‘Black Code’ Unveiled Feb. 20

Black Code

NICHOLAS DE PENCIER’S GRIPPING DOCUMENTARY EXAMINES THE GLOBAL IMPACT THE INTERNET HAS ON FREE SPEECH AND PRIVACY
Coming to DVD and VOD on February 20, 2018
“They’re seductive, those modern conveniences that connect you to the world—but they betray you at every moment.” –Simon Houpt, Globe & Mail

Black Code explains the internet’s power for activists, and it makes plain that surveillance and digital activism are life-and-death matters.” – Dinah PoKempner, General Counsel, Human Rights Watch

Official Trailer: https://youtu.be/aaJpgH9kmuw
Directed and produced by Toronto-based filmmaker Nicholas de , BLACK CODE investigates the complex global impact that the internet has had on matters of citizenship, free speech, privacy, and activism.  

Based on Ronald Deibert’s 2013 book of the same name, BLACK CODE offers a startling report on how governments control and manipulate the internet in order to censor and monitor their citizens. With stories from exiled Tibetan monks circumventing China’s surveillance apparatus, Syrian citizens tortured for Facebook posts, Brazilian activists using social media to distribute alternative news, and Pakistani online violence against women, we see firsthand the high-stakes consequences that our unprecedented level of digital communication can produce. As this battle for control of cyberspace is waged, our ideas of citizenship, privacy, and democracy will be challenged to the very core.   

BLACK CODE’s accounts are drawn from the experiences of the “internet sleuths” – or cyber stewards – of the Toronto-based group The Citizen’s Lab. An interdisciplinary laboratory based at the Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto, Canada, Citizen’s Lab focuses on advanced research and development at the intersection of information and communication technologies (ICTs), human rights, and global security.  

“I started this film because reading Ron Deibert’s book was hugely revelatory. I was amazed at how much I didn’t know. And then [Edward] Snowden dropped, and all of a sudden everyone was talking about this,” says director/producer Nicholas de  on his inspiration for BLACK CODE. “Thank God it happened early enough that I wasn’t trying to compete against that incredible narrative. But it was early enough that I could then try to position the film as being a post-Snowden film, and [asking] what does the world look like?”  

A favorite on 2017’s international festival circuit in Hong Kong, Warsaw, Oslo, and The Hague, as well as the Human Rights Watch film festivals in Toronto and London, BLACK CODE will be released on DVD for the first time on February 20, 2018 ( January 16, 2018). The DVD, which includes a Human Rights Watch discussion with Ronald Deibert and Edward Snowden and a Q&A with the filmmaker as bonus features, carries the suggested retail price of $19.95. 

More information on BLACK CODE may be found on the MUSIC BOX FILMS website at https://www.musicboxfilms.com/blackcode. 

Black Code
Music Box Films Home Entertainment 
DVD RELEASE DATE: February 20, 2018
PRE-ORDER DATE: January 16, 2018
Price: DVD $19.95
Director/producer: Nicholas de
Running Time: 90 min.
Format: 1.85:1
Sound Format: Dolby Digital 5.1
Rating: NR
Country: Canada
Language: English with English subtitles 

Bonus Features*
-Human Rights Watch discussion with Ronald Deibert and Edward Snowden
-Filmmaker Q&A from Nicholas de  from Hong Kong International Film Festival 

About Music Box Films:
Music Box Films is a North American distributor of acclaimed international, American independent and documentary features. Recent releases include Terence Davies’ A QUIET PASSION starring Cynthia Nixon, Martin Provost’s THE MIDWIFE starring Catherine Deneuve and Catherine , and CHAVELA a documentary about the legendary Mexican ranchera singer  Vargas. Upcoming releases include Daniela Thomas’ first solo feature VAZANTE, Cédric  BACK TO BURGUNDY and OUR BLOOD IS WINE a documentary that explores the ancient process of Georgian winemaking. Music Box Films is independently owned and operated by Southport Music Box Corporation, which also owns and operates the Music Box Theatre, Chicago’s premiere venue for independent and foreign films. For more information, please visit www.musicboxfilms.com. 
 
© Black Code Media Inc. / Courtesy of Music Box Films
 
© Black Code Media Inc./Courtesy of Music Box Films
 
Black Code director Nicholas de Pencier. © Black Code Media Inc./Courtesy of Music Box Films

 

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