Guardian Documentary Presents

Guardian documentaries are short films made by global filmmakers for a global audience, telling stories of the people, places and situations less covered by the media.

Centred around hearing directly from the participants in stories, Guardian documentaries feature the best of documentary storytelling and video journalism.

Come and hear what goes into the making of these documentary shorts from Guardian head of video Charlie Phillips plus some of the filmmakers.

The films in this programme are:

1. Sam and the Plant Next Door (22 mins)
Sam, 11, is always being told not to worry about the nuclear power plant rising next door, but for him there is lots to think about. Most of his classmates expect to work at the plant but Sam is determined to escape that fate. His dream is to protect the surrounding marine life he identifies with. When the local power company offers to cover his school costs, Sam has to decide what kind of person he wants to be.

2. Someone Else’s War (29 mins)
To date at least 20 British nationals, some with no previous experience of combat, have travelled to Syria to fight Isis on the frontline. Eight of these Brits have lost their lives. This film follows the journeys of parents as they investigate why their children went to join the Kurdish army in their fight against Isis.

3. Share (12 mins)
An 18-year-old Instagram influencer attempts to reconcile his identity online with his identity in real life.

4. The Hour of Lynching (19 mins)
Rakbar, a Muslim dairy farmer, was murdered by a Hindu mob who thought he was taking a cow to be slaughtered for meat. While jos family falls apart, the hate machinery of rightwing Hindu nationalists – politicians and lynch mobs – works overtime to legitimise the killing. Set in a remote village in India, The Hour of Lynching sheds light on a global problem: communities turning on ‘the other’ – sometimes with extreme violence.