or Jihad? examines the nature of Islam in the ongoing Chechen conflict. In early 1995 numerous foreign mujahadeen went to Chechnya to assist the separatist movement—there have been foreigners there ever since. Their contribution on the battlefield and their influence on the political situation within the Chechen resistance is not clear. It has been the subject of controversy, misinformation and political finger-pointing by all sides in the conflict.
More disturbing, four large scale hostage-taking raids into Russia in the past decade, Budyonnovsk (1995), Kizlar (1996), Moscow Theater (2002) and Beslan (2004), now referred to as “spectaculars”, seem to parallel the growing radicalization of the conflict. These increasingly audacious and violent events also serve as a chronological timeline for the story as they illustrate an evolution and escalation of militant Chechen tactics.
At the center of the conflict is Shamil Basayev, the last remaining field commander from the beginning of war in 1994. Has he become the face of Chechen separatism, of Islamic radicalization in Chechnya, or both? Will his voice dominate following the recent death of the more moderate rebel leader, Aslan Maskhadov, at the hands of Russian commandos?
Chechnya: Separatism or Jihad? explores the larger question of whether or not the Chechen independence movement has been hijacked by militant Islam. |
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Virgin Soldiers (Combat Films/Ideal World/Channel 4)
With unprecedented access, award-winning filmmaker Dodge Billingsley tells the story of India Company 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, crack U.S. Frontline troops in Iraq. With some as young as 19, the invasion of Iraq was the first time any of them had actually been sent into combat. Having joined up with the regiment two months before they went into battle, and watched them train and prepare for war, Dodge experienced first hand the fears, hopes, dark humor and occasionally humdrum day to day life of these young men as they played a vital role in the liberation of Iraq. With remarkable footage of battles with the Iraqi 32nd Mechanized Infantry Brigade and the destruction of the Fedayeen Headquarters, Virgin Soldiers reveals the true story of the men who fought their way into the heart of Baghdad. 3/7 Marines remained in Iraq conducting stabilization operations for another four and half months before returning to their desert base in 29 Palms. |
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Close Combat Attack Apaches: D-Day Operation Anaconda (CF&R)
On March 2, 2002, over a thousand U.S. and allied troops moved against a large concentration of Taliban and Al Qaeda in the Shah-i Khot valley of Southeastern Afghanistan. Only minutes after H-hour allied troops across the valley came under small arms RPG and mortar fire and two flights of AH-64 Apache attack helicopters swooped in to support them. Unable to hover, and facing massed fire from the ground, the Apaches carried out Close Combat Attacks on a determined and well-concealed enemy for the remainder of the day. By nightfall, five of the seven Apaches in action had been rendered in operable by enemy fire. 18 minutes DVD NTSC |
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The House of War (Channel4/CNN)
The House of War, an hour-long documentary from Emmy-award-winning director Paul Yule, is an insiders’ account of the Mazar-I-Sharif uprising in Afghanistan.
Featuring previously unseen footage, The House of War reveals what really happened in the Qala-I-Jangi fortress, from the moment the first prisoner blew himself up with a hand grenade, through seven days of ferocious fighting, to the final surrender. www.channel4.com |
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Helen Foster Snow: Witness to Revolution (CF&R/KBYU)
For China, the 1930's were a decade marked by profound uncertainty and sweeping change. It was in this unstable and dangerous enviroment that aspiring American author Helen Foster foound herself when she arrived in China in 1931. She spent the next decade working as a writer, an activist, and humanitarian. She is one of the few Western eyewitnesses to the gathering Chinese Communist revolution. |
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Immortal Fortress: A Look Inside Chechnya's Warrior Culture (CF&R)
Award winning Immortal Fortress takes the viewer on a dangerous behind-the-scenes journey into Chechnya, exploring the tiny mountain republic's war driven culture while searching for its most prolific warrior, Shamil Basayev.
52 Minutes Available in NTSC or PALformat |
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