AdvocacyProductions Sàrl
(limited company) is a Geneva-based film
production company whose strategy is to partner with
aid organisations, in Geneva, the humanitarian capital of
the world, as well as with academic institutions anywhere to
produce short and medium-length films. We have produced some
short educational film clips for university programmes and as
a company “BROKEN” is our first major documentary film
production. We are a small team of specialists with expertise
in humanitarian and development related work with
a common understanding of the importance film
projects play in giving voice to the
voiceless.
AdvocayProductions
– Dare to Envision –
Who we are
Film Meets Education
"Our vision is to give voice to the voiceless, both in the domains of education and documentary making relating to international humanitarianism.”Advocacyproductions Aims Statement
Even before the inception of AdvocacyProductions ltd. and its first feature documentary, BROKEN, education was a deeply embedded aim. AdvocacyProductions was established to educate through the medium of film. Broken was its first creation.
By the time the film premiered in late 2018, some of its parts had already been included in training courses aimed at practitioners and academics alike, exemplifying such concepts as humanitarian advocacy, communications, and humanitarian diplomacy.
By now BROKEN’s educational appeal has gained numerous followers internationally, starting from post-graduate course providers, to online training applications and the distribution of our film materials to universities and law libraries worldwide.
Synergy with a Training Consultancy
For this reason, AdvocacyProductions signed a licence agreement with FacilitationResource, a training consultancy, to further its objectives of using film as a training tool. Both companies serve the humanitarian sector. AdvocacyProductions has agreed to license its advocacy and educational media, including associated products to FacilitationResource. This merger guarantees a smoother promotion for film material and licenses on the one side, and educational services on the other.
From an initial film to multiple productions. From teaching individually to now counting a pool of experts of some 25 professionals and postgraduate students in this learning alliance (Learning alliances are often made up of small networks of public, private and/or civil society actors seeking to further social or political change).
Our projects receive input from motivated and passionate contributors:
”This is to thank all those, who share the vision of AdvocacyProductions and FacilitationResource and who help us make it real every day!”
Training Competencies & the Film
Stefan Ziegler, trainer and producer combines humanitarian praxis, education and film production. All his didactical projects have one common aim:
“… to advocate or build capacity for those whose voices cannot readily be heard.”
The training consultancy, FacilitationResource, showcases authentic, real-world scenarios of which he has intricate knowledge. Stefan was head of the UN’s Barrier (Wall) Monitoring Unit in Ramallah, Palestine, where he managed projects from creating research methodologies, information management systems, advocacy and humanitarian diplomacy, as well as maintaining donor relations.
The documentary ““BROKEN – A Palestinian Journey Through International Law” forms the core of Stefan’s educational work. His film, of which he is both the initiator and the producer, focuses on the broken promises of international law at the case of Israel’s Wall in Palestine. The intention is to utilize the intrinsic educational and learning values of the film, particularly in advocacy and humanitarian diplomacy.
The result of his almost 20 years of humanitarian work and pedagogical interest manifests itself in the way he reaches out with a variety of training competencies, lectures and publications to a broad spectrum of audiences. He applies his training in organizational environments, academic workshops and seminars, and in individual coaching.
Current Film Projects
Broken-the-film.com
“[…] a first-rate documentary that sheds a great deal of light on the intersection between law and politics in one of the world’s most persistent trouble spots.”
Avi Shlaim: Emeritus Professor of International Relations, University of Oxford
BROKEN – Synopsis excerpts:
The Israeli government, in 2002, began the construction of a 700 km-long wall in the West Bank on the Palestinian side of the “Green Line”. Two years later, in its 2004 Advisory Opinion, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague declared the construction of a wall within occupied Palestinian territory illegal. Today, over 16 years later, the result is sobering: Israel has neither desisted from the Wall, which is twice as high and four times as long as the Berlin Wall, nor made any reparations.
BROKEN– A Palestinian Journey Through International Law is a compelling documentary about international law, its broken promises, the ICJ, Israel’s Wall in Palestine, and the international community’s duties and omissions. The film provides candid testimonies of internationally renowned law experts, ICJ judges, seasoned diplomats and the Israeli military
officer who built the Wall. Catch this important moment when the filmmaker travels across three continents to reach out to the very people whose deliberations are those shaping the future of International Law, Human Rights and, ultimately, Peace.
Genesis of AdvocacyProductions
The Genesis of AdvocacyProductions, the entreprise, is synonymous with that of its first film production: Broken-the-film.com. Now that our film has been released, we understand that it can be so much more than just a documentary film. New products are now in the making, including a series in-depth interviews with law experts, a youth version for secondary schools and a library version. The Producer’s Statement illustrates the unchanged aim of the film and the company, and here it is:
“If International Law was as strong as the Wall, there wouldn’t be one!”
