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On the heels of its two Oscar® nominations, MTV Documentary Films releases trailer for Death Without Mercy (working title) directed by Academy Award®-nominated filmmaker Waad Al-Kateab and executive produced by Sheila Nevins
February 6th marks one year since the devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria that killed over 50,000 people
Distributor behind The Eternal Memory, Last Flight Home and 76 Days plans a May 3rd theatrical release ahead of Paramount+ debut later this year
NEW YORK, NY – February 8, 2024 – MTV Documentary Films today announced a May 3rd theatrical release for Death Without Mercy (working title), a new film from the Academy Award®-nominated and Emmy®-winning filmmaker Waad Al-Kateab (For Sama, We Dare to Dream) that explores the devastating earthquake in Syria and Turkey that struck nearly one year ago. It was the worst earthquake in the region in more than a century, killing more than 50,000 people, and as the filmmaker shows, was both a natural disaster and a human-made disaster. The documentary will premiere on Paramount+ later this year.
You can find the trailer here: https://youtu.be/jXH3R7kz6oU
Death Without Mercy (working title) is executive produced by Emmy® and Peabody®-award winner Sheila Nevins, who received an Oscar nomination this year for her directorial debut (The ABCs of Book Banning).
On February 6th, 2023 at 4:17 am local time, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck southern Turkey and north eastern Syria. In a matter of minutes large parts of the southern Turkish cities of Antakya, Gaziantep, and Hatay were in ruins, and tens of thousands lay dead under the rubble.
In the aftermath of the earthquake there was no universal effort to save the injured and the dying under the rubble. Civilians were forced to use their hands and shovels to dig up loved ones and strangers, while the world looked the other way. Faulty constructions, criminal permissions, plus the lack of rescue efforts, caused the unnecessary death of 50,000, many of which could have been saved.
With access to incredible CCTV footage from above ground, remarkable first-person documentary footage from under the rubble, extensive verité footage (some recorded on cell phones), drone footage, news and archival footage, Death Without Mercy (working title) is chronologically assembled from the reports of hundreds of newscasters, cameramen, and civilians representing the days following this tragic event.
The film is built on the experiences of two Syrian families, following them over the course of 10 days after the disaster, as they piece together the tragedy and uncover revelations about the corruption, lies and government incompetence that exacerbated the disaster and its response.
The families of Fadi al-Halabi (the lead cinematographer of the Oscar-winning documentary The White Helmets) and Fuad are emblematic of so many of the stories from southern Turkey where many Syrian refugee families had fled to start new lives only to find their lives dramatically affected by the earthquake. Each was away on work travels when the earthquake struck and the film follows them as they race back home to try to locate their family members. Their stories include miraculous survivors as well as the horrific tragedies.
“Waad Al-Kateab’s film puts a human face on the inhuman tragedy of a 7.8 earthquake that rocked Turkey and Syria on February 6, 2023,” said executive producer Sheila Nevins. “Nature can be cruel, but in Death Without Mercy, we see Man’s cruelty to Man.”
About Paramount+
Paramount+, a direct-to-consumer digital subscription video on-demand and live streaming service, combines live sports, breaking news and A Mountain of Entertainment™. The streaming service features an expansive library of original series, hit shows and popular movies across every genre from world-renowned brands and production studios, including BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and the Smithsonian Channel. Paramount+ with SHOWTIME®, the service's cornerstone plan, is also home to SHOWTIME® content, including scripted hits and critically acclaimed nonfiction projects and films. This premium plan includes unmatched events and sports programming through the local live CBS stream, including golf, basketball and more. All Paramount+ subscribers have streaming access to CBS News Network for 24/7 news and CBS Sports HQ for sports news and analysis.
For more information about Paramount+, please visit www.paramountplus.com, and follow @ParamountPlus on social media.
About MTV Documentary Films
In less than five years, MTV Documentary Films has worked with high-profile and up and coming filmmakers on timely stories that have already garnered five Oscar®-nominations, ten Oscar shortlists, a Peabody® Award, four Emmy® wins and seven Emmy nominations. Most recently, they received Academy Award nominations for THE ETERNAL MEMORY which was acquired out of Sundance where it won the Grand Jury Prize and THE ABCs OF BOOK BANNING which marks the directorial debut of Sheila Nevins at age 84. Prior Shortlisted titles include Ondi Timoner’s LAST FLIGHT HOME which was also nominated for a Writers Guild Award; ANASTASIA; ANGOLA DO YOU HEAR US? VOICES FROM A PLANTATION PRISON; and AS FAR AS THEY CAN RUN. The company saw its first Best Documentary Feature Academy Award nomination with ASCENSION which also earned DGA, Independent Spirit Award and Cinema Eye Honors. MTV Documentary Films’ first film out of the gate was the Oscar®-nominated ST. LOUIS SUPERMAN, followed by 76 DAYS - set deep inside the frontlines of the pandemic in Wuhan - which won the Peabody and Emmy for Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking and was Oscar-Shortlisted for Best Documentary Feature; the Oscar-nominated HUNGER WARD; the Emmy-nominated FINDING YINGYING; BEAUTIFUL SOMETHING LEFT BEHIND; AMERICAN SELFIE: ONE NATION SHOOTS ITSELF; 17 BLOCKS; A LIFE TOO SHORT; and MY FATHER THE MOVER.
