Clintons Producing Doc on Clooney Foundation Probe Into Russian War Crimes in Ukraine (Exclusive)

Scott Roxborough
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HiddenLight Productions, the production outfit co-founded by Hillary Clinton, Sam Branson and Chelsea Clinton, is backing a new documentary on efforts by George and Amal Clooney’s Clooney Foundation for Justice to investigate Russian war crimes in Ukraine.

The feature doc, The Swallows Will Return (working title), will follow the investigative work of Anya Neistat, a preeminent war crimes investigator at the foundation, as she and her team try to expose human rights violations by Russian invaders and bring the perpetrators to justice. The Clooney Foundation for Justice, set up by George and Amal Clooney in 2016, backs teams of human rights lawyers who gather evidence to bring war crime perpetrators to trial under the principle of “universal jurisdiction,” that a war crime is a crime against humanity and punishable anywhere in the world.

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Laura Warner, a senior producer on Channel 4’s acclaimed current affairs documentary series Unreported World, will direct the film, in which she embeds with Neistat and her team as they enter the Ukraine war zone and attempt to track down survivors brave enough to testify against those who committed the rape, torture and murder against them and their families.

Evan Williams is producing and executive producing alongside HiddenLight’s co-creative directors Siobhan Sinnerton and Amy Flanagan together with Liev Schreiber.

“I don’t think of The Swallows Will Return as a war film. It’s really a true crime thriller set in the middle of a colossal military conflict,” said Warner. “Anya’s relentless drive to see Russia’s war criminals held to account has been awe-inspiring to witness in the field and I feel privileged to work with her, HiddenLight and the Clooney Foundation for Justice to bring this story to the world.”

HiddenLight’s Sinnerton said the film would provide a “very different lens” on the frontline of the Ukraine war. “There is much to despair of in the current situation in Ukraine, but the bravery and determination of both Anya and the survivors in this film are cause for hope,” she noted.

Added Hillary Clinton: “Nothing can erase the tragic events in Ukraine or bring loved ones back, but we hope that by showing the world the hard work of Anya and her team and the evidence they uncover, this film can help advance peace and accountability for the devastating conflict that continues to unfold there.”

Channel 4 has commissioned the film, in association with Minderoo Pictures, the social impact filmmaking entity from Minderoo Foundation. The Swallows Will Return is currently in production with delivery expected in 2024. Abacus Media Rights is handling world sales.

HiddenLight won an Emmy in the politics and government documentary category for its first documentary effort: The Netflix film In Her Hands, a doc about the youngest female mayor in the history of Afghanistan.

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