This event is run in partnership with the Barbican’s major autumn film season The Colour of Money, which focuses on themes that have risen to vital prominence since the financial crash of 2008 – from corruption to consumerism, housing, poverty and the living wage
This unique masterclass explores the challenges of investigating corporate corruption through film. Join David Leigh, former investigations editor of the Guardian, and award-winning documentary filmmaker Ben Lewis for a fascinating discussion on the importance of holding the powerful to account – and the potential legal and personal ramifications of such work.
During the event, you’ll learn about the tools and techniques used to scrutinise economic powers, and the challenges of working with whistleblowers and ‘hacktivists’. You’ll also learn about working with confidential documents and leaked data, as well as how to use investigative journalism methods to create compelling and important films about the world we live in.
This timely event takes place alongside a screening of Tigers, the latest feature by award-winning filmmaker Danis Tanovic, where the activities of multinationals in the developing world come under scrutiny in a drama based on a true story set in Pakistan. The Barbican’s season The Colour of Money also features Ben Lewis’ investigative film Falciani’s Tax Bomb: The Man Behind the Swiss Leaks, which reveals the story of whistleblower Hervé Falciani who stole highly sensitive client data from HSBC, leading to the biggest banking scandal in history.
You’ll enjoy this event if…
- You’re interested in important issues such as corporate corruption and social justice, and want to learn about the techniques of investigative journalism
- You’re an activist or campaigner interested in creating a documentary for a broad audience
- You’re a journalist or filmmaker with a particular interest in scrutinising economic powers
- You’re an academic or researcher keen to learn more about investigative journalism and the methods behind great documentary filmmaking
Speaker profiles
David Leigh is the former investigations editor of the Guardian, where he handled the exposure of worldwide tax evasion at HSBC bank and the WikiLeaks data leak of over 250,000 US diplomatic cables. He has won seven press awards, including Granada’s Investigative Journalist of the Year, the British Press Awards Campaigning Journalist of the Year, and the 2007 Paul Foot Award for investigative journalism. In 2006, David was highly commended for investigations into alleged corruption at BAE Systems. His books include The Liar (an account of the Jonathan Aitken affair), Sleaze (the story of the Neil Hamilton case) and Wikileaks: Inside Julian Assange’s War on Secrecy. Find David on Twitter here.
Ben Lewis is an award-winning documentary filmmaker, author and art critic. He has made many feature documentaries and TV series on highly topical subjects, which have provoked public debate and influenced political decision-making. Ben’s documentaries include The Great Contemporary Art Bubble, Google and the World Brain and Poor Us: An Animated History of Poverty, among others. Most recently, his film Falciani’s Tax Bomb: The Man Behind the Swiss Leaks explored the story of whistleblower Hervé Falciani, who stole highly sensitive client data from HSBC and revealed the biggest banking scandal in history. Ben has worked with most of the world’s leading TV channels, including the BBC, Arte and ABC-Australia and others. His book Hammer and Tickle, a history of humour under Communism, has so far been published in America, Germany, Portugal, Poland, Slovenia and Italy. Find out more about Ben on his website.
Details
Date: Saturday 12 September 2015
Times: 10am-1pm
Location: Barbican Cinema 3, Beech Street, London, EC2Y 8AE
Price: £49 (includes VAT and refreshments). Please note: there is a 60p booking fee for online bookings and a 70p booking fee for phone bookings.
Event capacity: 150
To contact us, click here. Terms and conditions can be found here.
Returns policy
Tickets are non-refundable, however, they can be exchanged for another performance at the Barbican, or for a Barbican credit voucher valid for six months. Please see the Barbican’s terms and conditions for more information on the policy.
