TV & Movies

TIFF 2020: Sonia Kennebeck directs the documentary about the case of Matthew DeHart

Sonia Kennebeck’s documentary film “Enemies of the State” is a film about the “elusive nature of truth,” as TheWrap’s review describes it, made even more complicated by the remarkable re-enactments that work to blend the fact and fiction of the story.

Kennebeck’s film tells the story of Matthew DeHart, a hacker seeking asylum in Canada claiming to being hunted and investigated by the FBI, only for the film to unravel a much deeper conspiracy involving a child pornography ring and accusations of government torture.

But when the filmmakers obtained access to the real audio file of DeHart’s asylum hearing, it proved to be too good of an opportunity to pass up.

“There was a full asylum hearing in Toronto, and we actually were able to get access to the real audio recording where the family and particularly the lead character Matt DeHart is retelling his own story, including all that you just mentioned, the government interrogations, this whole spy story that developed,” Kennebeck told TheWrap’s Sharon Waxman as part of the Virtual Studio at TIFF. “And so we had the audio, which is such a real, true document, so we then had the idea to re-create the images. So what the actors are basically doing is lip syncing to the real audio.”

“Enemies of the State” dissects the nature of conspiracy theories and why they can be so attractive, and Kennebeck says that all of the revelations throughout the course of the film are the same discoveries they made while researching their documentary thriller.

“We really didn’t know how it would end or where the research and investigation would lead us,” she says. “It does mirror our journey of investigation as well, and the discoveries that you see in the film is the way we discovered the story ourselves.”

Check out TheWrap’s interview with Kennebeck on “Enemies of the State” above.

Regina King, Viggo Mortensen and More Portraits From TheWrap's Virtual Toronto Studio (Photos)

  • Director Regina King, “One Night in Miami”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Aldis Hodge, “One Night in Miami”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Leslie Odom Jr., “One Night in Miami”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Eli Goree, “One Night in Miami”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Viggo Mortensen, “Falling”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Actress Rosamund Pike, “I Care a Lot”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Actress Eiza Gonzalez, “I Care a Lot”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director J Blakeson, “I Care a Lot”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Actress Connie Britton, “Good Joe Bell”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Florian Zeller, “The Father”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Actor Amir El-Masry, “Limbo”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Ben Sharrock, “Limbo”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Actress Chloë Grace Moretz, “Shadow in the Cloud”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Roseanne Liang, ” Shadow in the Cloud”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Katherine Waterson, “The Third Day”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Dawn Porter, “The Way I See It”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Directors Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart, “Wolfwalkers”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Actress Danielle Macdonald, “Falling for Figaro”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Emma Seligman, “Shiva Baby”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Actress Rachel Sennott, “Shiva Baby”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Actress Dianna Agron, “Shiva Baby”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Actress Molly Gordon, “Shiva Baby”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Actress Polly Draper, “Shiva Baby”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Joel Bakan, “The New Corporation: The Unfortunately Necessary Sequel”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Jennifer Abbott, “The New Corporation: The Unfortunately Necessary Sequel”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Actress Jessica Barden, “Holler”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Michael Dweck, “The Truffle Hunters”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Gregory Kershaw, “The Truffle Hunters”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Ross Stewart, “Wolfwalkers”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Tomm Moore, “Wolfwalkers”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Sam Pollard, “MLK/FBI”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Tracey Deer, “Beans”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

  • Director Sonia Kennebeck, “Enemies of the State”

    Photographed by Chris Loupos for TheWrap

TIFF 2020: Chloë Grace Moretz, Rosamund Pike, Leslie Odom Jr. and more stop by TheWrap’s virtual studio

Source: Read Full Article