The Producer’s Statement
As the head of the UN’s Barrier Monitoring Unit, and now as a film producer, I have been working on documenting the Wall’s impacts since 2005. When my Unit was disbanded in May 2013 due to lack of funds and lack of will, my job came to a sudden end. I asked myself, could I blithely leave my work there and continue my career elsewhere. Could I morally live with myself if I simply dropped my work and moved on to another job? Could I ignore a subject which I knew in more depth than almost anyone else? Could I abandon all these countless people, and all the communities directly impacted by the Wall, without regret?
Well, I could not! Because of my personal commitment and in all consciousness, I could not simply leave the Wall on the rubbish tip of history. So, I decided to put all of my effort into a feature-length documentary film, capturing those questions I had previously put to diplomats, foreign ministers, army officers, and journalists, unrelentingly, in search of the answer of international law’s applicability. The Wall brings the problems of the occupation into very clear focus. If the international community has the will to deliver on its own promises, the resolution of conflicts, based on the norms of international law, might be much more straightforward than could be anticipated. More generally however, the Wall and the ICJ Opinion also throw up vital questions, not only about international law in the current world order, questions of the universality of international law, its coherence, the promises it makes, and its limitations, but also questions about the phenomenon of increasing walling-in of nations everywhere. I have set up AdvocacyProductions – Dare to Envision – to produce documentary films aspiring to high ethical standards and inherent educational value.
Film Projects in the Making
AdvocacyProductions’ credo is to marry quality film projects with ethical standards und of high pedagogical value. The company is firmly committed to continue making these products. This year we have launched:
“Behind the Chambers – Candid Testimonies on International Law”, a series of biographical interviews with experts in the fields of International Law, International Relations and related subjects.
“If international law […] is not respected, then the alternative in the long run is chaos”
Judge Awn Al-Khasawneh, former ICJ Judge and former Prime Minister of Jordan. BROKEN 2018
Film Project: “Behind the Chambers”
Our interviewees are entirely free to express their thoughts and put their arguments forward. Only two questions are at the heart of the biographical interviews: what their own personal experience about the current state of international law is, and what they believe international law holds in stall in terms of its future promises. The discourse thus created by “Beyond the Chambers” serves diplomats, academics, international practitioners, students and anybody interested in discovering the voices of those well versed in the subject.
Launch of additional documentary projects:
Film Project: «Disentanglers of International Law» Professor Kohen
(working title) is a project which distils diplomats’, law experts’ and other prominent voices to disentangle current sundry discourses and debates noticeable when trying to make sense of conflict resolution attempts through international law. This feature-length documentary is in the financing phase and slated to be launched in late 2021.
“96”
is AP’s latest project currently in its conceptual stage. AdvocacyProductions has been able to attract a co-producer and a filmmaker’s interest in chronicling modern borders. Launch of the project is scheduled for 2022.
Targeting Education
Films of Educational Value
AdvocacyProductions’ other branch of operations is Education, which focuses on the connection between filmmaking and education, adding value to the current generation of professions such as policymakers, humanitarians, and peacebuilders. We also aim at building capacity for academics, particularly those affiliated with international relations and law, as well as their students and associated staff. But we do not stop there. We also aim at secondary schools and the public at large.
We know the value of education first-hand. Since 2007 our training consultancy, FacilitationResource, has been focusing on different aspects of education. These comprise the development of curricula, the establishment of new course material, including film and media products, as well as new types of training, such as online learning in its various formats
“The training in conjunction with the documentary addresses an old issue in a brand-new way. It provides the student with an insightful analysis of International Law and related institutions incapable of protecting Human Rights or having the last say. It is how the “real world” is. So, just one session can have an effect on future policy makers. It also poses many important questions which could be addressed by students in form of research projects.”
Alma, participant at Humanitarian Diplomacy course, Vienna, 2018
The primary goal of FacilitationResource is to deliver good quality training and training tools, and to incorporate our films into as many of our training curricula as possible. In addition, we aim to disseminate our films to wider audiences which involves distributing them to university libraries, film festivals and television channels.
Stefan Ziegler, CEO of FacilitationResource, guarantees the highest standards in pedagogical delivery. He has almost 20 years of experience in the fields of humanitarian work and education, which shows in the quality of his training and his publications, as well as the satisfaction of the audiences to whom he caters. His work varies from training one-on-one to applied settings in organizational environments, workshops, seminars, as well as individual coaching. His pedagogy includes peer learning (learning from each other) and he therefore strongly encourages audience participation and interaction. He captivates his audience with his storytelling and illustrations from his experience in the field. He utilises visual aids in his presentations, as well as role-plays and simulation exercises to further engage his audience.
He has been appointed Associate Professor at the Geneva School of Diplomacy and is a guest lecturer at a number of universities, among them EPFL in Lausanne, the Graduate Institute in Geneva and the Politecnico di Milano.
Stefan works with the FacilitationResource learning alliance partners in the research, conception and delivery of new training products.
