We all know that, in today's world, telling the truth may set you free, but it can also make you an inmate or a corpse. Activist folk singer Joan Baez, however, reminds us that, "Courage has to do with being afraid and doing what you have to do anyway." It is a fitting description of whistleblower Edward Snowden, whose story is told by the Oscar-nominated American filmmaker Laura Poitras (My Country, My Country) in her intimate and intense documentary Citizenfour. Snowden, a 29-year-old former NSA contractor and intelligence analyst, aware of the serious personal and legal consequences, nevertheless exposed the fact that the government, in the name of fighting terrorism, was spying on all American citizens and those of other countries, in every area of their lives, whether they were suspected of wrongdoing or not.

Laura Poitras - Forbes

Cate Blanchett and Colin Farrell won the top acting prizes. Blanchett won for her performance as a renowned conductor in Todd Field’s TÁR and Farrell for playing a man who has broken up with by his longtime friend in Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin. Poitras] treads new territory, presenting work that breaks away from the format of documentary filmmaking and moves into the realm of immersive art installations.” WikiLeaks attorneys blast Citizen Four maker Poitras". Newsweek. May 17, 2017 . Retrieved April 4, 2019.Reality Winner, charged with leaking U.S. secrets to a news outlet, walks into the Federal Courthouse in Augusta, Ga., Tuesday, June 26, 2018. Winner previously pleaded not guilty and has been in custody since her arrest. But with all of these personal details, “I didn’t want to make a biopic,” Poitras said. “I’m not a biographer. I wanted to create juxtapositions and historical connections and emerge with a portrait of an artist. I definitely wanted to avoid any kind of narrative of there’s this artist done in by their demons: I’m not interested in that story.”

Laura Poitras: Two Artists, One Devastating Film Nan Goldin and Laura Poitras: Two Artists, One Devastating Film

She filmed, edited, and produced Channel 4's alternative to the Royal Christmas Message by Queen Elizabeth II in 2013, the " Alternative Christmas Message", featuring Edward Snowden. [47] [48] In 2013, Poitras was one of the initial three journalists to meet Edward Snowden in Hong Kong and to receive copies of leaked NSA documents. [23] [40] Poitras and journalist Glenn Greenwald are the only two people with full archives of Snowden's leaked NSA documents, according to Greenwald. [23] [41]She says she’s exhausted and could do with a break, but she’s hooked on film-making: surveillance and the intelligence services in particular. What would she like to do next? “I’d love to look at what’s happening in the investigation into Trump. I don’t think I am going to get that access!” she laughs. “I don’t think Comey would take my phone call, unfortunately. He’d be top of the list of people I’d love to film at the moment.” In 2012, Poitras took an active part in the three-month exposition of Whitney Biennial exhibition of contemporary American art. [29] Government surveillance [ edit ] Filmmaker Laura Poitras' Work Rewarded With a Pulitzer Prize". April 14, 2014 . Retrieved April 17, 2014.