'We want this film to influence policy to help protect the lives of women'

Reuben Hamlyn is the director of the award-winning documentary, Another Body. This film follows an American college student who discovers someone has made and distributed deep-fake pornography of her online. It is now informing policy worldwide.

'Another Body started at King's,' recalls Reuben. 'I took a module in Vernacular Theory and my final paper involved an analysis of the 4chan website. The site, which allows users to create image boards, is notorious for being the online meeting place for alt-right communities. It features a lot of extreme content devoted to far-right politics or image-based sexual abuse.'

The rise of deep-fake tech

When Reuben graduated in 2018, he read about the first deep-fake technology on Reddit. He continues: 'A lot of 4chan users employed the technology to create non-consensual intimate imagery and videos of women. But I initially didn't think this was my story to tell.'

Six months later came the first media coverage about deep-fake technology and the threat it posed to democracy. It was still also being used as a tool of violence against women – and that was growing at a terrifying pace.

'I called a friend, Sophie Compton, who'd worked on a play about image-based sexual violence,' says Reuben. 'Soon after, we decided to make a documentary on this subject.'

Making the world better

But the road to making a film about such a complex topic was far from simple.

Reuben explains: 'Sophie and I spent a long time researching the boards dedicated to deep-fake abuse on 4chan to learn how this community operated. But we were also looking for stories. We found "Taylor" – the subject of Another Body, who we give a fake name to anonymise – on another site. Perpetrators often name the people they're abusing, so it was easy to identify her.

'We consulted with experts and survivors about how best to approach her. We had to ensure we had psychological and legal support available if she didn't know these deep-fakes existed.

'We sent "Taylor" a message letting her know what we'd found online. We explained we were film-makers who wanted to tell her story. We also discussed our strategy for anonymising her."

She got in touch the next day.

Reuben continues: '"Taylor" is an extraordinary young woman. Her initial instinct was, "How can we take this horrible thing that's happened to me and make the world a bit better?"'

Award-winning film

Because of the sensitive nature of the subject and the need to protect identities, Reuben says he couldn't share much of the unfinished film during production.

'The first time we showed it to people was when we premiered at South By Southwest Film Festival,' he reveals. 'It was kind of the first temperature check on the finished product. Then we won the Special Jury Award for a Documentary. I was speechless.'

Winning the award meant Another Body secured publicity and played at more festivals, which helped lead to distribution in the US, the UK and other territories around the world. This also helped its ambition to play a role in changing the culture.

Looking forward, looking back 

Reuben is currently working on a fiction film. He then plans to make another issue-based documentary. He's also finishing a Film Studies masters degree at New York University.

'Looking back, King's provided a starting point and lessons I still employ today,' he reflects. 'During my degree in London, I was working part-time as a videographer and in production companies. I had to learn to organise and prioritise.

'King's also nurtured my thirst for knowledge. At school, studying wasn't much fun. King's changed that. It was the first time I felt excited to be learning and researching. I retain that excitement today.'

Another Body: My AI Porn Nightmare is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.