Filmmaker of "Quiet Voice" details threats received for his film about Chechen gay

The filmmaker of the documentary "Quiet Voice" telling about the fate of a Chechen gay man was forced to close his account in a social network after the threats received from anonymous users who sent, among other things, a frightening video clip. The member of the Chechen community, after whose visit the film was removed from screening, behaved politely when they met, the organizers of the "Artdocfest" festival said.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the "Artdocfest" was forced to cancel the screening of the above documentary. Before the festival, the filmmaker was threatened to "deprive him of his voice", like it happened with the hero of his film.

The film "Quiet Voice" was removed from the festival programme as a result of pressure, said Ekaterina Vizgalova, the press secretary of the "Artdocfest" festival. According to her story, "Valerik Reka" is the filmmaker's pseudonym. A Zoom meeting with him was cancelled at his request because of the threats he received in social networks.

Let us remind you that in June 2020, the premiere of the HBO-made documentary "Welcome to Chechnya", made by David France, was held in the USA. The film is about LGBT activists working undercover to help residents of Chechnya to avoid persecutions for their sexual orientation. The film precisely discloses the problem of persecutions for sexual orientation in the republic, Maxim Lapunov, the hero of the tape, has confirmed; he had been earlier detained in Chechnya on suspicion of homosexuality.