♪ >>> HELLO, EVERYONE.

WELCOME TO "AMANPOUR & CO." HERE IS WHAT'S COMING UP.

>> THIS DAY WILL STAY IN MY MEMORY AS ONE OF THE SORROWFUL -- MOST SORROWFUL DAYS OF MY LIFE.

>> IN MOSCOW, CROWDS RISK A CRACKDOWN TO COME OUT FOR THE FUNERAL OF ALEXEI NAVALNY.

>>> THEY ARE HAVING TO IMPROVISE A LIFE.

>> HESHA MATAR WEAVES TOGETHER FRIENDSHIP AND EXILE.

♪ WE ARE THE WORLD ♪ WE ARE THE CHILDREN >>> THE GREATEST NIGHT IN POP.

WE LOOK AT THE MAKING OF "WE ARE THE WORLD."

>>> LATER -- >> BUT FOR THIS MAN, MY FATHER WOULD NOT BE HERE.

I WOULD NOT BE HERE.

OUR CHILDREN WOULD NOT BE HERE.

>> I REPORT ON THE JAPANESE DIPLOMAT WHO HELPED SAVE THOUSANDS OF LITHUANIAN JEWS.

♪ >>> "AMANPOUR & CO." IS MADE POSSIBLE -- BY THE ANDERSON FAMILY ENDOWMENT.

JIM ATTWOOD AND LESLIE WILLIAMS.

CANDACE KING WEIR.

THE FAMILY FOUNDATION OF LEILA AND MICKEY STRAUS.

MARK J. BLECHNER.

THE FILOMEN M. D'AGOSTINO FOUNDATION.

SETON J. MELVIN.

CHARLES ROSENBLUM.

KOO AND PATRICIA YUEN, COMMITTED TO BRIDGING CULTURAL DIFFERENCES IN OUR COMMUNITIES.

BARBARA HOPE ZUCKERBERG.

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY THESE FUNDERS.

AND BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU.

THANK YOU.

>> WELCOME TO THE PROGRAM.

THOUSANDS OF RUSSIANS LINED THE STREETS TO HONOR ALEXEI NAVALNY TWO WEEKS AFTER HIS DEATH AT THE AGE OF JUST 47 IN A REMOTE ARCTIC PRISON COLONY.

SUPPORTERS BLAME RUSSIA'S PRESIDENT PUTIN FOR HIS DEATH, WHICH THE KREMLIN DENIES.

MOURNERS CHANTED NAVALNY, RUSSIA WITHOUT PUTIN, AND NO TO WAR.

THEY PAID THEIR RESPECTS AT HIS OPEN CASKET, DESPITE ATTEMPTS TO KEEP NAVALNY'S DEATH OUT OF THE LIMELIGHT.

A MONITORING GROUP SAYS OVER 100 PEOPLE HAVE BEEN DETAINED ACROSS RUSSIA FOR PAYING THEIR RESPECTS.

HERE IS WHAT ONE MOURNER HAD TO SAY ABOUT NAVALNY'S LEGACY.

>> Translator: FOR US, FOR ME PERSONALLY, IT WAS RUSSIAN NELSON MANDELA OR MARTIN LUTHER KING.

>> JULIA VOWS TO CARRY ON HIS STRUGGLE.

SHE'S IN EXILE, UNABLE TO ATTEND THE FUNERAL.

SHE POSTED A VIDEO SAYING THANK YOU FOR 26 YEARS OF ABSOLUTE HAPPINESS.

HIS COFFIN WAS LOWERED INTO THE GROUND TO THE TUNE OF "MY WAY."

VLADIMIR PUTIN IS MORE DEFIANT THAN EVER, WARNING OF A THREAT OF NUCLEAR WAR IF THE WEST ESCALATES THE CONFLICT IN UKRAINE.

MIKHAIL FISHMAN KNEW ALEXEI NAVALNY WELL.

HE ANCHORS A POPULAR NEWS PROGRAM ON THE OPPOSITION NETWORK.

I SPOKE WITH HIM ABOUT NAVALNY'S DEATH AND ABOUT HIS HOPES FOR FREEDOM IN RUSSIA.

THANK YOU FOR JOINING US.

I KNOW THIS MUST BE A VERY DIFFICULT DAY FOR YOU, FOR YOUR FRIENDS, FOR COLLEAGUES TO SEE REALLY THE END OF A CHAPTER HERE FOR THE LEAD OPPOSITION FIGURE IN RUSSIA, THE FUNERAL OF ALEXEI NAVALNY.

HOW ARE YOU FEELING?

>> IT'S A VERY SAD DAY.

I THINK THAT THIS IS ONE -- THIS DAY WILL STAY IN MY MEMORY AS ONE OF THE SORROWFUL -- MOST SORROWFUL DAYS OF MY LIFE.

IT'S BREAKING MY HEART THAT I WASN'T ABLE TO BE THERE WITH MY FRIENDS, WHERE I BELONG NOW, AND I MEAN MOSCOW WHERE ALEXEI NAVALNY WAS BURIED.

I JUST COULDN'T GO THERE.

IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE FOR ME TO GO.

BUT MY HEART IS THERE.

MY HEART WILL STAY THERE.

YES, IT'S A VERY SAD DAY.

>> JUST IN CASE OUR VIEWERS ARE IN DOUBT AS TO WHY YOU CAN'T GO THERE, IT'S FOR FEAR OF YOUR OWN LIFE AND YOUR SAFETY.

YOU HAVE HAD TO LIVE IN EXILE NOW IN THE PAST FEW YEARS AS RUSSIA HAS QUICKLY, UNDER VLADIMIR PUTIN, TURNED INTO AN AUTHORITARIAN STATE.

AND YET, MIKHAIL, WE SEE HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE SHOWING UP TODAY AND PAYING THEIR RESPECTS TO ALEXEI NAVALNY.

WHAT DOES THAT SIGNAL TO YOU?

>> YES.

THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST SORROWFUL BUT ALSO I HAVE TO SAY AN INSPIRING DAY, BECAUSE THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE SHOWED UP.

NOT ONLY IN MOSCOW.

YOU KNOW, THIS IS A VERY SPECIAL FUNERAL.

I'VE BEEN AT OTHER FUNERALS WHEN THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE ATTENDED.

THOUSANDS OF THOUSANDS JOINED A STREET MARCH ACROSS MOSCOW.

NOW, IT'S VERY DIFFERENT.

IT'S VERY DIFFERENT FUNERAL, BECAUSE WE'RE TALKING NOW ABOUT PUTIN'S MOST PROMINENT, IMPORTANT ENEMY, PERSONAL ENEMY.

IT'S DIFFERENT RUSSIA.

I JUST WANT TO REMIND YOU HOW NAVALNY'S MOTHER WAS FIGHTING TO GET HIS BODY FROM THE HANDS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT IN THE ARCTIC A FEW DAYS AGO.

SHE WAS BLACKMAILED BEYOND ANY UNDERSTANDING OF HUMAN NORMS THAT SOMETHING WOULD HAPPEN TO THE BODY OF HER SON IF SHE WOULDN'T AGREE TO SECRET SORT OF FAMILY FUNERAL.

