Mackenzie Films

On the Hunt: ABC Nightline

Host Ted Koppel --- "Just last week ... we were reminded of how elusive Osama bin Laden is. Most suspect that he is somewhere in the mountainous border region of Afghanistan and Pakistan... What you will see tonight is an extraordinary video diary put together by filmmaker Richard Mackenzie and cameraman William Skinner...”

Task Force Red Dog: Discovery

The world premiere of this film launched Discovery's Military Channel across the United States in 2005. It is the compelling story of a Marine Corps squadron fighting the global war on terrorism. It includes dramatic footage not seen before of helicopters at war in Afghanistan. Filmed for six months on the front line, this was a co-production with ABC Nightline (see also On the Hunt, above).

The Forgotten War: ABC Nightline

This is a portrait of a desolate and distant fire base near the Pakistan border in Afghanistan from which American forces are conducting their hunt for Osama bin Laden and other High Value Targets. Richard Mackenzie and William Skinner had exclusive access to a location known as Forward Operating Base (FOB) Salerno, covering infantry troops conducting the war on terror in this distant, forsaken place.

Inside Special Forces: PBS & National Geographic

Richard Mackenzie and his crew go to war in Iraq and Afghanistan with U.S. Special Forces. This exceptional and exclusive documentary tells the story of Special Forces in two wars and throughout the history of the Green Berets. The community gave Mackenzie and his team unfettered access across the board from ODAs in combat to the highest ranking general at the top of US Army Special Operations Command. Critics called the film the best ever made on Special Forces and one to keep on the shelf as an important reference for years to come. The film received an Emmy Award and numerous other accolades.

Richard Mackenzie reports from Iraq

The oil wells of Southern Iraq were set ablaze by retreating Iraqi forces at the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Traveling with the general in charge of fighting the fires, Mackenzie examines how the fires were started and what the U.S. Army was doing to bring them under control and avert a repeat of the 1991 environmental disaster in which Saddam Hussein's troops sabotaged the entire oil fields of Kuwait. Produced for National Geographic Television and Film, the report aired in its entirety on CNBC.

Exclusive Film Made for National Geographic & MSNBC

This Emmy winning film introduced a stunned nation to a place few could have found on the map before September 11, 2001. It was, in part, a portrait of renowned guerilla leader Ahmed Shah Massoud who was assassinated by al Qaeda two days before the attack on America. It excelled because of Mackenzie’s decades-long experience in Afghanistan and the work of Director of Photography: Stephen Cocklin.

Tsunami - Animal Instincts:

Produced in weeks after the worst tsunami in history struck South Asia, this film examines the reaction and behavior of animals before, during and after the disaster.

Did the animals have innate advance notice that allowed large numbers to escape and survive? The film premiered in a Global Simulcast on Animal Planet.

Behind the Terror - Understanding the Enemy: Discovery

Combining the world-renowned global news-gathering and archival resources of the BBC with the assets of Discovery Networks' own channels, the special provided an in-depth profile of terrorism and the people behind it. Hosted by veteran network news anchor Forrest Sawyer with Richard Mackenzie as Senior Producer, the film went beyond the immediate headlines to examine key questions surrounding the crisis. Made in six days and broadcast only a week after 9/11, this two-hour worldwide special took viewers behind the fear, the anger and the destruction to explore the evolution of terrorism, why the attacks were perpetrated against the United States, what motivates these terrorist organizations, what they hope to accomplish, how to stop them and how this event changed Americans' view of the world.d.

Priest Among the Mullahs: MSNBC

This is the story of Father Greg Rice, a Roman Catholic priest who worked more than 30 years along the Pakistan/Afghan border, helping save and restore the lives of drug addicts of all faiths. He offered a unique -- and at the time controversial -- perspective on U.S. operations in Afghanistan.

Producer: Richard Mackenzie

Assistant Producer: Amanda Fox

Headliners & Legends: MSNBC

The Counterterrorist: Produced and written by Richard Mackenzie with Associate Producer Amanda Fox, this MSNBC special tells the story of Special Agent Brad Garrett. An ace investigator, Garrett hunted CIA shooter Mir Aimal Kasi, tracking him for four years through Pakistan and Afghanistan before, along with members of the FBI Hostage Rescue Team, getting him in a dusty, desolate town in a Pakistani wilderness. He also helped arrest the mastermind of the first World Trade Center attack, Ramsi Yusef, in the Pakistan capital, Islamabad. The Director of Photography for this film was Steve Cocklin with sound by Anne Cocklin.

Profiles from the Front Line: ABC

This series laid the foundation for media coverage of the later Iraq war. Profiles crews were embedded with U.S. Forces in Afghanistan and at other fronts of the war on terrorism. Richard Mackenzie led the production in Afghanistan, working with Special Operations and with infantry units. Mackenzie later made the classic Inside Special Forces documentary for National Geographic Television and for PBS.

Combat Ready: War Games & Insurgency:

This two-part, two-hour special examines how the US military prepares for combat and trains its troops for a new type of warfare in a fast-changing world.

21st Century Warfighter:

An inside look at the latest new weapons and materiel, produced in Germany and the United States for Discovery's Military Channel.

One Woman's Story:

In this episode of MSNBC Investigates, we profile an extraordinary woman who continues to help thousands of suffering women and their families around the world. We met Zainab Salbi as she came to the rescue of Afghan refugees along the Afghan/Pakistan border.

Afghan Journal -- The New Leaders:

A one-hour documentary for MSNBC. Can Afghanistan cast off its past troubles?

The Life and Death of Mr. Invincible:

An appreciation of the life of an extraordinary mountain climber, Alex Lowe, who was killed in an avalanche at the peak of his amazing career. Written by Richard Mackenzie.

National Geographic Explorer:

Selected features from this series on MSNBC that were written by Mackenzie. Subjects range from Mummies of Gold in long lost tombs in Egypt to life in the wild in Africa.

Cheetah Chase:

A fascinating short film following an outstanding -- and erudite -- National Geographic photographer, Chris Johns, as he seeks the photos of a lifetime with endangered cheetahs in Africa. Chris was later promoted from staff photographer to Editor of the National Geographic magazine, where he now serves.

CNN Presents --Terror Nation:

First broadcast in 1994, this film revealed how Afghanistan

had become a haven for international terrorists and a

booming drug trade, described as "blowback" or unintended

consequences of CIA operations in the 1980s war against

the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The biggest recipient

of CIA funds at that time, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, is now one

of the most wanted High Value Targets in the U.S. war

on terrorism (and has a million-dollar price on his head).

This film was reported and produced by Richard Mackenzie

and Peter Bergen,

Miracle in the Andes: Dateline NBC

A dramatic story of survival from an American Airlines crash in Colombia -- produced by Richard Mackenzie. As the feature begins, perhaps the most dramatic line is: "One hundred and sixty people on that plane had just 12 minutes left to live." This is the gripping story of a young man and his little daughter who survived the crash of an American Airlines 757 on approach to Cali Airport from Miami. The story the man and the child tell in their interview with correspondent Dennis Murphy is haunting.

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