The Fifth Estate
You can't expose the world's secrets without exposing yourself
Country
Production
Budget
$28 000 000
Box office
$9 058 564
Director
Actors
Scenario
Producer
Steve Golin, Michael Sugar, Hilde De Laere, Jack Morrissey, Emmeline Yang, Greg Yolen, Jonathan King, Jeff Skoll, Paul Green, Richard Sharkey
Camera operator
Composer
Artist
Mark Tildesley
Audition
Andrea Brabin, Lucky Englander, Fritz Fleischhacker
Editing
Virginia Katz
Whole Team (42)
Whole Team (42)
Short description
A look at the relationship between WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and his early supporter and eventual colleague Daniel Domscheit-Berg, and how the website's growth and influence led to an irreparable rift between the two friends.
What's left behind the scenes
- Julian Assange himself, after reading the original script, reacted negatively to the idea of the film, calling it 'a total lie' and 'propaganda,' particularly because the script contained hints about Iranian nuclear developments. Assange refused to meet with Benedict Cumberbatch, but later entered into an email correspondence with him, which helped Cumberbatch in preparing for the role.
- Julian Assange launched the WikiLeaks project in 2006. For the first time, it became possible to tell the truth about government activities and expose corporate crimes without fear of persecution or harassment from the state machinery. The site featured documentation evidencing a contract killing in Somalia, money laundering by the management of a Swiss bank, and corruption in the highest echelons of power in Kenya. Published materials included the operational procedures of the Guantanamo high-security prison, evidence of a nuclear disaster in Iran, documents confirming the operation of a chemical waste dump in Ivory Coast, evidence of banking regulation violations in Iceland, and much more. The Guardian described WikiLeaks as an 'elusive and uncriticizable information-leaking machine.' However, in 2010, WikiLeaks exceeded all acceptable risk limits by publishing the so-called 'mega-leak'—a massive volume of top-secret information jealously guarded by American diplomats and military personnel. This included 91,000 documents on the war in Afghanistan, 400,000 documents on the war in Iraq, and 251,287 documents related to diplomatic missions worldwide. All of this became public knowledge. WikiLeaks was about to feel the full power of the US government. Almost immediately, military technical specialist Bradley Manning, who provided the documentation on the Iraq war, was arrested. Because the publication on the WikiLeaks portal was protected by a sophisticated encryption system, Manning confessed to his hacker acquaintance, Adrian Lamo, that he was the one who leaked the Iraq information. It was based on Lamo's tip that Manning was subsequently arrested. The WikiLeaks site became the cause of the very type of incident it was created to fight. As the leaks continued, the US government began to claim that WikiLeaks posed a serious threat to national security, although at that time, the question of whether WikiLeaks had violated any law of the United States of America had not even been raised.
- Filming began in Iceland, on a small volcanic island at the very edge of the Arctic. This location could not have been recreated anywhere else. Against the backdrop of the so-called Blue Lagoon (a picturesque landscape with a frozen river of cooled lava and active geysers), one of the scenes featuring an argument between the characters played by Cumberbatch and Brühl was filmed, despite the deafeningly howling wind and nearly horizontal rain.
- Joel Kinnaman auditioned for the role of Daniel Domscheit-Berg.
- At the heart of WikiLeaks lies what is known as Assange's secure posting platform, allowing anyone to upload information and documents anonymously. A special technology of deniable encryption allowed the source not to fear that their actions could be traced. The system, developed by Assange, Suelette Dreyfus, and Ralph Winman, was initially intended to be transferred to human rights activists working in countries with repressive regimes, but ultimately the system proved useful for the WikiLeaks base. Soon, the site switched to a more sophisticated encryption system developed by a programmer known as the Architect. Now, even WikiLeaks employees did not receive data on which informant leaked specific secret documentation to the portal. Even after arrest and under torture, WikiLeaks employees would not have been able to name their sources; they simply did not know them.
- Joel Kinnaman auditioned for the role of Daniel Domshait-Berg.