DESPITE ALL THE INTIMIDATION, DESPITE ALL THE REPRESSION THAT RUSSIA IS GOING THROUGH NOW, YET THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE GATHERED TO PAY TRIBUTE AND TO SAY GOOD-BYE TO NAVALNY.

THAT MEANS THAT THERE'S HOPE FOR HIS HOPE FOR BEAUTIFUL RUSSIA OF THE FUTURE.

IT'S NOT DEAD.

HE IS BUT THE HOPE IS NOT.

THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT.

THAT'S WHY IT WAS AS SORROWFUL AS IT IS INSPIRING.

>> YOU POINT OUT SOMETHING REALLY IMPORTANT THOUGH.

THE STATE OF WHERE RUSSIA IS TODAY AND HOW QUICKLY IT HAS TURNED INTO AN AUTHORITARIAN IF NOT TOTALITARIAN REGIME, WHERE YOU HAVE TO EVEN BEG FOR A MOTHER TO SEE THE BODY OF HER DEAD SON.

YOU HAVE TO GO TO ANY MEANS NECESSARY TO EVEN BE ABLE TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO BURY HIM, STILL FACING RESISTANCE FROM THE GOVERNMENT.

YOU KNOW, YOU ARE A VERY PRAGMATIC MAN AND JOURNALIST WHO HAS COVERED RUSSIA FOR MANY, MANY YEARS.

AND I WONDER EVEN FOR YOU, THE PACE, HOW RAPIDLY THE COUNTRY HAS DESCENDED INTO AUTHORITARIANISM, PERHAPS EVEN TOTALITARIANISM AT THIS POINT, HAS THAT SURPRISED YOU?

>> WELL, FIRST I HAVE TO SAY THAT TODAY'S FUNERAL, IT CERTAINLY TOOK BRAVERY TO SHOW UP THERE.

AND YET, WE STILL DON'T KNOW WHAT WILL BE THE CONSEQUENCES.

BECAUSE WE NO THAT THERE ARE SPECIAL AGENTS IN THE CROWD WHO ACTUALLY GATHER ALL THE DETAILS AND FILM PEOPLE'S FACES.

WE ALL KNOW THAT.

WE DON'T KNOW.

NOBODY KNOWS WHAT AWAITS THEM AND WHAT AWAITS RUSSIA.

RUSSIA IS NOW A TOTALLY DIFFERENT STATE, TOTALLY DIFFERENT COUNTRY, TOTALLY DIFFERENT REGIME THAN IT WAS TWO YEARS AGO WHEN THE WAR STARTED.

NOW JUST FOR FEW WORDS IN SUPPORT FOR UKRAINE OR JUST AGAINST THE WAR, YOU CAN GET A JAIL TERM.

THAT'S WHAT WE SEE -- WHAT HAPPENS ONCE IN A WHILE BASICALLY ON DAILY BASIS.

SO THAT'S WHAT LIFE IS NOW.

IT'S GOING TO YET NEW LEVEL OF REPRESSION WITH EVERY NEW MONTH.

WE ALSO SEE THAT.

>> I DO HAVE TO ASK YOU.

I WAS TOUCHED BY WATCHING TV ON THE DAY OF NAVALNY'S ANNOUNCED DEATH.

YOU WERE ON MOMENTS AFTER.

YOU WERE PRETTY FRIENDLY WITH NAVALNY.

AS THE WORLD WAS, WAS VERY SHAKEN BY THE NEWS OF HIS DEATH.

YOU WERE QUITE EMOTIONAL.

I WANT TO READ FOR YOU YOUR IMMEDIATE REACTION.

YOU SAID, WE HAVE TO LIVE WITH THIS NEWS SOMEHOW, BUT IT WILL TAKE US SOME TIME TO ACCEPT THIS.

IT WILL NOT TAKE HALF AN HOUR OR AN HOUR.

IT WILL TAKE SOME EXTRA WORK ON OUR PART.

BUT THE SCOPE OF WHAT HAS TO HAPPEN NOW, WE UNDERSTAND OURSELVES.

WE MAY NOT SOMETIMES UNDERSTAND RESULTS, BUT WE UNDERSTAND THE SERIOUSNESS OF WHAT HAPPENED, WHAT OCCURRED WAS THE INSTANCE OF DID I VIDES OUR LIVES INTO BE AND AFTER.

TALK TO US ABOUT WHAT YOU THINK THAT AFTER WILL LOOK LIKE.

>> AS OF NOW, THIS AFTER, OF COURSE, LOOKS OMINOUS, QUITE OMINOUS.

WE SEE PUTIN SHOWING RESOLVE IN KEEPING REPRESSING ANY SEARCH FOR FREEDOM, I WOULD SAY, INSIDE -- IN RUSSIA.

WE SAW A CO-CHAIRMAN OF A GROUP MOVEMENT, HE WAS JUST SENTENCED TO 2 1/2 YEARS OF JAIL FOR BASICALLY JUST WRITING AN ARTICLE ABOUT THE SCALE OF REPRESSION IN RUSSIA THAT'S JUST HAPPENED TWO DAYS AGO.

SO THIS -- AS OF NOW, LOOKS VERY OMINOUS, OF COURSE, BECAUSE PUTIN IS NOT GOING TO STOP.

HE HAS TWO WARS, ACTUALLY.

HE IS LEADING TWO WARS.

ONE IN ITS ACTIVE PHASE IS AGAINST UKRAINE.

BUT THE OTHER UP WONE IS AGAINS RUSSIA.

HE IS LEADING THIS WAR FOR ALMOST 24 YEARS NOW.

HE IS STEADILY INCREASING PRESSURE DURING ALL THESE 24 YEARS.

HE IS NEVER GOING TO STOP UNTIL HE IS STOPPED.

WITHOUT NAVALNY, WHO INVENTED BASICALLY WHAT MAKES NAVALNY SO SPECIAL IS THAT HE INVENTED NEW WAY OF DOING POLITICS IN AN AUTHORITARIAN STATE LIKE RUSSIA.

HE INVENTED HOW TO FIGHT PUTIN WITHIN HIS OWN RULES OF THE GAME.

NOW WE DON'T HAVE HIM.

>> NOW AS PUTIN MARCHES INTO WHAT IS EXPECTED TO BE A VERY EASY VICTORY AND RE-ELECTION IN THE COMING WEEKS, THAT MARCH 15th THROUGH THE 17th, IT WAS INTERESTING THAT I SPOKE ON THE DAY OF NAVALNY'S -- NEWS OF HIS DEATH WITH A SOVIET-BORN JOURNALIST.

HE SAID THE ONLY THING THAT COULD END PUTIN'S REIGN AT THIS POINT IS VICTORY FOR UKRAINE.

WOULD YOU AGREE WITH THAT?

>> WELL, MORE OR LESS, YES, THAT'S WHAT -- THAT'S HOW IT LOOKS.

BUT IT STILL HAS TO BE SAID THAT THE SEARCH FOR FREEDOM IN RUSH S -- RUSSIA IS NOT DEAD.

THERE ARE MILLIONS OF PEOPLE -- WE SAW THESE LINES TO LEAVE SIGNATURES IN FAVOR OF ANTI-WAR CANDIDATE A FEW WEEKS AGO BEFORE NAVALNY WAS MURDERED.

NOT NAVALNY BUT ANOTHER CANDIDATE.

HE WAS BANNED FROM THE ELECTION, OF COURSE.

