Joshua Seftel on Oscar Nominated Documentary Stranger at the Gate & the Power of Redemption Stories

Director Joshua Seftel speaks to DN about making room for reactions that paint a 1000 words when recording the interviews for his Oscar nominated documentary short Stranger at the Gate, where a marine about to commit the most violent of crimes, is stopped in his tracks by the kindness and love of strangers.

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00:00 - Intro
00:07 - What's the film about?
01:23 - Inspiration to make the documentary
03:21 - Telling stories of hope
05:02 - Being welcomed by the mosque community
06:57 - Laying the groundwork in pre-production
08:06 - Finding revealing interview moments in reactions
10:27 - Deciding between creating a short or a feature film
11:39 - Finding alternatives to archival footage
12:58 - The appeal of making short films
15:15 - Oscar nomination increasing the film's reach
17:01 - What's next?