Hector Salgado is one of 35,000 Chileans who were incarcerated and tortured by Pinochet's dictatorship. After many years of exile in the U.S. he decides to return to Chile with a camera to show the world the face of his perpetrators.
"A dozen cowardly military officers appear before us incapable of explaining or taking responsibility for their acts. This documentary, simple and direct, gives audiences around the world a lesson in political memory. I ask myself what would have happened if each one of us 35,000 political prisoners would have done the same as Hector. Surely we would have a much better democracy than the one we have today. Congratulations to the entire production team!"Patricio Guzmán, Documentary Filmmaker The Battle of Chile, Case of Pinochet
Special Circumstances is an award winning documentary that has screened all over the US and Chile, where it won five awards for Best Documentary, and internationally at film festivals in Guadalajara, Mexico City, Havana, Ecuador, Brazil, Holland, Finland, Colombia, Italy, Spain. To date the film has been the recipient of 9 awards including Best Local Director in San Francisco, Best Editing in Brazil and the Audience Award in Holland.