Last night, Laura Poitras’ Citizenfour, her cinéma vérité account of her first meetings with Glenn Greenwald and Edward Snowden, won the 2015 Academy Award for best documentary. Frankly, it was the only award that mattered. Recorded over eight days in a Hong Kong hotel, the film follows Snowden disclosing classified US National Security Agency (NSA) documents to the two journalists and making his decision to seek asylum in Russia.
Citizenfour trailer.
“The disclosures that Edward Snowden reveals don’t only expose a threat to our privacy, but to our democracy itself,” said Poitras, accepting the award. “When the most important decisions being made affecting all of us are made in secret, we lose our ability to check the powers that control. Thank you to Edward Snowden for his courage.”
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) published a statement from Edward Snowden shortly after the award:
“When Laura Poitras asked me if she could film our encounters, I was extremely reluctant. I’m grateful that I allowed her to persuade me. The result is a brave and brilliant film that deserves the honor and recognition it has received. My hope is that this award will encourage more people to see the film and be inspired by its message that ordinary citizens, working together, can change the world.”
On 14 June 2013, the US Department of Justice charged Snowden with two counts of violating the Espionage Act and theft of government property. He faces up to 30 years in prison.