Control Room (film)

Control Room
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJehane Noujaim
Written by
Produced by
  • Hani Salama
  • Rosadel Varela
Starring
CinematographyJehane Noujaim
Edited by
  • Julia Bacha
  • Lilah Bankie
  • Charles Marquard
Music by
  • Thomas DeRenzo
  • Hani Salama
Production
company
  • Noujaim Films
Distributed byMagnolia Pictures
Release dates
  • January 22, 2004 (2004-01-22) (Sundance)
  • May 21, 2004 (2004-05-21) (United States)
Running time
86 minutes
CountryUnited States
Languages
Budget$60,000[1]
Box office$2.7 million[2]

Control Room is a 2004 documentary film directed by Jehane Noujaim, about Al Jazeera and its relations with the US Central Command (CENTCOM), as well as the other news organizations that covered the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

People featured in the film include Lieutenant Josh Rushing, a press officer from US Central Command, David Shuster, an NBC correspondent, and Tom Mintier, a CNN correspondent. Al Jazeera was represented by Samir Khader, a senior producer, Hassan Ibrahim, a Sudanese journalist who attended U.S. universities and headed the BBC Arab News Service before joining Al Jazeera, and Dima Khatib, a Syrian journalist and a producer at Al Jazeera. Samir Khader later became the editor of Al-Jazeera.[3] Josh Rushing started working for Al Jazeera English in 2006, Shuster started working for Al Jazeera America in 2013.

The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 22, 2004, and was released on May 21, 2004, by Magnolia Pictures. It received positive reviews from critics, but has been criticized for bias. Noujaim has acknowledged this lack of objectivity, stating "I am not saying it is the truth, but it is our truth."[4] The film was nominated for Best Documentary Screenplay from the Writers Guild of America.[5]

  1. ^ Solomon, Deborah (April 25, 2004). "Questions for Jehane Noujaim: Inside Al Jazeera". The New York Times. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
  2. ^ "Control Room". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 23, 2020.
  3. ^ Malik, Shiv (January 24, 2005). "Broadcast and be damned". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on March 6, 2005. Retrieved December 7, 2010.
  4. ^ "Al Jazeera in focus". The Washington Times. December 8, 2004. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
  5. ^ "WGA serves up 1st doc kudo to 'Super'". variety.com. Variety. 15 February 2005. Retrieved 18 February 2019.