“(A) beautiful film”
Paul Cauchon – Le Devoir

“Absolutely remarkable”
Michel Désautels – Radio-Canada “Désautels”

“Exceptional”
Raymond St-Pierre – Radio-Canada “Pourquoi pas dimanche”

“A must!”
Francine Grimaldi – Radio-Canada “Samedi et rien d'autre”

Short summary:

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country whose record of human rights violations is among the worst in the world, the journalists at Radio Okapi risk their lives every day to expose the abuses of power to which the civilian population is subjected. Shooting in danger zones still in the grip of rebellion, the filmmakers follow the work of several reporters from this independent, UN-backed national radio station. In a land where silence is imposed at gunpoint, Shock Waves provides moving testimony to the struggle for freedom of expression and democracy in a country torn apart in the aftermath of war.

Long summary:

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, murder, rape, armed conflict and the looting of civilians by the military are daily facts of life. In this huge country where chaos and corruption reign, the journalists of Radio Okapi constantly put their lives at risk to expose the abuses of power to which the Congolese people are subjected. This is one of the worst humanitarian crises in our world today.

Shooting in danger zones where the rebellion rages on, filmmakers Pierre Mignault and Hélène Magny follow several investigative reporters on their beat. Taking us up the Congo River and deep into the equatorial jungle, they capture with a hidden camera a reporter’s confrontation with unscrupulous soldiers who practise extortion and torture. A reporter journeys East to cover a new outbreak of the rebellion, and returns with harrowing testimony by victims of rape and destruction. Elsewhere, after denouncing the chief of police, another journalist barely escapes reprisal by a death squad. All across the country, Radio Okapi’s national network of reporters takes enormous risks to put the truth on the air.

Shock Waves is a hard-hitting documentary that denounces the crimes committed by armed thugs in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It also paints an unforgettable picture of an independent radio and its courageous journalists, who are aware that they are making History.  

Shot in a land where silence is imposed at gunpoint, Shock Waves provides riveting testimony to the difficult birth of freedom of expression and democracy in a country torn apart in the aftermath of war.