Director of "American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden" on Making the Netflix Hit

In this episode of Bonfire Conversations, I sit down with award-winning filmmaker Mor Loushy, director of Netflix’s powerful three-part documentary series American Manhunt: The Osama Bin Laden Mission.

With the remembrance of September 11 approaching, this story carries an even deeper weight. The series takes us inside one of the most dramatic manhunts in modern history — the decade-long search for Osama Bin Laden and the Navy SEAL mission that ended it. Through gripping interviews, rare archival footage, and cinematic reenactments, American Manhunt makes history unfold like a thriller.

In our conversation, Mor shares the origins of the project, the challenges of editing such a massive story, her collaboration with composer Jasha Klebe, the role of reenactments, and how she approaches truth, trust, and controversy in her films. We also talk about courage, history, and the future of documentary filmmaking.

And of course, we wrap things up with our Penny for Your Thoughts segment — where Mor reveals her favorite films, thoughts on AI, and what courage means in everyday life.

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American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden is available on Netflix.

#americanmanhunt #september11 #binladen #netflix #documentary

Chapters:
0:00 – Intro
1:34 – Starting the Conversation
2:16 – Origins of the Project
5:25 – Editing a Massive Story
8:29 – Remembering 9/11
11:24 – Research and Accuracy
13:41 – Gaining Trust of Interviewees
17:26 – Working with Composer Jasha Klebe
20:21 – Shooting Reenactments
23:06 – Zero Dark Thirty & Fiction vs. Documentary
25:53 – Penny for Your Thoughts
26:12 – Objectivity in History
26:22 – Favorite Food
27:13 – Meaning of Courage
28:30 – Favorite Films
31:02 – Truth vs. Emotion
31:42 – Pixar Question
32:55 – AI and Documentary Filmmaking
34:54 – Small but Powerful Life Moments
36:06 – Season 2 of American Manhunt
37:11 – Rating the Interview
37:49 – Closing Thoughts

#AmericanManhunt #NetflixDocumentary #MorLoushy #BonfireConversations