Introductory Reflections on Perpetrators of Crimes Against Humanity and their Representation in Documentary Film

Abstract

In recent years the number of diverse forms of cultural productions focused on the perpetrators has increased significantly eliciting thus a turn toward this problematic figure. The originality of these narratives lies in the shift in point of view they propose: their protagonists, rather than being the victims of the atrocities, are instead their perpetrators. A significant number of documentary films examining crimes against humanity from the perpetrators’ perspective have been released in the two first decades of this century. This current tendency, which I call ‘perpetrator documentary film’, together with the growing scholarly interest in the explorations of the perpetrator underscore the timeliness of the present special issue titled ‘The Perpetrator of Crimes Against Humanity in Global Documentary Film’. It aims to explore how the perpetrator of crimes against humanity is represented in recent documentary films (2000–2019) in different sociocultural contexts around the world. This article seeks three objectives: First, the contextualization of this especial issue within the already established perpetrator studies. Second, the introduction of different angles from which the complexity of the perpetrator might be explored. Lastly, outlining the special issue introducing the nine articles which together with this introductory article shape this special issue. The documentary films object of study in these articles are contextualized in the following contexts: Indonesian, Cambodian and Rwandan genocides, Chilean and Argentine dictatorship, Spanish Civil War and its aftermaths, Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Nazi legacy, South Africa Apartheid and USA´s state perpetrations.