September 5, 1972, is a cursed, tragic and harrowing date—not only in the history of global sports but in the annals of humanity itself. On this day, eight Palestinian terrorists, members of the Black September organization, infiltrated the Olympic Village during the Munich Olympic Games in West Germany.
They seized apartments at 31 Connolly Street, where some members of the Israeli delegation were staying. The terrorists took the Israelis hostage, demanding the release of 232 terrorists imprisoned in Israel and two additional terrorists held in Germany.
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The film revisits the great trauma, through the eyes of the media. The terrorist in the Olympic Village
(Photo: AP)
In an era with few television channels and no internet, the world clung to television and radio, anxiously following the negotiations and developments in Munich. On the night of September 5, many of us went to sleep believing that most of the hostages had been released, except for two — wrestling coach Moshe Weinberg and weightlifter Yossef Romano — who had been killed during the initial attack and subsequent negotiations.
The next morning, we awoke to the devastating news — the Israeli hostages, who had been taken to the airport, were killed during the failed rescue attempt by the German police. Among the victims were fencing coach André Spitzer, athletics coach Amitzur Shapira, weightlifters David Berger and Ze'ev Friedman, wrestlers Eliezer Halfin and Mark Slavin, shooting coach Kehat Shorr, wrestling referee Yossef Gutfreund, and weightlifting referee Yakov Springer.
Some 52 years have passed since the massacre of the 11 Israeli athletes, yet the tragedy continues to haunt and resonate — especially in times when Israelis are once again being held hostage by Palestinian terrorists. Numerous books, television programs, and films, both fictional and documentary, have attempted to depict those pivotal two days, with some even examining the reasons behind the operational failure.
And now, a new addition to this list: "5 September" — a Hollywood production (with Sean Penn among its producers) that premiered over the summer at the 81st Venice Film Festival, just ahead of the 52nd anniversary of the massacre, and is now showing in Israel. Directed by Swiss filmmaker Tim Fehlbaum, the film presents the event through the eyes of an American television crew covering the Olympic Games—the atmosphere surrounding the competitions, including references to Holocaust remembrance—only to find themselves documenting the hostage crisis and the tragic events at the airport.
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Conducted extensive research before making the film. Filmmaker Tim Fehlbaum
(Photo: REUTERS/Yara Nardi)
The film, which opened Orizzonti Extra, one of the festival's side sections, delivers a gripping and fluid reconstruction of the broadcast that was watched by 900 million people worldwide. Fehlbaum incorporated archival footage from Israel’s Channel 1, including the now-famous interview with Tuvia Sokolsky, coach of Israel’s weightlifting team, who managed to escape by breaking a window and jumping out.
"The Munich event is a turning point in media history," Fehlbaum explained during our meeting at the festival when asked why he chose to focus on the American network's journalists.
"Even before the tragedy occurred, the 1972 Munich Olympics were unique—it was the first time the Games were held on German soil since 1936, when the Berlin Olympics had been used as Nazi propaganda. Now, Germany sought to project a new image to the world—one of a liberal, modern nation. They had the technology and cameras needed to achieve this and paid close attention to ensuring the games were properly covered.
This was the first time that stadiums were designed with television broadcasting in mind. As a result, an unprecedented media infrastructure was created solely to broadcast these Games. It was also the first Olympics to be aired live via satellite, with some countries even receiving the broadcast in color."
Fehlbaum successfully captures in his film the dramatic shift the American news crew experienced—"from the joyful narrative that West Germany was trying to present to the world about its liberal Games, to a tragedy. I loved the cinematic challenge of telling a story from just one set—how do you do that when the cameras are your only window to the outside world?"
Fehlbaum conducted extensive research in preparation for the film. “We had access to police records that were only made public a few years ago. During my research, I discovered fascinating facts—for example, that ABC Sports was far ahead of news channels in its ability to transform content into entertainment, and that they applied those same principles to covering this tragedy.”
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The opening ceremony of the Munich Olympics. Some countries watched the Games in color
(Photo: AP)
"Among other things, we reached out to Jeffrey Mason, whose character appears in the film. He shared his experiences from the control room that day—it was a live, 22-hour news marathon. Listening to Mason, it was the first time we realized that telling this story from the media’s perspective would be the most compelling approach."
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One of the film’s central characters is based on Roone Arledge, who oversaw the ABC Sports team in Munich and is portrayed by Peter Sarsgaard. “Roone was a pioneer in making sports entertainment. He believed that the audience at home deserved the best seat. He invented innovations like cameras positioned on the field itself and was the first to tell broadcasters, ‘You need a hero narrative in every game.’ Roone insisted on incorporating interviews with personal elements about the athletes.
'We reached out to the families, but we didn’t meet'
Before filming, we visited sports networks in New York—it was a powerful experience. Even during a regular basketball game—say, a New York Knicks game—you could feel the tension in the broadcast booth and the dynamic energy in the room.”
As part of your research, did you meet with survivors from the Israeli delegation or the families of the victims?