You can find the trailer here: https://youtu.be/jXH3R7kz6oU
Death Without Mercy (working title) is executive produced by Emmy® and Peabody®-award winner Sheila Nevins, who received an Oscar nomination this year for her directorial debut (The ABCs of Book Banning).
On February 6th, 2023 at 4:17 am local time, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck southern Turkey and north eastern Syria. In a matter of minutes large parts of the southern Turkish cities of Antakya, Gaziantep, and Hatay were in ruins, and tens of thousands lay dead under the rubble.
In the aftermath of the earthquake there was no universal effort to save the injured and the dying under the rubble. Civilians were forced to use their hands and shovels to dig up loved ones and strangers, while the world looked the other way. Faulty constructions, criminal permissions, plus the lack of rescue efforts, caused the unnecessary death of 50,000, many of which could have been saved.
With access to incredible CCTV footage from above ground, remarkable first-person documentary footage from under the rubble, extensive verité footage (some recorded on cell phones), drone footage, news and archival footage, Death Without Mercy (working title) is chronologically assembled from the reports of hundreds of newscasters, cameramen, and civilians representing the days following this tragic event.
The film is built on the experiences of two Syrian families, following them over the course of 10 days after the disaster, as they piece together the tragedy and uncover revelations about the corruption, lies and government incompetence that exacerbated the disaster and its response.
The families of Fadi al-Halabi (the lead cinematographer of the Oscar-winning documentary The White Helmets) and Fuad are emblematic of so many of the stories from southern Turkey where many Syrian refugee families had fled to start new lives only to find their lives dramatically affected by the earthquake. Each was away on work travels when the earthquake struck and the film follows them as they race back home to try to locate their family members. Their stories include miraculous survivors as well as the horrific tragedies.
“Waad Al-Kateab’s film puts a human face on the inhuman tragedy of a 7.8 earthquake that rocked Turkey and Syria on February 6, 2023,” said executive producer Sheila Nevins. “Nature can be cruel, but in Death Without Mercy, we see Man’s cruelty to Man.”
About Paramount+
Paramount+, a direct-to-consumer digital subscription video on-demand and live streaming service, combines live sports, breaking news and A Mountain of Entertainment™. The streaming service features an expansive library of original series, hit shows and popular movies across every genre from world-renowned brands and production studios, including BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and the Smithsonian Channel. Paramount+ with SHOWTIME®, the service's cornerstone plan, is also home to SHOWTIME® content, including scripted hits and critically acclaimed nonfiction projects and films. This premium plan includes unmatched events and sports programming through the local live CBS stream, including golf, basketball and more. All Paramount+ subscribers have streaming access to CBS News Network for 24/7 news and CBS Sports HQ for sports news and analysis.
For more information about Paramount+, please visit www.paramountplus.com, and follow @ParamountPlus on social media.
About MTV Documentary Films
In less than five years, MTV Documentary Films has worked with high-profile and up and coming filmmakers on timely stories that have already garnered five Oscar®-nominations, ten Oscar shortlists, a Peabody® Award, four Emmy® wins and seven Emmy nominations. Most recently, they received Academy Award nominations for THE ETERNAL MEMORY which was acquired out of Sundance where it won the Grand Jury Prize and THE ABCs OF BOOK BANNING which marks the directorial debut of Sheila Nevins at age 84. Prior Shortlisted titles include Ondi Timoner’s LAST FLIGHT HOME which was also nominated for a Writers Guild Award; ANASTASIA; ANGOLA DO YOU HEAR US? VOICES FROM A PLANTATION PRISON; and AS FAR AS THEY CAN RUN. The company saw its first Best Documentary Feature Academy Award nomination with ASCENSION which also earned DGA, Independent Spirit Award and Cinema Eye Honors. MTV Documentary Films’ first film out of the gate was the Oscar®-nominated ST. LOUIS SUPERMAN, followed by 76 DAYS - set deep inside the frontlines of the pandemic in Wuhan - which won the Peabody and Emmy for Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking and was Oscar-Shortlisted for Best Documentary Feature; the Oscar-nominated HUNGER WARD; the Emmy-nominated FINDING YINGYING; BEAUTIFUL SOMETHING LEFT BEHIND; AMERICAN SELFIE: ONE NATION SHOOTS ITSELF; 17 BLOCKS; A LIFE TOO SHORT; and MY FATHER THE MOVER.
