Channel 4 has announced a series of “urgent” documentary films that “capture the scale and horror of the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas-controlled Gaza.”

Each film is powered by “unrivalled access to areas of the conflict that have largely been off-limits to the world’s media.”  One Day In October (w/t) from Dan Reed’s Amos Pictures takes a “forensic” look at the day of Hamas-perpetrated violence that triggered the current crisis; Collateral (w/t) from Basement Films is an “unflinching” look at the experience of ordinary Gazans in the face of Israel’s military onslaught; and Wire (w/t) from Oscar nominated film director Marcel Mettelsiefen explores how the violence of war has spilled out across Israel and the Occupied Territories.

The films are

One Day in October (w/t)

October 7th, 2023 was a day that shook the world. The well-rehearsed, close-quarters slaughter and abduction of hundreds of Israeli villagers and festival-goers was an event which has had catastrophic repercussions for Israelis and for the 2.3 million Palestinians who have borne the brunt of theIsraeli military’s response.  Channel 4 has teamed up with multi-BAFTA and EMMY-winning Leaving Neverland and Terror in Mumbai director Dan Reed for One Day in October, a 90-minute documentary which will unpack the story of that fateful day through the eyes of the survivors and drawing on a vast trove of recordings from kibbutz CCTV to Hamas perpetrators’ GoPro.

Commissioning Editor: Anna Miralis

Collateral (w/t) 

Filmed over many months by a team of Palestinian cameramen and filmmakers across Gaza, Collateral (w/t), a Dispatches special, is a mix of reportage and forensic journalism that focuses on the lives of Gazan children, journalists & medical workers as they try to survive Israel’s military onslaught of the besieged strip following the horrific Hamas attacks of October 7th. Through the eyes of those on the ground and with incredible access inside Gaza since the beginning of the war, the film will follow Israel’s devastating military assault that has killed at least 30,000 mostly women and children, and left tens of thousands of orphaned and maimed children. The film is being made by award winning production company Basement Films and is directed by Vanessa Bowles – and is an unflinching look into the lives of ordinary Gazans who are facing the most extraordinary and horrific of challenges.

Commissioning Editor: Nevine Mabro and Joanna Potts

Our Land (w/t)

Oscar nominated film director Marcel Mettelsiefen turns his attention to Israel and the Occupied Territories for a new documentary that will go behind the headlines and delve into the emotional and political heart of the current crisis. This commission follows his BAFTA and Rose d’Or winning film for Channel 4 Children of the Taliban which looked at life in Afghanistan, post the Taliban takeover through the eyes of four young children.

Commissioning Editor: Nevine Mabro

Channel 4’s Chief Content Officer, Ian Katz said “The horrific Hamas attacks of October 7 and subsequent Israeli onslaught on Gaza have appalled and often divided people across the world. But the inability of international journalists and filmmakers to operate in Gaza means we have not yet had the chance to see the conflict from all perspectives. This slate of major films, from some of the finest documentary makers in the world, will for the first time offer a 360-degree view of the tragedy, from the desperate reality of life for ordinary Palestinians in shattered Gaza to the terrifying day of carnage in October that triggered the latest chapter of the conflict. These films underscore Channel 4’s deep commitment to finding new ways to take our viewers to the heart of the world’s most complex and contested stories.”