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Feb 27, 2016 Web Exclusive By Kyle Mullin

Matthew Heineman went to Arizona in 2013, camera in hand, with the aim of filming a U.S. veteran who had declared war on Mexican drug smugglers. Tim Foley, the former soldier, had built his own task force called the Arizona Border Recon. Heineman filmed them toting assault rifles and patrolling the border. But his best footage came from a parallel vigilante group waging war on those cartels within their own country. This people’s army had dubbed themselves the Autodefensas, and were lead by the black hat-clad, charismatic Jose “El Doctor” Mireles. Heineman stood on the front lines of Mexico’s drug war with these local vigilantes, shooting violent, visceral footage that helped earn his ensuing documentary, Cartel Land, an Academy Award nomination. Ahead of this weekend’s Oscar ceremony, Heineman tells Under the Radar about risking his life for that footage, working with a Hollywood legend in post production, and how his father was a chief instigator of the film’s success.

Kyle Mullin [Under the Radar]: How does it feel to be nominated for an Oscar?

Matthew Heineman: When I first heard about the nomination, I was humbled and honored, because it’s been an incredible year for docs. But what I’m most grateful for is that the nomination will put a greater spotlight on the issues raised in the film— on the suffering of the Mexican people, and on the cycle of violence perpetuated by this drug war. So that excites me, that hopefully the nomination will also further the conversation that the film begins.

The film was released simultaneously in Mexico and the U.S. What feedback did you get south of the border?

Getting the film released in Mexico was really important to us, because Mexico is the heart and soul of this film, and I wanted people there to see it. And so we fought to make sure that happened. In the summer before it was released, I went down to do some press and some screenings. I was shocked by how shocked audiences were. This is an issue that dominates the headlines every single day, and there’s often gruesome photos in the media because of the cartel. But this film provided a window into this world that often gets relegated into soundbites or headlines, that you don’t get to see up close and personal. That was one of my goals with this film, to really get in there and talk about this issue— not from the outside, not from talking heads or government officials, but really put myself right in the middle of the action, to see how this cartel violence is affecting everyday people. I also wanted to see the response of everyday people fighting back, and the ramifications of what happens when citizens take the law into their own hands.

What was it like to have Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow involved?

I’m a huge fan of Kathryn’s. We got in touch after the film was completed and screened at Sundance. She really was moved by the film, and through conversations we decided to bring her on as an the executive producer, to help raise the virility of the film and heighten the conversation that it provokes. It was a natural fit.

Has she been one of your biggest influences?

Yeah, I’m a huge fan of her films. They’re so raw, visceral and real. I personally believe that the lines between narratives and docs are blurring evermore. She’s a vivid example of that, of making you feel like you’re in that world she has created, that you’re experiencing it and that you’re on the ground, which are all things I tried to do with Cartel Land, but in the form of a documentary. I remember laughing that after [Bigelow’s 2009 Oscar winning film] The Hurt Locker came out, and so many people came up to me and said “Hey man, have you seen that amazing documentary, Hurt Locker?” And I thought: “Really?”

What kept you going when you were facing dangerous situations while working to get that “on the ground” feel?

I felt a huge duty and obligation to tell this story. I’m not a war reporter, I’ve never been in any situation like this before. But obviously the film lead me into some pretty wild situations— shootouts between the vigilantes and the cartel, meth labs in the dark desert night, scenes of torture and other places I’ve never imagined being in. But the deeper and deeper I got, the more I felt I had to tell this story. This story of good vs. evil became blurrier, and the lines between good and evil became murkier. I became almost obsessed with trying to understand who these guys were, and trying to understand what was happening. and where this story was going to go. And I kept going until I felt I understood that. Through doing so, I put myself and my small crew in a number of precarious places. But all these adrenaline filled moments in the film weren’t just like: “Oh wow. I’m getting this adrenaline filled footage.” It was just all part of the story. Shootouts were happening, in the middle of the streets. Citizens were right in the middle of it. People were being tortured. I heard them being tortured. I saw them being tortured. Meth was being cooked by forces that weren’t just cartel leaders, but that had different allegiances. So to not capture that on film, would be not telling the true story. All these moments, while harrowing, were important from a story point of view. So that’s what drove me to get these moments, and to be there.

Numerous critics praised your movie, but Variety said: “Some of the more hackneyed presentational elements (time-lapse clouds, a button-pushing score) are beneath the material.” What are your thoughts on that?

Obviously I disagree. It was important for me to work with extremely talented composers like H Scotty Salinas and Jackson Greenberg. I’m very proud of the score. I think it matches the intensity of the film. And I really wanted the film to feel that it was blurring the lines between narrative and documentary, like I said before.

I wanted this to be a very on the ground look of the issue. I didn’t want any of the devices that are often used in documentaries that take you out of the narrative, like talking heads and stats and animation. I wanted to let the story unravel naturally. So the score doesn’t defy conventions, but I think it matches the intensity of what we see in the film, and is absent when it needs to be absent. What we tried to do with the score was really play with the local tones of both regions. We were using elements of both regions to accentuate the footage. I sent the composers natural sounds of crickets and cicadas and wind and other elements, meth being cooked and smoke rising the air, guns being loaded. A lot of those elements were incorporated into the score itself, to sort of organically place you into those situations. So I really enjoyed working with Scott and Jackson, I think they did a phenomenal job.

Initially, you read an article about vigilantes in Arizona, and you wanted to film them. While you were there, your Dad emailed you an article about Mexican vigilantes, saying “Here’s the same thing happening on the other side of the border.” How did he react when he found out that inspired you to actually go film them as well?

A couple of weeks went by where my Mom wouldn’t talk to my Dad after I first went down there. They were terrified throughout the entire process. And I think yes, he is hesitant about what articles he sends me now.

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cartellandmovie.com