:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/62343843/whitehelmetscover.0.jpg)
The Syrian Civil Defense is a group of ordinary men — former builders, tailors, and artisans — who work to extract victims from beneath the rubble in places like Aleppo that have been gravely affected by the Syrian civil war. The group has saved more than 58,000 people since 2013. This 41-minute documentary, which won the Oscar for Best Documentary Short Film in 2017, follows the men as they struggle to prevent the loss of life, and lets them tell us why, as one man puts it, “this job is sacred.”
”[Director] Von Einseidel is convinced that his subjects are “true heroes.” Viewers will be convinced of the same.” John Anderson, Wall Street Journal
Release date: September 16, 2016
Streaming on: Netflix
Metacritic score: N/A
