"September 5" unveils the decisive moment that forever changed media coverage and continues to impact live news today. Set during the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics, the film follows an American Sports broadcasting team that quickly adapted from sports reporting to live coverage of the Israeli athletes taken hostage. Through this lens, "September 5" provides a fresh perspective on the live broadcast seen globally by an estimated one billion people at the time.
At the heart of the story is Geoff (John Magaro), a young and ambitious producer striving to prove himself to his boss, the legendary TV executive Roone Arledge (Peter Sarsgaard). Together with German interpreter Marianne (Leonie Benesch) and his mentor Marvin Bader (Ben Chaplin), Geoff unexpectedly takes the helm of the live coverage. As narratives shift, time ticks away, and conflicting rumors spread, with the hostages' lives hanging in the balance, Geoff grapples with tough decisions while confronting his own moral compass.
SEPTEMBER 5
IN CINEMAS JANUARY 24TH 2025
At the heart of the story is Geoff (John Magaro), a young and ambitious producer striving to prove himself to his boss, the legendary TV executive Roone Arledge (Peter Sarsgaard). Together with German interpreter Marianne (Leonie Benesch) and his mentor Marvin Bader (Ben Chaplin), Geoff unexpectedly takes the helm of the live coverage. As narratives shift, time ticks away, and conflicting rumors spread, with the hostages' lives hanging in the balance, Geoff grapples with tough decisions while confronting his own moral compass.
SEPTEMBER 5
IN CINEMAS JANUARY 24TH 2025
Category
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Short filmTranscript
00:00Ready camera one.
00:02Cut it.
00:03Good morning, I'm Jim McKay speaking to you live from the Olympics in Munich, West Germany.
00:08Talk me through the day.
00:09Starts with volleyball, then there's boxing.
00:12Good. It's America versus Cuba.
00:14Sure you want to bring in the politics?
00:15It's not about politics, it's about emotions.
00:21And we're clear.
00:22Great job, everyone.
00:31Did you hear that?
00:32Were those gunshots?
00:37What's the situation?
00:39The police are reporting that armed terrorists have attacked the Israeli athletes.
00:43There's a hostage situation going on right now in the Olympic Village.
00:49ABC wants news to take over.
00:50Your sports, you're in way over your head.
00:53We're 100 yards away from where this is happening.
00:55We are the only people capable of following it live.
00:58This is our story, and we're keeping it.
01:01What do I tell the cameras?
01:02What do you mean?
01:03I mean, can we show someone being shot on live television?
01:07We're on.
01:08The piece of what have been called the Serene Olympics was shattered this morning.
01:12The games are still going on.
01:14Within a few hundred yards, nine terrified living human beings are being held prisoner.
01:22You need to understand how sensitive this situation is.
01:26These are just local cops doing things they have never done before.
01:33We're making broadcast history.
01:35More people have seen this than watched Armstrong land on the moon.
01:38Now, police are on the roof.
01:40Oh, guys.
01:42That's a TV.
01:44Are they seeing what we're seeing?
01:47What are you talking about?
01:48Are the terrorists seeing this?
01:55Our job is to tell the story of these individuals whose lives are at stake.
01:59It's not okay.
02:00Who made it worse?
02:02It's a manhouse down here.
02:05They know the whole world is watching this.
02:07If they shoot someone on live television,
02:13whose story is that?
02:15Is it ours or is it theirs?