Without them, you could be considered a spy and spend many years in prison.

In Russia, this equipment needs certain certifications and permissions. вЂњI decided not to use any special equipment or hidden cameras-for example, a camera in your eyeglasses. вЂњGoPro is a camera everybody can have, with no questions asked,вЂќ Ivanova says. Instead, they deployed FranceвЂ™s iPhone X and a GoPro Hero6. вЂњEveryone in Russia is buried in their phones,вЂќ says France, so Kurov following suit wouldnвЂ™t raise any suspicions.ДЇor AnyaвЂ™s rescue operation, the Sony stayed home. вЂњIn case we got caught, thatвЂ™s what weвЂ™d say we were.вЂќ When in public, Kurov would frame picture and control settings remotely, using a smartphone app. We beat this thing up a bit, put tape on it, disabled all the red lights, and made it look like it belongs to somebodyвЂ™s child.вЂќ Or a tourist. вЂњItвЂ™s got a beautiful lens on it,вЂќ says the director, вЂњbut it looks like a toy. The main camera, operated by Kurov, was a Sony FDR-AX100 handycam. (France did insist, however, on 4K for вЂњcinematic lift.вЂќ). To remain inconspicuous, only amateur camera gear was used on the film. While other passengers file by the security officials, Anya gets singled out for questioning: вЂњWhere are you from?вЂќ вЂњWhatвЂ™s your purpose of travel?вЂќ вЂњHow long will you stay?вЂќ Passengers stop and stare, while a camera peers between shoulders and catches the exchange. EveryoneвЂ™s nervous, knowing that at any minute AnyaвЂ™s name could appear on a federal wanted list. The next nail-biter is at the airportвЂ™s Passport Checkpoint. Afterwards, the activists reunite at a meeting spot, where the women change clothes and AnyaвЂ™s phone is destroyed. Nonetheless, a camera inside the cab keeps recording. Here security guards inspect passports and sharply confer about one. After some chitchat, the women leave by taxi for the airport. (The filmвЂ™s cinematographer, Askold Kurov, stepped aside for this mission since its cover story required a female camera operator.)ДЄnya arrives and Ivanova films the meetup surreptitiously on a GoPro. A backup team sits unacknowledged at a separate table: coordinator Isteev, another activist, and France, who captures some wide shots on his iPhone. Playing the вЂњauntiesвЂќ are cameraperson Alexandra Ivanova and a female activist. Their cover story is that Anya is meeting two family friends who are taking her dress-shopping.

The operation begins in a fast-food restaurant. The target is Anya (a pseudonym), whose plight is revealed at the filmвЂ™s start: Pleading for help in a phone call to Russian LGBT Network crisis response coordinator David Isteev, she explains that her uncle is threatening to reveal her lesbianism to her father-a high-ranking government official-unless she has sex with him. Now we get to witness an actual extraction from Chechnya-the mechanics, the risks and the bravery involved. WeвЂ™ve heard historical context, seen horrific trophy videos of assault and murder, and spent time in the secret shelter where queer refugees await visas. It comes midway through the HBO documentary that premieres June 30, so weвЂ™ve already met the Russian LGBT activists who help Chechen gays and lesbians flee the republicвЂ™s anti-gay purge.

The most nerve-wracking sequence in David FranceвЂ™s Welcome to Chechnya is, without doubt, the rescue of Anya. Shooting Scenarios is a new column that takes a single scene and breaks it down cinematographically, looking at shooting logistics, creative challenges, and camera gear deployed.

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