STILL, WE SAW THESE LINES OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE JUST TO LEAVE THEIR SIGNATURES.

WHENEVER THERE WILL BE A LEGAL WAY -- THERE'S SO MUCH FEAR ACROSS RUSSIA.

PUTIN INSPIRED SO MUCH FEAR ACROSS RUSSIANS THAT IT'S HARD TO ASK MUCH.

BUT WHENEVER THERE IS A LEGAL WAY TO SHOW THE ANTI-WAR AND ANTI-PUTIN SENTIMENT, IT ARISES THE NEXT MOMENT.

>> PUTIN HAS TRIED TO WEAPONIZE FEAR.

HE HAS DONE IT QUITE EFFECTIVELY, TO STAMP OUT HOPE, TO STAMP OUT DEMOCRACY IN THE COUNTRY GOING FORWARD.

IT IS NOTABLE THAT NAVALNY'S WIDOW, YULIA, WILL CARRY THE MANTLE OF HIS MESSAGE AND HIS TEAM AND HIS MISSION.

HOW MUCH HOPE DO YOU HAVE IN WHAT YULIA CAN DO WITH THIS MESSAGE, WITH THIS MOVEMENT, ESPECIALLY SINCE IT IS COMING FROM OUTSIDE THE COUNTRY?

>> I PERSONALLY FELT RELIEVED.

I PSYCHOLOGICALLY FELT MUCH BETTER IMMEDIATELY.

I KNOW THAT MILLIONS AND MILLIONS OF RUSSIANS FELT THE SAME.

WE KNOW ABOUT HER, THAT SHE'S A VERY BRAVE WOMAN.

SHE HAS THE LEGITIMACY.

SHE HAS THIS LIGHT COMING OUT OF HER, FOR SURE.

WE DON'T KNOW, OF COURSE, WHAT KIND OF POLITICAL PERSONALITY SHE IS AND HOW SHE WILL ACT.

OF COURSE, FOR MILLIONS OF RUSSIANS, IT IS NOW -- SHE IS THE BEACON OF THIS LIGHT THAT NAVALNY WAS BEFORE.

SHE NOW EMBODIES THIS HOPE.

SO, IT OF COURSE REMAINS TO BE SEEN WHAT FUTURE WILL BRING.

YET, THE FIGHT IS NOT OVER.

NAVALNY'S CAUSE IS CERTAINLY NOT DEAD.

>> SHE PUT OUT A BEAUTIFUL TRIBUTE.

I SUGGEST EVERYONE WATCH.

THE BACKGROUND SONG BEGINS WITH "PLEASE DON'T DIE OR I WILL HAVE TO AS WELL."

IT WAS A GUT PEFRUNCH TO SEE TH VIDEO AND TO SEE THE TWO OF THEM TOGETHER AS THEY ARE ONCE WERE.

A BEAUTIFUL YOUNG COUPLE.

WHAT A PROMISE IT WAS FOR THE COUNTRY.

BEFORE WE GO, I KNOW, MIKHAIL, YOU EXCHANGED LETTERS WITH NAVALNY WHEN HE WAS IN PRISON AS WELL.

HE HAD READ YOUR UPCOMING BOOK.

IS THERE ANYTHING YOU COULD SHARE WITH US ABOUT SOME OF THE EXCHANGES THAT YOU HAD?

>> YES.

WITH GREAT PLEASURE, I HAVE TO SAY.

IT'S SUCH AN EXPERIENCE TO EXCHANGE LETTERS WITH NAVALNY, WHO IS IN JAIL.

HE WAS SO HAPPY THAT I SHARED WITH HIM SOME DETAILS ABOUT OUR NEW LIFE, MY FAMILY'S LIFE IN EXILE IN AMSTERDAM WHERE WE ARE BASED NOW, WHERE WE RESIDE WITH OUR LITTLE GIRL NOW GOING TO SCHOOL IN AMSTERDAM, WITH A TOTALLY NEW LIFE.

CHANGED FROM WHAT IT HAS BEEN.

SO HE KEEPS -- HE SAYS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING THIS DAILY ROUTINE WITH ME.

THAT'S WHAT I SO MISS IN PRISON.

I'VE BEEN IN AMSTERDAM BRIEFLY JUST ONCE AND DIDN'T FEEL IT WELL, BUT I THINK NETHERLANDS ARE SUCH A FABULOUS COUNTRY.

PLEASE TELL ME MORE.

HOW IS LIFE THERE?

HOW MUCH HERRING HAVE YOU EATEN?

DO YOU BIKE?

IS IT TRUE THAT THEY ALL -- THAT THEY ALL SPEAK ENGLISH THERE?

O EVEN IF THEY DO, STILL YOU HAVE TO START LEARNING DUTCH JUST OUT OF RESPECT FOR LOCALS.

AND SO ON AND SO ON.

IT'S JUST SO TOUCHING AND SO FULL OF HIS -- THE JOY.

NAVALNY EMBRACED LIFE.

HE WAS FULL OF LIFE.

HE HAD A HAPPY FAMILY.

HE HAD A LOVING WIFE, LOVING KIDS.

HE KNEW HOW TO PUT TOGETHER THIS CAUSE HE HAD WITH JUST BEING A HUMAN, ENJOYING EVERY MOMENT OF THIS LIFE.

THIS IS WHAT MAKES THIS MOMENT AND THIS LOSS SO PAINFUL.

THIS IS WHY IT'S SO HARD TO COME TO TERMS WITH HIS DEATH.

>> HE WAS FOREVER AN ETERNAL OPTIMISM.

THAT WAS ALWAYS THAT WAS SO POWERFUL TO SEE.

NO MATTER WHAT THEY DID TO HIM, NO MATTER HOW FAR AWAY THEY SENT HIM, HOW ISOLATED HE WAS, THAT OPTIMISM WAS STILL THERE FOR THE WORLD TO SEE.

MIKHAIL FISHMAN, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE TIME, ESPECIALLY ON SUCH A DIFFICULT DAY LIKE TODAY.

>> THANK YOU.

>>> NEXT, ANOTHER STORY OF FRIENDSHIP INS SHADOW OF A VIOLENT AUTHORITARIAN REGIME.

HIS FATHER'S DISAPPEARANCE AT THE HANDS OF THE REGIME.

HE RETURNS TO THESE THEMES IN HIS NEW NOVEL "MY FRIENDS," FOLLOWING THREE LIBYAN FRIENDS CONFRONTING POLITICS AND DEADLY PROTESTS.

HE TALKED ABOUT MYSTERIES OF FRIENDSHIP AND EXILE.

>> WELCOME TO THE PROGRAM.

>> THANK YOU.

>> YOU HAVE BEEN DOING NOVELS AND MEMOIRS, FICTION AND NON-FICTION.

YOU HAVE RETURNED TO FICTION WITH "MY FRIENDS."

I WANT TO ASK YOU, BECAUSE MANY OF US REMEMBER THAT IN 1984, WHICH IS LOOSELY AROUND WHETHER THIS BOOK IS BASED, THERE WAS AN ANTI-GADHAFI PROTEST OUTSIDE THE EMBASSY IN LONDON.

PEOPLE WERE SHOT FROM INSIDE.

A POLICE WOMAN WAS SHOT AND KILLED.

