CBC commissions documentary on Air India tragedy
Last Updated: Thursday, June 21, 2007 | 5:50 PM ET
CBC Arts
A documentary about the Air India tragedy, which took place 22 years ago this Saturday, is set to begin filming next month.
To be called Flight 182, the film will be directed by Sturla Gunnarsson, who also helmed Beowulf & Grendel.
CBC-TV has commissioned the two-hour documentary, which will include interviews with people involved in the events, Gunnarsson and his producer, David York, announced on Thursday.
"This is a critical film for our country," said Gunnarsson. "It was Canada's first devastating experience with international terrorism and we still haven't really come to terms with it."
In 1985, a bomb exploded on Air India Flight 182 and a second in a Japanese airport, killing 331 people in total.
An inquiry earlier this year began investigating the tragedy and is to resume in September.
"We've heard about it in fragments of personal loss, conspiracy theory, erased surveillance tapes, bungled investigations and cultural divide, but now, after 22 years, three trials, and two commissions, a coherent narrative has emerged. The time has come to tell this story," Gunnarsson said.
The documentary will include re-enactments, archival footage, an examination of the role of intelligence agencies and profiles of the victims.
A broadcast date is being worked out with CBC-TV for early 2008.