“We reached out to the families, but in the end, we didn’t meet. Besides, our perspective was very clearly focused on the media coverage aspect.”
What do you think about the International Olympic Committee’s handling of the Munich Olympics? They insisted that ‘the Games must go on’ and resumed competitions immediately after the massacre. For years, they also avoided properly commemorating the tragedy.
“In my research, I found that it took the families an incredibly long time to get anything from the International Olympic Committee. There was also heavy criticism of their decision to continue the Games. What do I think about the IOC’s actions? I don’t know what to say. There were certainly some troubling aspects of their response. They wanted the Games to go on. They even prematurely announced that the hostages had been released—which our investigation revealed. In Israel, newspapers had already gone to print reporting that the athletes had been freed. It’s possible the IOC made the announcement quickly to ensure the Games continued. It was a tricky situation, no doubt.”
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The negotiation team attempts to reach an agreement with the terrorists
(Photo: David Cairns/Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images))
The IOC remains highly sensitive about the 1972 Olympics. Did that make your work with them more difficult when you needed access to archival footage?
“Yes, I think your assumption is correct. In general, obtaining materials from them is challenging. They maintain strict control over their archives, but when it comes to the specific case of 1972, access is even more restricted and complicated.”
As a result, Fehlbaum had to use extras to recreate certain scenes at the beginning of the film, particularly those featuring Jewish-American swimming star Mark Spitz. At the Munich Olympics, Spitz won seven gold medals—the most ever won by an athlete at a single Olympic Games. His record stood until the 2008 Beijing Olympics, when American swimmer Michael Phelps surpassed it with eight gold medals.
"Because the rights to the swimming competitions belong to the International Olympic Committee, and we couldn't purchase them, we had to find a double to play Mark Spitz during the pool scenes," Fehlbaum reveals. "One day, I asked my sister if she knew someone who looked like Mark, and she immediately said, ‘Yes, of course, I know this guy and that guy.’ She was referring to a friend of mine from Switzerland. As funny as it sounds, he trained intensely in the pool before filming that scene—he had to make sure his body looked somewhat like that of a swimmer. The costume department even sent him a Speedo with stars and stripes, just like Mark’s, so he could practice in it."
What should we learn from the tragedy of the Munich Olympics?
"That’s something the audience should figure out on their own," Fehlbaum responds, maintaining a typically neutral Swiss diplomatic tone. "We simply wanted to raise certain questions—for example, should we broadcast violence on television? But we didn’t want to provide clear answers. I hope that after watching the film, people will reflect on how we consume news and what it means that today, every one of us carries a camera in our pocket. Technology has, of course, changed since the Munich tragedy, but the ethical dilemmas remain. In my opinion, that’s an interesting connection to our time."
"We took a step back and recognized that this was, in fact, the first time cameras had the ability to observe such an event live. That’s why we wanted to be very precise about the technology of that era—we did extensive research and put significant effort into this part of the production. It was important for us to capture that feeling."
'This is not a political film'
To recreate that sense of immersion, the filmmakers of 5 September meticulously reconstructed the era, using equipment and techniques that are largely unfamiliar to younger audiences. "We examined countless images of the original devices and wanted to ensure 100% accuracy. We put immense effort into tracking down all these machines. We even visited old television studios. You’d be surprised how many dedicated collectors there are of vintage walkie-talkies—the ones you see in the film. We even borrowed devices from museums."
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His character will also appear in the film. Mark Spitz
(Photo: Raham Morris/Evening Standard/Getty Images)
One of the most thought-provoking aspects of the film is how, even back then, parts of the international media struggled to label the Palestinian terrorists as such, opting instead for sanitized or neutral terms like "guerrilla fighters"—much like what we see today in coverage of the war in Gaza.
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Meticulous historical recreation. German police officers disguised as athletes in Munich
(Photo: AP)
In general, 5 September takes on an even more charged and poignant meaning in light of the Black Saturday massacre of October 7, the war that followed, and, of course, the ongoing hostage crisis. Fehlbaum filmed his movie before October 7, and when the tragedy unfolded, he was shaken. "Of course, what happened on that Saturday deeply affected me, as did the tragic events that followed," he says, summing up his emotions.
Did you ever consider shelving the film or making changes to it?
"The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has never ceased, but the tragic escalation we’re witnessing today occurred just as we were finishing work on 5 September. By October 7, we were already in the final stages of post-production. Since I had deliberately focused on the media’s perspective during the Munich tragedy, I didn’t want to change the film. So, we didn’t respond to current events by altering it in any way."*
But October 7 has given your film a new layer of significance.
"That’s true. It’s something I realized myself while watching the film—people really do see it differently now. But that’s for the audience to decide—I can’t dictate how they’ll feel while watching. We explicitly tried to focus on the journalistic aspect rather than the political one. But of course, I understand what you mean. October 7 was something we could never have foreseen, and it is incredibly tragic."
If October 7 had happened before filming, would you still have made 5 September?
"That’s a good question. I ask myself that, too—would I have approached this topic in the first place? I think I still would have made the film after October 7, because it doesn’t make any political statements."