IS THAT WHAT INSPIRED YOU?

WAS IT A REAL-LIFE EVENT?

>> THAT EVENT SURPRISED ME THAT IT WAS IN THE BOOK.

I DIDN'T EXPECT IT TO BE.

IT'S AN EVENT THAT MARKED ME.

I WAS YOUNGER THAN MY PROTAGONIST.

>> WHERE WERE YOU?

>> I WAS IN CAIRO.

I SAW IT ON THE NEWS.

I REMEMBER HEARING ONE OF THE DEMONSTRATORS WHO WAS WOUNDED SCREAMING AND TWISTING ON THE GROUND.

I THOUGHT I HEARD HIM CALL FOR HIS MOTHER.

THEN I DISBELIEVED MY EARS.

ONE ADULT IN THE ROOM SAID, I THINK HE JUST CALLED FOR HIS MOTHER.

IT REALLY MARKED ME.

IT REALLY STAYED WITH ME.

>> AS YOU SPEAK, I'M THINKING OF GEORGE FLOYD.

IT'S SO MANY PEOPLE IN THE LAST THROWS OF LIFE CALL FOR THEIR MOTHER.

YOU HAVE WRITTEN, IT MARKED YOU AS A YOUNG MAN AND A WRITER.

HOW MANY YEARS WAS THIS GESTATING?

WHAT MADE YOU PUT IT TOGETHER IN YOUR RETURN TO FICTION?

>> ABOUT TEN YEARS BEFORE I SAT DOWN TO WRITE THE BOOK, I HAD WRITTEN A PAGE THAT I THOUGHT WAS -- I DON'T KNOW.

I THOUGHT IT HAD IN IT EVERYTHING THAT WHAT I FEEL A NOVEL NEEDS TO HAVE.

A CERTAIN KIND OF TONE AND HONESTY AND IT SEEMED INTEGRAL.

LIKE THE FIRST NOTE OF A SYMPHONY.

I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THE REST WOULD BE LIKE.

I CARRIED THAT PAGE WITH ME FOR THAT DECADE WHILE WRITING OTHER BOOKS.

>> WE ASKED YOU TO READ IT.

I THINK THIS IS THE ONE.

>> IT'S THE FIRST PAGE.

IT IS, OF COURSE, IMPOSSIBLE TO BE CERTAIN OF WHAT IS CONTAINED IN ANYONE'S CHEST, LEAST OF ALL ONE'S OWN OR THOSE WE KNOW WELL, PERHAPS ESPECIALLY THOSE WE KNOW BEST.

BUT AS I STAND HERE ON THE UPPER LEVEL OF KINGS CROSS STATION, FROM WHERE I CAN NOW MONITOR MY OLD FRIEND WALKING ACROSS THE CONCOURSE, I FEEL I'M SEEING RIGHT INTO HIM.

PERCEIVING HIM MORE ACCURATELY THAN EVER BEFORE.

AS THOUGH ALL ALONG, DURING THE TWO DECADES THAT WE HAVE KNOWN ONE ANOTHER, OUR FRIENDSHIP HAS BEEN A STUDY AND NOW IRONICALLY JUST AS WE HAVE BID ONE ANOTHER FAREWELL, HIS PORTRAIT IS FINALLY COMING INTO VIEW.

PERHAPS THIS IS THE NATURAL WAY OF THINGS, THAT WHEN A FRIENDSHIP COMES TO AN INEXPLICABLE END OR WANES OR DISSOLVES INTO NOTHING, THE CHANGE WE EXPERIENCE AT THAT MOMENT SEEMS INEVITABLE.

DESTINY THAT WAS ALL ALONG APPROACHING LIKE SOMEONE WALKING TOWARDS US FROM A GREAT DISTANCE, RECOGNIZABLE ONLY WHEN IT IS TOO LATE TO TURN AWAY.

NO ONE HAS EVER BEEN A NEARER NEIGHBOR TO A HEART.

>> IT'S VERY BEAUTIFUL, VERY EVOC EVOCATIVE.

IT'S CALLED "MY FRIENDS."

IT'S FRIENDSHIP.

IT'S EXILE.

IT'S BEING IN A FOREIGN LAND, OBVIOUSLY.

IT'S LEAVING YOUR HOME, YOUR FAMILY.

IT'S GRIEF.

>> YEAH.

ALL OF THAT WAS ON MY MIND.

BUT ALSO THIS THING THAT YOU COULD HAVE ALMOST, LIKE, ANOTHER SORT OF MUSICAL METAPHOR, TWO NOTES AT THE SAME TIME.

ONE NOTE BEING THE PAST AND EVERYTHING YOU HAVE SAID.

THESE CHARACTERS ARE FROM LIBYA, THEY ARE EXILED HERE IN LONDON.

THE OTHER NOTE IS LONDON.

HE TELLS THE STORY AS HE WALKS ACROSS CITY BACK TO HIS HOME.

WE HAVE BOTH OF THOSE TOGETHER.

THE OTHER THING THAT I WAS INTERESTED IN IS I WAS INTERESTED IN QUESTIONS OF TEMPERAMENT.

IF YOU HAVE BEEN THROUGH VIOLENT POLITICAL RUPTURES SUCH AS THE EVENT THAT YOU ALLUDED IN ST. JAMES' SQUARE AND THE ARAB SPRING AS I WAS MYSELF AND MANY PEOPLE I KNOW, YOU BEGIN TO BECOME ACQUAINTED WITH THIS QUESTION OF TEMPERAMENT THAT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO TALK ABOUT IN POLITICS.

WHERE PEOPLE END UP ISN'T ALWAYS BECAUSE OF THEIR IDEOLOGY AND ETHICS AND SO ON.

IT IS ALSO TO DO WITH THIS THING THAT I'M CALLING TEMPERAMENT.

SOMEBODY'S PERSONAL TASTE.

HOW SOME PEOPLE ARE ENLIVENED BY ARGUMENT.

OTHERS AREN'T, FOR EXAMPLE.

I THOUGHT THE NOVEL IS THE PLACE FOR TEMPERAMENT.

SO TO WRITE A BOOK ABOUT FRIENDSHIP, THESE THREE FRIENDS, MALE FRIENDS, BUT ALSO TO WRITE A BOOK ABOUT HOW THEIR -- >> THESE THREE FRIENDS, CERTAINLY THE PROTAGONIST -- THIS EVENT PRETTY MUCH DISTANCE THEMSELVES FROM THEIR LAND LIBYA.

>> AS MANY PEOPLE WHO WERE SHOT THAT DAY IN THE 17th OF APRIL 1984EMBASSY HERE IN LONDON, COULDN'T GO BACK.

THEIR WHOLE LIFE HAS BEEN DERAILED.

THEY CAN'T RESUME THEIR SCHOLAR CELEBRITY PAGES BECAUSE THEY FEEL MARKED.

THEY CAN'T RETURN HOME BECAUSE THEY ARE WORRIED ABOUT BEING PERSECUTED.

THEY ARE YOUNG.

THESE CHARACTERS ARE 18 WHEN THIS HAPPENS.

THEY ARE HAVING SORT OF TO IMPROVISE A LIFE, AS A LOT OF EXILES TO.

THIS QUESTION OF IMPROVISING, TRANSLATING THE PLACE, YOURSELF INTO THE PLACE.

