A THOUSAND CUTS

2020
98’
USA, Philippines
Colour

Nowhere is the worldwide erosion of democracy, fueled by social media disinformation campaigns, more starkly evident than in the authoritarian regime of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. Journalist Maria Ressa places the tools of the free press—and her freedom—on the line in defense of truth and democracy.

When elected president in 2016, Rodrigo Duterte promised violence with a declared “war on drugs.” We join the prominent journalist Maria Ressa and her publication Rappler as they investigate thousands of government-sanctioned murders of primarily poor people accused of using or selling drugs. To suppress reporting on his mounting abuses, Duterte unleashes a powerful disinformation campaign on social media, targeting journalists with arrests, and violent threats. In this searing film, we follow Ressa and her fearless team as they risk their own freedom in defence of truth and democracy.

A Thousand Cuts is both a chilling tale of a leader’s gross misuse of power and an uplifting story about courageous journalism and how it can inspire people to action.” – Carlos H. Conde, Senior Researcher, Human Rights Watch

Emmy for Outstanding Social Issue Documentary News and Documentary Emmy Awards Winner of the Unforgettables Cinema Eye Honors Awards DocEdge Award DocEdge Best Documentary Gotham Awards Special Mention Millennium Docs Against Gravity David Carr Award Montclair Peabody Award Peabody Awards

Ramona S. Diaz is an award-winning Asian American filmmaker whose films have screened at Sundance, Berlinale, Tribeca, IDFA, among others. She is a graduate of Emerson College and holds an MA from Stanford University. Her film Motherland (2017) won an award at Sundance FF and had its international premiere at the 67th. Berlinale. She was awarded a prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship and was inducted into the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences (AMPAS) in 2016. In 2017 she received the Women at Sundance Fellowship and the Chicken & Egg Pictures Breakthrough Filmmaker Award.