The following sections vividly illustrate the variety of Engaging Educational Projects FacilitationResource’s programme has on offer.
Engaging Educational Projects
Broken: Learning Tools & Opportunities
BROKEN has a proven track-record of educational value. Stefan Ziegler, Broken’s producer and initiator is Associate Professor at the Geneva School of Diplomacy applying the documentary in the majority of his teachings. He has 20 years of humanitarian experience and a background in praxis-oriented training and lecturing internationally. Find here his carefully crafted educational tools for a variety of audiences and events. His training tools have all been well tested over time whether in classrooms or in the field.
At your Event or via Conference Call
Please consult the Training Catalogue and send us a Contact Form with your enquiries
Training Catalogue I Contact Form
One-on-One
Please consult the Training Catalogue and send us a Contact Form with your enquiries.
Training Catalogue I Contact Form
Multimedia Education Materials for Lectures
The module in the making is meant for students to work in groups toward a common learning objective. Their edited work will be published on the production company’s academic platform. The aim is to facilitate students’ involvement in hands-on motivational learning projects to further their career opportunities early on. Once the students’ projects are submitted and published on our platform they will receive a recognition for their contribution from AdvocacyProductions.
Please consult the Training Catalogue and send us a Contact Form with your enquiries
Training Catalogue I Contact Form
By Stefan Ziegler, Associate Professor at Geneva School of Diplomacy
Stefan Ziegler, the producer and initiator of BROKEN and experienced humanitarian, in his role as Associate Professor at the Geneva School of Diplomacy and International Relations, is no stranger to lecturing in academic settings nor to the public in general.
For more information about guest lecture topics ranging from humanitarian diplomacy, international relations, advocacy to humanitarian project management, additional to the film’s making, please consult the catalogue below.
Training Catalogue I Contact Form
For Individuals
Our E-learning course leans on BROKEN-the-film in so far as it is based on academic training modules designed to comprehensively understand the documentary’s topics. It is developed to be accessible to anybody with an interest in learning and understanding, and regardless of educational background. It features many interactive learning tools taken straight from the film and put in broader contexts.
The E-learning Course will be available soon. For the modules addressed see the training catalogue.
Please consult the Training Catalogue and send us a Contact Form with your enquiries
Training Catalogue I Contact Form
Current Educational Products
AdvocacyProductions is piloting a novel project which is now well underway focusing on youth starting from secondary school level and above. We invested lengthy research into the production of a BROKEN youth version. This new product helps students from 14 years upward with explanations of key concepts necessary for a better understanding. The German version will be followed by an English and French one and hopefully other languages later.
Other youth projects have shown and debated Broken at specific film festivals and schools. One particularly interesting youth project has been an invitation by the organisers of the “European Forum Alpbach” with tens of thousands of young people congregating in the Austrian Alps (a yearly traditional event since the end of WWII). The discussions centre around social, technical, environmental and economic topics. Broken was very well received by a great mix of young people from around the world.
“Together with our experts the Board Member and Chair of the International Council, New Israel Fund, Jerusalem and the Producer and Initiator of BROKEN we watched BROKEN and reflected on the film’s topic and engaged in a fair and fruitful discussion. We thank our experts and our co-organizers from Club Alpbach Georgia for their contributions to this important debate.”
Club Alpbach South Tirol, Facebook page
“I also learned about where the wall was built, which was beyond the Green Line which surprised me. Furthermore, I learned about the ICJ and how they ruled against the wall, yet nothing was done to stop the process of building the wall because no authorities ruled over Israel to halt the process.
I also wanted to know how other countries were viewing the wall even after Israel continued the process of building it. Additionally, why did Israel build beyond the Green Wall in such a complex way?”
Fifteen-year-old girl from the US who inquired about BROKEN for her school essay after reading about it in the journal SALON
University & Law Libraries
Never have I heard judges speak so frankly about international law; this film will spark a cutting debate! It’s a must for any law library.”
Professor Jean Ziegler, former Special Rapporteur for Human Rights, OHCHR
From late 2019, FacilitationResource and AdvocacyProductions have engaged in direct distribution of the film Broken to libraries internationally. The initial challenge was to overcome a plethora of inter-library approaches in terms of specific needs, particularly linked to their library technical systems. Another obstacle was respective countries’ different legal agreements, including copywrite laws. We have overcome these hurdles and continue to distribute our products to centres of learning around the world. Recently a copy of BROKEN has been added to the law library of the International Criminal Court in The Hague. Our team hopes many such distinguished libraries will follow suit.
For more details on our Library Version please write to our info address in the Contact section below 
AdvocacyProductions Sàrl
Place de Grenus 4
1201 Genève
Suisse
info@advocacyproductions.ch www.advocacyproductions.ch
Ian Green
Spokesperson & Media
Ian.green@advocacyproductions.ch