The ‘DSK affair’, as it came to be known, had major political and cultural implications that went way beyond France. Not only did it derail Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s bid for the French presidency, it also challenged the tradition of ignoring leaders’ private sexual behaviour. In 2011, when the scandal broke, Anne-Cécile Genre and Marine Pradel were young French photojournalists based in New York. They covered every aspect of the affair for all French television channels. In this film, they return to the story 15 years later to show how the media’s polarising coverage of the story fuelled cultural wars that silenced the victim.
From the first day at the Sofitel to the end of the civil case 18 months later, Genre and Pradel recorded over 600 GB of rushes. Viewing these rushes leaves a bitter taste in their mouths. In 2011, regardless of political affiliation or social background, everyone had an opinion on the case and media coverage played to those preconceived ideas. Nafissatou Diallo was either an opportunistic ‘hooker’ or an early pioneer of the #MeToo movement.
Rather than rehashing the trial of a man who has long since been removed from power, this film focuses on the way the media covers cases of sexual violence. Looking back on the investigation through interviews conducted today with the protagonists is to showcase the hegemony of rape culture. A culture that, in 2011, permeated our entire society.
This film also gives a voice to the woman who has been referred to since the beginning in the third person: Nafissatou Diallo, She speaks out and gives her version of events. Not as a suspect summoned to justify herself, but as a victim.