- Julian Assange launched the WikiLeaks project in 2006. For the first time, it became possible to tell the truth about the activities of the government and expose corporate crimes without fear of persecution and harassment by the state apparatus. Documentation appeared on the site testifying to a contract killing in Somalia; money laundering by the management of a Swiss bank; corruption in the highest echelons of power in Kenya. The operating procedures of the Guantanamo Bay high-security prison were published; evidence of a nuclear disaster in Iran; documents confirming the operation of a chemical waste dump on the Ivory Coast; evidence of violations of banking regulations in Iceland, and much more. The Guardian described WikiLeaks as “an elusive and uncriticizable leak machine.” However, in 2010, WikiLeaks exceeded all permissible risk limits by publishing the so-called “mega-leak” – a massive amount of top-secret information jealously guarded by American diplomats and military personnel. This included 91,000 documents on the war in Afghanistan, 400,000 documents on the war in Iraq, and 251,287 documents related to diplomatic missions around the world. All of this became public knowledge. WikiLeaks was about to feel the full power of the US government. Military technical specialist Bradley Manning, who provided documentation on the war in Iraq, was arrested almost immediately. Since the publication on the WikiLeaks portal was protected by an ingenious encryption system, Manning confessed to a familiar hacker, Adrian Lamo, that he was the one who leaked the information about Iraq. It was at Lamo’s instigation that Manning was subsequently arrested. The WikiLeaks website caused an incident for which a response was created. As the leak continued, the US government began to say that WikiLeaks posed a serious threat to national security, even though at that time the question of whether WikiLeaks had violated any law of the United States of America had not even been raised.
- Originally, Jeremy Renner was planned for the role of Assange, and James McAvoy for the role of Domschmidt-Berg.
- Julian Assange launched the WikiLeaks project in 2006. For the first time, it became possible to tell the truth about the activities of the government and expose corporate crimes without fear of persecution and harassment from the state apparatus. The website published documentation testifying to a contract killing in Somalia; money laundering by the management of a Swiss bank; corruption in the upper echelons of power in Kenya. The operating procedures of the Guantanamo Bay high-security prison were published; evidence of a nuclear disaster in Iran; documents confirming the operation of a chemical waste dump on the Ivory Coast; evidence of violations of banking regulations in Iceland, and much more. The Guardian described WikiLeaks as an “elusive and uncriticizable leak machine.” However, in 2010, WikiLeaks exceeded all acceptable risk limits by publishing the so-called “mega-leak” – a massive volume of top-secret information jealously guarded by American diplomats and military personnel. This included 91,000 documents on the war in Afghanistan, 400,000 documents on the war in Iraq, and 251,287 documents related to diplomatic missions around the world. All of this became public knowledge. WikiLeaks was about to feel the full power of the US government. Almost immediately, Bradley Manning, a military technical specialist who provided documentation on the war in Iraq, was arrested. Since the publication on the WikiLeaks portal was protected by a sophisticated encryption system, Manning confessed to a familiar hacker, Adrian Lamo, that he was the one who leaked the information on Iraq. It was at Lamo’s behest that Manning was subsequently arrested. The WikiLeaks website became the cause of an incident, to combat which it was created. As the leak continued, the US government began to say that WikiLeaks posed a serious threat to national security, although at that time there was not even a question of whether WikiLeaks had violated any law of the United States of America.
- In July 2012, it was reported that Jeremy Renner showed great interest in the role of Julian Assange. However, in October of the same year, it was announced that the lead role had gone to Benedict Cumberbatch.
- An interesting and simultaneously challenging task for artist Mark Tildesley was recreating the famous Tachles Art House in Berlin, where Daniel Domshait-Berg spent some time. The building was constructed in 1909 in the Jewish quarter of East Berlin. Initially, it housed a department store, and during the war – an SS headquarters. In 1943, it held French prisoners of war. Notably, the store and prison transformed into a headquarters for artists, anarchists, and freethinkers from all over the world. The building was turned into a gallery, teeming with various forms of artistic expression both outside and inside. For a long time, the building served as a kind of symbol of freedom for Berlin’s creative community. For several years, the city authorities unsuccessfully tried to close Tachles. Unfortunately, in 2012, the attempts were successful. The building closed and soon turned into an ordinary residential building. After receiving official permission to film, Tildesley and his team began painstakingly recreating the building’s former grandeur from the inside. They even restored a nightclub that once functioned in Berlin. Specifically for this purpose, they found the former owners of the club and agreed with them, renting the original furniture and paintings that were hung on the walls, even returning the fire-breathing dragon above the bar.