>> MAKING NEW RELATIONSHIPS OUTSIDE YOUR FAMILY.

I'M REALLY INTERESTED, BECAUSE AGAIN YOU WERE OUTSIDE THIS COUNTRY.

YOUR FATHER WAS PRETTY MUCH AN OPPOSITION FIGURE AGAINST GADHAFI.

THIS WAS AN ANTI-GADHAFI DEMONSTRATION PRECEDING THE ARAB SPRING BY SEVERAL DECADES.

WHAT DID YOUR FATHER SAY TO YOU ABOUT THIS OR YOUR MOTHER WHEN IT WAS ACTUALLY HAPPENING, WHEN YOU WERE IN CAIRO?

WAS HE THERE?

YES?

>> WHEN WE WERE WATCHING IT ON THE NEWS, WE WERE ALL THERE.

WE WERE VERY UPSET BY IT.

IT WAS QUITE A MOMENT, BECAUSE I THINK IT WAS -- IT SHOWED THE EXTENT TO WHICH THE REGIME WAS WILLING TO GO TO PUNISH AND SILENCE DISSENT INSIDE AND OUTSIDE.

IT WAS QUITE AN UNSETTLING MOMENT.

>> IT'S DESPERATELY UNSETTLING AND TRAGIC FOR YOURSELF.

THEN YOUR OWN FATHER FELL VICTIM TO THESE FORCES.

>> YES, ABSOLUTELY.

>> THAT'S YOUR FAMOUS BOOK.

YOU ARE KNOWN FOR "THE RETURN," WHICH RUN A PULITZER PRIZE.

ABOUT YOUR ACTIVITIES OF YOUR FATHER AND THE FACT THAT HE DISAPPEARED.

YOU HAVE NEVER FOUND HIM.

>> YES.

MY FATHER WAS KIDNAPPED FROM HIS MOMENT IN CAIRO IN 1990.

HE WAS TAKEN TO LIBYA AND IMPRISONED BUT NEVER ACKNOWLEDGED BY THE REGIME.

HE WASN'T PUT ON TRIAL OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT.

THEY HAVE ALWAYS DENIED HAVING HIM THERE.

I HAVE PRETTY MUCH SPENT THE MAJORITY OF MY LIFE LOOKING FOR HIM, CAMPAIGNING, TRYING TO FIND WHERE HE IS, WHAT MIGHT HAVE HAPPENED TO HIM.

WHEN THE REGIME FELL IN 2011, A YEAR LATER I WENT TO LIBYA FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 33 YEARS, BY THAT STAGE, TO LOOK FOR MY FATHER, TO RECONNECT WITH THE PEOPLE AND PLACES I LOVE, BUT ALSO TO FIND OUT WHAT MIGHT HAVE HAPPENED TO HIM.

"THE RETURN" IS ABOUT ALL OF THAT.

BUT IT'S ALSO -- I THINK OF IT AS A STATE OF EMERGENCE.

ALL OF THE DETAILS CAME UP TO THE SURFACE FOR ME.

THE QUIET AND THE LOUD DETAILS.

THAT BOOK TRIES TO ATTEND TO ALL OF THAT.

>> YOU DIDN'T GET CLOSURE?

YOU NEVER GOT AN ANSWER AS TO WHERE -- WHAT HAPPENED OR WHERE YOUR FATHER'S BODY MIGHT BE?

YOU SPOKE TO -- HOW ON EARTH YOU DID THIS, TO GADHAFI'S SON.

>> I HAD A BIG CAMPAIGN OF PRESS AND MEDIA THROUGH INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANIZATIONS TRYING TO FIND THE WHEREABOUTS OF MY FATHER.

IN THE MIDST OF THAT, I MADE CONTACT WITH HIM, WHO WAS HEIR APPARENT BUT WHO WAS AT LEAST SINCERELY OR NOT TALKING THE LANGUAGE OF REFORM.

WE THOUGHT, HOW MIGHT WE TRY TO USE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO PERHAPS GET HIM TO CONFIRM THE WHEREABOUTS OF NOT ONLY MY FATHER BUT OTHER POLITICAL PRISONERS THAT HAD GONE MISSING?

SO I ENGAGED IN THIS EXCHANGE WITH HIM OVER A PERIOD OF A FEW WEEKS, WHICH I DOCUMENT IN THE BOOK.

DIDN'T LEAD ANYWHERE.

>> WERE YOU GLAD THAT YOU DID IT?

OR WAS DIT WORTH IT?

>> THAT'S A HARD QUESTION TO ANSWER.

I MEAN, IT WAS WORTH IT BECAUSE ANY ATTEMPT TO TRY TO FIND MY FATHER, ANY ATTEMPT THAT DOESN'T LOSE ME MY INTEGRITY, OF COURSE, IS WORTH IT.

BUT IS IT WORTH IT IN THE SENSE, DID I YIELD RESULTS?

NO.

DID IT TAX ME IN THE SENSE OF STRESS?

OF COURSE, IT DID.

BUT I THINK THAT WAS JUST PART OF THE STRUGGLE, REALLY.

>> YOU HAVE WRITTEN, THERE'S SHAME IN NOT KNOWING WHERE YOUR FATHER IS, SHAME IN NOT BEING ABLE TO STOP SEARCHING FOR HIM, AND SHAME ALSO IN WANTING TO STOP SEARCHING FOR HIM.

THE TWO FEELINGS ARE COLLIDING THERE.

>> YEAH.

THAT GOES TO THE HEART.

WHAT'S INTERESTING ABOUT ALL THIS -- WHEN YOU WRITE ABOUT IT, YOU HAVE TO THINK BEYOND THE FACTS AS IT WERE.

RIGHT?

WHY MAKE SOMEBODY DISAPPEAR?

IT'S EASIER AND CHEAPER IF WE WANT TO BE CRUDE ABOUT IT TO JUST KILL THEM.

MAKING SOMEBODY DISAPPEAR IS A LOT OF WORK.

PART OF THE QUESTION IN MY TEENAGE YEARS AND IN MY 20s WAS NOT ONLY WHERE IS MY FATHER BUT WHY WOULD SOMEBODY DO THAT.

PART OF THE ANSWER THAT I ARRIVED AT IS THAT PART OF THE INTENTION CONSCIOUS OR NOT IS TO MAKE YOU ALSO DISAPPEAR.

TO MAKE YOU BECOME INARTICULATE, FRIGHTENED, NOT KNOW WHAT TO DO.

RIGHT?

PART OF THE STRUGGLE IS TO FIND YOUR FATHER BUT ALSO TO FIND YOUR VOICE.

>> FINALLY, GIVEN THE WORLD WE HAD LIVE IN NOW, THE CONNECTION BETWEEN ART AND THIS KIND OF PERSONAL AND POLITICAL DRAMA, OBVIOUS LLY "A MONTH IN SIENNA"- YOU WERE THERE FOR WEEKS LOOKING AT ONE PAINTING, BUT IT WAS BECAUSE YOU WERE TRYING TO PROCESS ALL THIS GRIEF.

RIGHT?

>> I DON'T KNOW.

>> TELL US HOW YOU LOOK AT IT.

