A look from the other side: Louis Theroux and one of the young men accused of sexual assault featured in new documentary “The Night in Question” // image source: Lottie Gammon, BBC
Bafta-winning documentary filmmaker Louis Theroux will see the Australian and New Zealand premiere of his newest documentaries this summer.
In a press release from the Australia & New Zealand offices of the BBC, it has been announced that “The Night in Question” and “Mothers on the Edge,” two documentaries recently broadcast in the UK, will have their Australian premieres on BBC Knowledge, respectively, on June 27th and July 4th.
In one clip from “The Night in Question,” Louis Theroux deconstructs the preconceptions surrounding Saif Khan, a Yale neuroscience major accused of rape and subsequently painted as a manipulative liar. Even though he had been cleared of charges in a court of law, the university persisted in their own external investigation of the allegations pitted against him. “Help me understand what’s going on here,” Louis asks, to which the accused responds, “I don’t have to spend time, energy, trying to disprove [what’s been said]. It’s not my job to prove my innocence… I simply just let the truth surface on its own.”
Louis Theroux British-American documentary filmmaker, journalist and broadcaster
Such independent investigations within American universities have been demanded by the rising reports of rape and sexual assault among the US student body. Some universities even administer expulsion to those found guilty of their alleged sexual misdemeanours, even if proven innocent in a court of law. Following its initial broadcast in March 2019, some critics were unimpressed by the delayed appearance of any female testimony – the first woman to be interviewed does not appear before a quarter of the programme’s 60-minute duration has elapsed. Of the conversation surrounding assault and non-consensual sex posited in “The Night in Question,” a Guardian review bemoaned “when women no longer feel safe enough to join it, it stops being a conversation.”
Baby blue: Theroux with two of the ‘stars’ of new documentary “Mothers on the Edge” // image source: Richard Ansett, BBC
Louis Theroux’s other documentary, “Mothers on the Edge,” explores post-natal depression and saw its first UK broadcast in early May. As described in the BBC Australia press release, “Louis returns to the UK to spend time in three specialist psychiatric units, immersing himself on the wards and meeting women who have been admitted with a range of serious conditions – including depression, anxiety and psychosis – often triggered by birth or the strains of motherhood.”
Louis Theroux -A new production arm of BBC Australia based in Sydney is due to start producing original intellectual property, so expect to see Aussie content being broadcast on the Beeb in the near future. But, should you need some more immediate material featuring the softly-spoken, deadpan documentarian, check out our piece on Theroux’s responses to the awful tattoos of his face people have printed on their bodies. Talk about Weird Weekends…
