How was the vivid sense of reality that overwhelmed everyone who watched Bloody Sunday created?

“Reliving” history in which both parties participated

During the production process, Greengrass held certain things in mind. The aim is for both the British and Irish sides to work closely together to create a film about this incident, which has been described as ``a history that the Irish will never forget, and the British will want to forget.'' It will not work if either perspective is missing. This strong commitment may stem from his spirit of putting everything into ``neutrality'' and ``verification,'' which is unique to him as a journalist.

A similar stance was maintained regarding the performers as well. The large number of extras participating in the demonstration reportedly included many witnesses and people involved at the time of the incident. Many people came from Londonderry in minibuses to reach the filming location on the outskirts of Dublin. On the other hand, many people with military experience, including former soldiers stationed there, were cast as extras for the British military.

"Bloody Sunday" (c)Photofest / Getty Images

In this sense, the presence of both actors imprinted on film went beyond acting. It would be more appropriate to call it a ``reenactment'' or ``reliving'' the events of that day.

Cinematographer Ivan Strasberg vividly captures their appearance. Greengrass has the utmost trust in him, and he did the filming without using any normal equipment or even lighting. The camera was handheld in all situations, and no dollies or cranes were used. Ignoring even the so-called film grammar, I continued filming nonstop, sometimes for tens of minutes, improvising and responding to the movements of my subjects. This accumulation has become incredibly realistic, resulting in images that make you feel as if you have been thrown into the midst of an incident.

Actors and extras simply live in the moment