>> FOR A LONG TIME I THOUGHT IT WAS A COINCIDENCE AROUND THE TIME MY FATHER DISAPPEARS, I BEGIN TO LOOK AT PAINTINGS IN A DIFFERENT WAY WHERE I LOOK AT ONE PICTURE EVERY DAY ON MY LUNCH BREAK AND THEN AFTER A WEEK OR SO, I CHANGE TO ANOTHER PICTURE.

NOW, WITH THE BENEFIT OF HINDSIGHT -- I STILL DO THIS.

BUT WITH THE BENEFIT OF HINDSIGHT, I THINK MAYBE IT DOES MAKE SENSE.

IN A MOMENT OF INARCTICULATEINA DISAPPEARANCE, I WENT TO THE MOST GENEROUS, MOST APPEARING THINGS, PAINTINGS.

VERY ARTICULATE AND VERY BEGINNING.

THAT BECAME VERY IMPORTANT TO ME.

>> JUST FINALLY, BECAUSE WE HAVE SOME -- THERE'S SMALL MOMENTS EVEN IN THE PALESTINIAN CRISIS RIGHT NOW OF ART SHOWING UP.

A MUSEUM IN THE OCCUPIED WEST BANK SHOWING HUNDREDS OF ARTISTS FROM GAZA.

THERE'S A PILE OF RUBBLE IN THE CENTER SYMBOLIZING THE DESTRUCTION.

HOW DOES ART FIT DO YOU THINK IN THE BIG PICTURE IN THESE KINDS OF CRISES?

>> THIS IS PARTLY WHAT I MEANT BY A STATE OF EMERGENCE ABOUT THE RETURN.

THERE'S SOMETHING INTERESTING ABOUT EMERGENCIES.

>> A WELL-KNOWN JEWISH PHILOSOPHY?

>> SOMETHING INTERESTING ABOUT EMERGENCIES, BECAUSE IN A STATE OF EMERGENCY THERE'S ALSO A STATE OF EMERGENCE.

THINGS COME UP TO THE SURFACE.

I FEEL THAT VERY MUCH ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW.

IT'S ALSO A STATE OF EMERGE NCE.

AS THOUGH THE MASK HAS DROPPED ON SEVERAL THINGS.

IT HAS DROPPED ON THE ISRAELI NATIONAL PROJECT.

NOW YOU SEE IT FOR WHAT IT IS.

IT'S BEING DESCRIBED IN THEIR LANGUAGE AND IT HAS BEEN ALSO UNDERREPORTED, BECAUSE NETANYAHU AND OTHERS HAVE BEEN TALKING THIS LANGUAGE FOR A WHILE, THAT THEY SEE ISRAEL AS BEING FROM THE RIVER TO THE SEA.

THERE'S NO TWO STATES AND SO ON.

YOU SEE THE MASK DROP IN THAT SENSE.

BUT YOU ALSO SEE THE MASK DROP IN TO WHAT EXTENT ISRAEL'S ALLIES ARE WILLING TO GO IN ORDER TO ABIDE BY THIS LEVEL OF VIOLENCE.

YOU ALSO SEE THE MASK DROP IN THE INABILITY OF ARABIC COUNTRIES TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT.

WHY, ACTUALLY, A LOT OF PEOPLE -- NETANYAHU, IF WE REMEMBER, LOTS OF PEOPLE FORGET, HE WAS ONE OF THE LOUDEST, MOST EARLY CRITICS OF THE ARAB SPRING.

WHY WOULD YOU WANT A DEMOCRACY IN COUNTRIES THAT YOU WANT TO HAVE INFLUENCE ON THEIR LEADERS?

IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO CONTROL GOVERNMENTS IF THEY ARE ACCOUNTABLE TO THEIR PEOPLE.

SO IT SEEMS TO ME A MOMENT OF EMERGENCE ON ALL OF THESE LEVELS THAT YOU ARE SEEING A VERY DARK SET OF TRUTHS EMERGE.

>> WE WILL SEE WHERE THEY LEAD.

THANK YOU SO MUCH.

>> THANK YOU.

>>> NOW, LET'S REWIND ALMOST FOUR DECADES TO THE NIGHT 46 OF AMERICA'S BIGGEST MUSIC STARS GATHERED IN THE SAME STUDIO TO RECORD A CHARITY SINGLE "WE ARE THE WORLD."

THEY WERE TOLD TO, QUOTE, CHECK THEIR EGOS AT THE DOOR TO HELP PEOPLE.

THE RECORD BECAME ONE OF THE TOP SELLING SINGLES OF ALL TIME, RAISING $60 MILLION FOR THE CAUSE.

THE REMARKABLE ALL NIGHTER BEHIND IT IS THE FOCUS OF A NEW NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY "THE GREATEST NIGHT IN POP."

HERE IS A CLIP FROM THE TRAILER.

>> WE JUST THOUGHT WE WOULD PULL TOGETHER AS MANY ARTISTS AS WE COULD AND FIGURE IT OUT.

IT WAS A WISH LIST.

>> I SAID YES WITHOUT KNOWING WHO WOULD BE ON IT.

>> BOB DYLAN.

>> STEVIE WONDER.

>> ALSO THERE WAS BOB BAYLOR.

WE SPEAK TO HIM ALONGSIDE THE FILM'S DIRECTOR.

>> THE DIRECTOR AND THE VOCAL ARRANGER, THANK YOU BOTH FOR JOINING US.

TOM, YOU WERE THERE THAT NIGHT.

HOW DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THIS PROJECT?

HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED?

>> QUINCY JONES AND I STARTED WORKING TOGETHER EARLY IN THE '70s.

HE HAD HEARD SOME ARRANGEMENTS.

I GOT A CALL.

HE SAID, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?

DO YOU HAVE TIME TO COME OVER?

I SAID, SURE.

I WENT OVER.

HE SAID, I JUST HEARD FROM -- I JUST HEARD FROM KEN KRAGEN.

THIS IS WHAT'S HAPPENING.

HE SAID, YOU KNOW THE SONG, "DO THEY KNOW IT'S CHRISTMAS"?

IT'S A WONDERFUL SONG.

HERE IS THE CONCEPT.

LOOK AT WHAT THEY DID.

WE WILL DO IT WITH MORE PEOPLE.

WE KNOW THE AMERICAN MUSIC -- THEY PUT THIS TOGETHER IMMEDIATELY.

HE SAID IT TOOK FIVE MINUTES TO REALLY MAKE THE MAP THAT WE WOULD FOLLOW FROM THERE ON.

>> THERE'S A NIGHT WHERE YOU ARE ABOUT TO RECORD A SONG WITH PROBABLY THE BIGGEST NAMES IN MUSIC IN AMERICA CERTAINLY, ALL ASSEMBLING UNDER ONE ROOF FOR A FEW HOURS.

>> BY THE TIME THE STARS CAME IN, THE SONG WAS WRITTEN.

IT WAS ONLY WRITTEN A FEW DAYS BEFORE THAT.

IT WAS WONDERFUL BEING ON THAT TEAM.

WE HAD MEETINGS WHERE WE NORMALLY -- WHEN WE GO IN TO RECORD, WE DON'T THINK OF, WHAT COULD GO WRONG.

WITH THIS, WE HAD TO GO IN AND SAY, WHAT COULD GO WRONG AND WHAT ARE WE GOING TO HAVE FOR IT?

