Al Jazeera English Wins Best Documentary Emmy For Miners Shot Down
Al Jazeera English’s Witness documentary, Miners Shot Down, has won Best Documentary at the International Emmy Awards. The documentary is now available to stream online until 1 December 2015.
The documentary, directed by Rehad Desai, written by Anita Khanna and distributed by Deckert Distribution, explores South Africa’s Marikana massacre of 2012 that left 34 miners dead and more than 100 injured. Miners Shot Down highlights the courageous fight waged by a group of miners against combined forces that resulted in violence, police brutality and the country’s first post-apartheid massacre.
“Our Witness documentary strand brings powerful stories to our screens. We are delighted this film, showing the courageous but isolated fight waged by a group of low-paid workers against more powerful forces, has been awarded with an International Emmy,” said Giles Trendle, managing director of Al Jazeera English.
Watch and embed the trailer at
Following the success of Miners Shot Down, Witness has committed to Desai’s upcoming film about politics in South Africa.
Witness is Al Jazeera English’s flagship observational documentary strand, dedicated to telling the human stories behind the news headlines. It showcases award-winning and locally produced documentaries to provide context for Al Jazeera’s global news audience. Witness films are known for their intimacy, originality and timelessness, as they give a human face to contemporary social issues.
In June, Witness was honoured with One World Media’s Women’s Rights in Africa Award for Casablanca Calling. Kisilu: The Climate Diaries, which won the 2015 One World Media Student Award for an earlier, short version, will screen on Witness next week, from 2 December 2015. Pakistan Music: Lyari Notes, currently nominated for the Alliance of Women Film Journalists EDA Award at IDFA, will screen on Witness from 16 December 2015.
About Al Jazeera English
Al Jazeera English is part of the Al Jazeera Network - one of the world’s leading media corporations, encompassing news, documentary and sport channels. Al Jazeera started out more than 15 years ago as the first independent news channel in the Arab world dedicated to covering and uncovering stories in the region. It is now a media network consisting of over 20 channels. For more information, visit www.aljazeera.com.