The Cleaners: Telling a Frightening Tale of Real World Threats

The Cleaners
The Cleaners

Director Konstantinos Georgousis wanted to create a film which illuminated a growing concern of many in his homeland, namely that of right wing nationalism which directed the majority of society’s challenges towards immigrants. To manifest a film with the primarily observational tone to which Georgousis aspired, he required an editor who was both exceptionally skilled as well as one with a knowledgeable reference of the subject matter.

Konstantinos approached Radek Sienski based on his work for the celebrated films Peter’s Place and Return which focuses on immigrant struggles in the UK. Rather than pointing the viewers to a predestined conclusion, these two filmmakers wanted to allow the words and actions of the members of Greece’s Golden Dawn political party to speak for itself. Conclusion by immersion is an appropriate definition of this type of filmmaking.

Its effect is powerful. Georgousis and Sienski have established a tone that allows one to feel as if they are a part of the conversation, or at the very least the monologue that members of this political group are espousing to large numbers of the population. It’s a scenario that is by no means restricted to Greece. There is much wisdom to be gained from The Cleaners regardless of where you reside.

Editor Radek Sienski
Editor Radek Sienski

What impressively sets The Cleaners apart from any other critical political documentary is the way that the director and editor have presented their subject without prompting the audience to accept the filmmaker’s opinion. By carefully designing a system that lets members of Golden Dawn speak for themselves (literally and figuratively), this film feels as if one is simply a bystander. This vantage is far easier to speak about than to actually design. Mr. Sienski confesses that the conversations he had with Georgousis and the subsequent tactic of presenting the director’s concepts was a rollercoaster of emotions at times.

He notes, “The edit was twelve weeks long during which time we tried to distill down the film’s ‘truth’. Kostas was very close to the material and because he risked his life getting it, he found it difficult to let go of certain ideas for scenes or sections. When editing observational documentaries of such importance, there always comes a time when you reach a stumbling block and don’t know which way to turn as the possibilities are absolutely endless. My job as an editor is to provide a fresh perspective to the director and be a guide in the world that he knows well and to show it to him from a different perspective.”

“I really admired Kostas’ courage when, after we hit a brick wall, I managed to convince him to try an experimental version. I stayed up all night re-editing the film into a radically shortened 40-minute version from its original 90 minutes. The goal was not to produce a definite cut, but to allow us to see it from a different angle. The experiment worked and we picked up with a renewed sense of energy and clarity and locked the cut 2 weeks later as an emotionally-packed 36-minute piece.”

The Cleaners allows us to get to know the members of Golden Dawn in an intimate manner. The footage obtained shows them relaxed and comfortable in calling foreigners baboons and wishing death upon their children, even threatening them with violence during political rallies. In one of the film’s most powerful scenes, a politician aligned with Golden Dawn reclaims the Nazi salute, stating that its origins are from Ancient Greece and using it is a source of honor. Throughout these scenes and others, the editing takes a profoundly delicate and sensitive approach.

This tactic allows the position of Golden Dawn to be illuminated while stifling any would-be critics who would label it as biased filmmaking. The power of The Cleaners is already resonating throughout Greece with the nation’s government promising an official investigation into Golden Dawn. With this political party earning eighteen seats in the parliament, the impact of The Cleaners is yet to be defined. 

The Cleaners had its world premiere at the prestigious International Documentary Film Festival in Amsterdam.

Coleman Haan