QUINCY WAS THE GENERAL.

WE WERE LOOKING AT IT AS GOING TO WAR.

YOU ONLY HAVE ONE SHOT.

YOU DON'T GO OUT THERE AND SAY, I FORGOT MY BULLETS.

SO THAT WAS KIND OF THE WAY IT STARTED.

>> ONE, TWO -- ♪ WE ARE THE WORLD ♪ WE ARE THE CHILDREN >> THE GREATEST ARTISTS OF A GENERATION CAME TOGETHER TO SAVE SOME LIVES.

>> MUST BE IN A DREAM.

>> HELLO.

>> WE ONLY HAD ONE NIGHT TO GET THIS RIGHT.

LET'S GET THIS PARTY STARTED.

>> WHAT MADE YOU INTERESTED IN MAKING THIS FILM?

>> YEAH.

I SHOULD SAY I WAS ONLY 2 YEARS OLD WHEN THE SONG CAME OUT.

>> I DIDN'T WANT TO EMBARRASS YOU THERE BUT YEAH.

>> I MEAN, I REMEMBER THE SONG GROWING UP BECAUSE MY PARENTS, THEY HAD RECENTLY COME OVER TO AMERICA.

THEY WERE VIETNAMESE REFUGEES.

THEY SPOKE VERY LITTLE ENGLISH AT THAT TIME.

IT WAS THE MID '80s.

THEY HAD KENNY ROGERS RECORDS.

THEY HAD THAT RECORD.

I REMEMBER HEARING THAT SONG.

THE WAY IT WAS A BRIDGE TO MY AMERICAN UPBRINGING AND MY PARENTS.

IT HAD PERSONAL RESONANCE.

I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND THE GLOBAL IMPACT OF THE SONG UNTIL MY PRODUCER, WHO I PRODUCED MY LAST FILM WITH, SHE CAME TO ME WITH THE STORY OF "WE ARE THE WORLD."

DO YOU KNOW THE SONG?

OF COURSE.

WHETH WHEN SHE TOLD ME HOW IT HAPPENED IN ONE NIGHT AND THE GLOBAL IMPACT OF THE SONG ONCE IT CAME OUT, IT BECAME REALLY INTERESTING FOR ME AS A FILMMAKER TO SEE HOW I CAN TURN WHAT WAS SEEMINGLY -- OBVIOUSLY, IT'S A VERY ICONIC SONG.

FOR PEOPLE WHO DON'T WORK IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY, WE DON'T KNOW HOW THE SAUSAGE IS MADE.

TO HEAR HOW UNIQUE IT WAS AND AS TOM WAS SAYING, IT WAS ONE NIGHT.

IT WAS A LOT OF SORT OF TROUBLESHOOTING, A LOT OF IMPOSSIBLE TASKS THAT HAD TO BE DONE IN GETTING ALL THESE 40 PLUS SUPERSTARS IN ONE ROOM TO RECORD A SONG THAT WAS JUST WRITTEN A COUPLE DAYS EARLIER.

I FOUND THE THE STOS STORY TO B COMPELLING.

>> WHEN I ARRIVED AT THE STUDIO, I REALIZED, IT WAS THE CREAM OF THE CROP OF POP MUSIC FOR THAT TIME.

>> OH, MY GOD.

>> OH, MY GOD.

>> OVERWHELMING.

>> WALKIE-TALKIES IS HOW WE COMMUNICATED.

WHO WAS SHOWING?

WHO JUST GOT HERE?

>> THERE'S A POINT IN THE FILM WHERE YOU MENTION QUINCY JONES PUT UP A SIGN THAT SAID, CHECK YOUR EGO AT THE DOOR?

>> THAT'S CORRECT.

THAT'S CORRECT.

>> HOW DO THAT MANY PEOPLE WHO ARE LITERALLY ON THE TOP OF THEIR GAME EXTOLLED BY EVERYONE IN MUSIC, SHOWING UP AT A MASSIVE AWARDS -- LOU ARE THEY EXPECTED TO DO THAT?

>> YOU KNOW WHAT?

WE WERE THERE FOR A HIGHER PURPOSE, ALL OF US.

IT WAS TOLD TO US EARLIER, EVERYBODY THAT WORKED ON THAT DID IT PRO BONO.

ALL THE CAMERAMEN, THE STUDIO.

IT HAS BEEN EVER SINCE.

THEY RAISED SO MUCH MONEY.

SO WE KNEW GOING IN THAT WE WERE THERE TO SAVE LIVES.

>> HOW DID YOU KIND OF DISCOVER THIS ARCHIVE?

WHAT WAS AVAILABLE?

WHAT STRUCK YOU WHEN YOU REALIZED WHAT YOU HAD TO WORK WITH?

>> I MEAN, I THINK I OWE IT ALL TO MY PRODUCER WHO -- WE HAD NEVER WORKED ON A MUSIC DOCUMENTARY TOGETHER.

WE HAD NO CONNECTION TO MICHAEL JACKSON'S ESTATE.

JULIA WAS WORKING WITH THIS COMPANY CALLED MRC WHICH AT THE TIME OWNED DICK CLARK PRODUCTIONS.

THEY PRODUCED "THE AMERICAN MUSIC AWARDS."

WE KNEW IT WAS AN IMPORTANT ASPECT OF THE STORY.

MRC TOLD JULIA TO CALL THIS GUY LARRY KLINE WHO IS IN THE FILM.

HE IS A PRODUCER OF THE "AMERICAN MUSIC AWARDS."

SHE COLD CALLS HIM AND DOES A PITCH OF THE FILM.

LARRY IS LIKE, I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS CALL FOR 35 YEARS.

HE WAS THE ONE WHO CONNECTED US TO USA AID FOR AFRICA, THE ENTITY THAT WAS FORMED FOR THE SONG.

THEY HAD ALL THIS FOOTAGE.

OVER THE COURSE OF DECADES, THE FOOTAGE HAS BEEN DAMAGED AND IT HASN'T BEEN KEPT IN THE BEST SHAPE, TO BE HONEST.

SOME WAS FOUND IN THE TRUNK OF A CAR.

THEY MADE THIS RECORDING FOR THE MUSIC VIDEO AND THERE WAS A TV SPECIAL THAT JANE FONDA HOSTED IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE SONG CAME OUT.

THAT WAS THE INTENTION.

THERE WAS NO -- NO ONE WOULD THINK 40 YEARS LATER THAT A FILM WOULD BE MADE AND PUT ON NETFLIX.

WE GOT LUCKY.

IT GOES TO THE TENACITY OF OUR PRODUCERS.

I THINK THE RICHNESS OF THE FOOTAGE ISN'T JUST THE VISUAL.

A LOT OF THE ARCHIVAL THAT WAS RECORDED DIDN'T HAVE ANY AUDIO, OR IT WAS GOING STRAIGHT INTO THE RECORDING MIX.

SO YOU WOULD ONLY HEAR WHEN THEY WERE SINGING THE SONG.

ALL THESE SIDE CONVERSATIONS CAME FROM THE WORK OF DAVID BRESKIN, A JOURNALIST COVERING THE RECORDING FOR "LIFE" AT THE TIME.

HE TURNED ON HIS DICTAPHONE.

HE DID INTERVIEWS.

