National Geographic has produced an 'Airport Security' documentary franchise, featuring spin-offs set in Spain, USA, Italy, Australia, Colombia, etc.
It surprises me that they're able to film seemingly private interviews with drug smugglers and lawbreakers in the series. How are they even able to produce such documentary without violating privacy laws? How did they get authority and rights to record interviews in airport security checks and individual ones too?
In brief, this show (and other shows produced by the same production team at National Geographic) relies on a series of legally binding agreements with the airport and relevant security authorities to film inside the airport, as well as getting individual permission from the agents who can opt out of individual segments, on request, or decline to be filmed entirely.
As part of the deal, the cameramen were required to leave the room whenever a suspect or an agent requested it.
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They then seek waivers and permission forms from the criminals being interviewed to use their voices and show their faces, a surprising number of whom agree without offering any objection.
They were also required to get signed release forms from each suspect before using his or her image on TV—something that happened surprisingly often.
“The number of people I’ve seen in highly embarrassing situations sign releases sometimes boggles my mind,” Becker said.
Where permission isn't given, they can still film the bags and the agents, as well as using a voice actor to provide the criminal's dialogue, as well as filming reaction shots and confessional-style interviews with the officers to 'set the scene' where the criminals have refused to be shown on camera.
The faces of suspects under arrest remain blurred, but this doesn’t detract from the drama of show. When supervisory officer Chris Elias slices into the Guyanan man’s luggage, you’re left to imagine the man’s horrified expression.
“I didn’t know that was in there!” he says. “I swear to God!”
Afterward, in the show’s form of a confessional, supervisory officer Joe Finn tells the camera: “He acted shocked when we told him what was in the bag. But he ain’t winning no Academy Awards, I can tell you that.”