- Julian Assange, after reading the initial script, reacted negatively to the idea of the film and called it “a complete lie” and “propaganda,” particularly due to hints at Iranian nuclear developments. Assange refused to meet with Benedict Cumberbatch, but then began corresponding with him by email, which helped Cumberbatch in his work on the role.
- The research conducted by screenwriter Josh Singer for the film was fraught with some risk. At one point, Singer’s computer was attacked by hackers. Shortly thereafter, FBI agents came to his home and began asking various questions, justifying their visit by stating that Singer’s name appeared in an investigation of Chinese hackers.
- In Berlin, filming took place at several memorable locations, including the Berlin Cathedral.
- At the core of WikiLeaks is Assange's so-called secure submission platform, which allows anyone to upload information and documents anonymously. A special deniable encryption technology ensured that sources did not have to fear their actions being traced. The system, developed by Assange, Sylvette Dreyfus, and Ralph Winman, was originally intended for human rights activists working in repressive regimes, but it ultimately became the foundation for WikiLeaks. Soon, the site moved to a more sophisticated encryption system developed by a programmer known as The Architect. Now, even WikiLeaks employees did not receive data on which specific informant leaked particular secret documents to the portal. Even after arrest and under torture, WikiLeaks staff would be unable to name their sources—they simply did not know them.
- The research conducted by screenwriter Josh Singer for the film involved a certain amount of risk. At one point, Singer's computer was attacked by hackers. Some time later, FBI agents arrived at his door and began asking various questions, justifying their visit by stating that Singer's name had appeared in an investigation into the activities of Chinese hackers.
- Recreating the famous Tacheles Art House in Berlin, where Daniel Domscheit-Berg spent some time, proved to be an interesting yet challenging task for artist Marc Tildesley. The building was constructed in 1909 in the Jewish quarter of East Berlin. It initially housed a department store and later served as an SS headquarters during the war. In 1943, French prisoners were held here. Notably, the store and prison were transformed into a headquarters for artists, anarchists, and free thinkers from all over the world. The building became a gallery teeming with various forms of artistic expression, both inside and out. For a long time, the building served as a kind of symbol of freedom for Berlin's creative community. For several years, city authorities tried unsuccessfully to close Tacheles. Unfortunately, in 2012, those attempts succeeded. The building closed and was soon to be converted into an ordinary residential house. After obtaining official permission to film, Tildesley and his team began to painstakingly recreate the building's former interior grandeur. They even restored the nightclub that once operated in Berlin. To achieve this, they tracked down the club's former owners and reached an agreement to rent the original furniture and paintings that had hung on the walls, and they even brought back the fire-breathing dragon above the bar.
- Filming began in Iceland, on a small island of volcanic origin, on the very edge of the Arctic. This location was impossible to recreate anywhere else. Against the backdrop of the so-called Blue Lagoon (a picturesque landscape with a solidified river of cooled lava and active geysers), one of the scenes of a quarrel between Cumberbatch and Brühl's characters was filmed, despite the deafening howling wind and almost horizontal rain.
- The character 'Ziggy' is based on a WikiLeaks volunteer – Sigurdur Thordarson, who turned out to be an FBI informant.
- In July 2012, it was reported that Jeremy Renner showed great interest in the role of Julian Assange. However, in October of the same year, it was announced that the leading role went to Benedict Cumberbatch.
- The film’s original title was “The Man Who Sold the World”.
- Initially, Jeremy Renner was considered for the role of Assange, and James McAvoy for the role of Domshait-Berg.
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