April 2022. The two-part documentary series, Jimmy Savile: A British Horror Story, debuted on the global streaming platform Netflix.
It was watched by millions, caused much discussion online and was widely praised by critics – ranging from The Guardian to The Independent. It was also nominated in the documentary category at the prestigious Rose d’Or Awards.
Dating back to 2012, there had been no shortage of UK media coverage about Jimmy Savile and his sexual abuse crimes. However, the programme’s makers, 72 Films, had set out to tell the story from a fresh perspective – they wanted to explore society’s role in enabling Savile’s abuse to go undetected for decades.
Experienced in making thought-provoking content about complex and sensitive subjects, the team at 72 Films got in contact with Heard about our Angles programme in June 2020.
In the process of putting the documentary together they were consulting with a wide range of experts.
Additionally, they felt they would benefit from talking to people with direct experience of abuse who weren’t Savile’s own victims, who would provide insight and advice that might help shape the tone and direction of their storytelling.
Our Angles programme is a network of people with direct experience of sexual violence and domestic abuse – it brings them together with media professionals, and is designed to promote better understanding of the issue and shape better content. The programme prioritises training, self-care and support.
The collaboration with 72 Films was shaped around a series of ‘interactions’ – meetings where the production team, survivors and Heard staff members met up. As with all Heard’s interactions these meetings are meticulously planned. They’re designed to ensure members feel safe and supported.
These opportunities for the documentary makers to talk, listen to experiences and have their ideas challenged ultimately played an important role in how the final series came together. For 72 Films these conversations provided invaluable insight around the societal forces, power dynamics and myths they were trying to explore.
The production team were open about their dilemmas – they heard feedback about the member’s experiences of speaking to the media, asked questions about public understanding of the topic, and invited thoughts on how to convey the long-term impact of abuse on survivors.
The work was detailed: 72 Films’ dedication to have a considered, authentic and sensitive approach meant the network had input on many fronts; the language and imagery that might be triggering for survivors; aftercare for viewers who might be adversely affected by the content; the name of the documentary; social media messaging around the documentary’s launch.
Heard staff, Angles members and the team at 72 Films met for a final time in April 2022 when they were invited to a pre-screening of the documentary before it premiered. It was a respectful touch from a team of storytellers who described the input of Angles and the work they’d with Heard as “invaluable”.
“They genuinely made a material difference to our confidence and the approach we took in making a film about a man who perpetrated so many sexual crimes,” said a spokesperson from 72 Films.
This is based on an independent evaluation of Heard’s work involving a series of interviews with all involved. The full evaluation is available on request.
