Feature-length documentary The Frontline: Doctors of War (working title), from ITN Productions, will air on the UK’s Channel 5 later in the year.
The 90-minute documentary was filmed in South Sudan ahead of the COVID-19 lockdown, when a fragile peace was declared.
The film follows former NHS surgeon John Buckels and his anesthetist as they work with other global healthcare professionals in a Médecins Sans Frontières hospital facility. Over a two week span, stories of war-induced injuries and the work of the medics are filmed inside one of the largest refugee camps.
“This documentary offers a unique, graphic and heart-wrenching record of emergency medicine and surgery in a conflict zone,” said Guy Davies, C5′s commissioning editor, factual, in a statement. “The team at ITNP has managed to capture the extraordinary experiences of UK medics working in South Sudan in a way that viewers will find they cannot ignore.”
The Frontline: Doctors of War has been commissioned by Davies for Channel 5. ITN Productions’ Ian Rumsey and Nathaniel Lippiett are executive producers, and Lippiett also directs.