WE HEAR A LOT OF THOSE CONVERSATIONS IN THE BEGINNING OF THE FILM.

IT WAS ALSO HIM HOLDING UP THE DI DICTAPHONE TO BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN WHEN HE IS RECORDING AND DO THE SIDE TAKES WHERE WE GET THAT TEXTURE AND THAT RICHNESS OF THE AUDIO MATCHING WITH WHAT WE GOT FROM U.S. AID FOR AFRICA.

>> WHEN YOU SEE FOOTAGE OF THE SUPERSTARS WITHOUT THEIR ENTOURAGES, IT'S ALMOST LIKE GOING BACK TO SOME SORT OF HIGH SCHOOL BAND CAMP VIBE.

THEY ARE JUST NORMAL HUMAN BEINGS.

>> NORMALLY, WHEN AN ARTIST GOES INTO A RECORDING STUDIO, WE START IN THE BOOTH TO LEARN THE SONG OR TO TALK ABOUT WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO, HOW WE'RE GOING TO RECORD IT AND EVERYTHING.

IT'S LIKE A WOMB.

IT'S A SAFE PLACE TO LEARN AND BECOME ACQUAINTED WITH WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO TONIGHT.

WITH 46 PEOPLE, WE COULD NOT PUT THEM IN THE BOOTH.

WE HAD TO DO IT IN THE STUDIO, WHICH IS HUGE.

WHEN WE GOT IN THE BIG ROOM, I FELT AN UNSETTLEDNESS.

MY JOB WAS TO GET THEM ALL SINGING IT.

I FELT NO NEGATIVITY.

IT WAS JUST A LITTLE BIT OF LOOKING AROUND AND I LOVE HER, I LOVE HIM.

ALL OF THE STARS WERE DOING THAT.

IT WAS GREAT.

IT WAS A GREAT IDEA.

THERE WAS NO ENTOURAGE.

THEY ENTERED, AND THEY ARE LIKE AT BAND CAMP.

YOU NAILED IT.

WHAT REALLY BROKE THE ICE WAS DIANA ROSS.

>> DIANA WALKS UP TO DARRYL HALL WITH MUSIC IN HER HANDS AND SAYS, I'M YOUR BIGGEST FAN.

WOULD YOU SIGN MY MUSIC FOR ME?

WE ALL LOOKED AROUND AND SAID, HOLY MOLEY.

>> IT STARTED HAPPENING ALL OVER THE ROOM.

>> THAT'S DOPE THAT THEY WANT EACH OTHER'S AUTOGRAPH.

THEN THEY COME AND ASK ME.

I'M LIKE, THEY WANT MY AUTOGRAPH?

WOW.

THAT'S REALLY COOL.

>> FOR THE NEXT 45 MINUTES, WE SIGNED EACH OTHER'S MUSIC.

AT THE END OF THAT 45 MINUTES, WE WENT FROM BEING UNSETTLED TO BEING A FAMILY.

THAT BROKE THE ICE.

IT WAS -- QUINCY COMES OUT OF THE BOOTH AND SAID, LET'S CHOP SOME WOOD.

>> WHAT WAS THE MOST SURPRISING PART WHEN YOU LOOK THROUGH THIS?

IS THERE A MUSICIAN OR A PERFORMANCE OR A LOOK THAT SOMEBODY GAVE THAT STUCK OUT TO YOU OR WAS UNEXPECTED?

>> AS WE WERE TALKING ABOUT IT, I THINK SEEING THESE ICONS OF ICONS BE AT THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL.

IT FELT LIKE THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN.

I THINK ANYONE AROUND THE WORLD KNOWS THAT FEELING OF BEING THE FIRST -- AT THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL.

TO SEE DIANA ROSS AND MICHAEL JACKSON, BOB DYLAN, BRUCE S SPRINGSTEEN FEEL THAT WAS CREATED THIS PROXIMITY THAT WAS IMPORTANT FOR THE FILM.

TO TAKE THESE GREAT ARTISTS AND BRING THEM INTO A ROOM AND BRING THEM INTO A SPACE WHERE THEY FEEL LIKE THEY FELT THE SAME WAY.

IN TERMS OF SPECIFIC SCENES, I THINK BOB DYLAN FOR ME AND HIS JOURNEY IN THE FILM AND THROUGH THE NIGHT WAS REALLY UNIQUE AND REALLY INSPIRING IN MANY WAYS.

HE COMES INTO A SPACE THAT'S NOT NECESSARILY A SPACE THAT HE IS USED TO.

THEN HE ASKS FOR HELP.

HE ASKS FOR STEVIE WONDER'S HELP TO HELP HIM SING HIS LINE, WHICH IS A BEAUTIFUL, TOUCHING, VULNERABLE MOMENT THAT BOB DYLAN IS BOB DYLAN, STEVIE WONDER IS STEVIE WONDER.

IT WAS BEAUTIFUL.

>> TOM, I HAVE TO ASK, HOW IN THE WORLD -- HOW DOES YOUR BRAIN WORK WHERE YOU PUT THESE PAIRINGS TOGETHER?

>> YOU USE THE MAGIC WORD.

YOU SAID, HOW DID YOU GET YOUR BRAIN TO DO THIS?

I DIDN'T.

I FOLLOWED MY INSTINCTS.

I MADE A LIST OF -- QUINCY AND I MADE A LIST OF THE PROBABLE SOLOISTS.

QUINCY SAID, I HAVE TWO REQUESTS.

BECAUSE LIONEL WAS THE FIRST TO START THIS SONG, TO WRITE IT.

I WOULD LIKE FOR HIS VOICE TO BE THE FIRST VOICE WE HEAR.

THEN ON THE FIRST CHORUS, BECAUSE MICHAEL FINISHED THE SONG, WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE MICHAEL TO SING THE FIRST CHORUS.

THEN HALFWAY THROUGH -- THIS IS QUINCY'S WONDERFUL SENSE OF HUMOR -- HE SAID, I WANT DIANA, BECAUSE THEY ARE SO CLOSE.

THIS WILL PROVE TO PEOPLE THAT THEY ARE NOT ONE PERSON.

ANYWAY, THAT WAS THE WAY -- THAT WAS WHAT -- THAT WAS MY TEMPLATE.

HE SAID, THE REST OF IT IS YOURS.

ONCE WE HAD -- IF YOU LISTEN TO FIRST CHORUS, MICHAEL HAS A VERY PURE VOICE.

SO DOES DIANA.

AFTER THAT, I KNEW THAT THERE WAS ANOTHER CHORUS COMING UP.

WHO WAS GOING TO DO THAT?

IMMEDIATELY, IN MY IMAGINATION, THESE SINGERS STARTED STANDING UP.

IT WAS SPRINGSTEEN TO COME IN AND SING THE WAY I'M TALKING RIGHT NOW.

YOU KNOW?

IT WAS -- ♪ WE ARE THE WORLD ♪ WE ARE THE CHILDREN >> THAT IS SO DIFFERENT THAN MICHAEL.

THAT BEAUTIFUL, PURE, LOVING SOUND.

THAT'S THE WAY IT WORKED.

THEN I STARTED LOOKING AT -- AS I LOOKED AT THE NEXT SOLO POSSIBILITY, THE PERSON THAT I PICKED POPPED UP IN MY IMAGINATION.

I'M SERIOUS.

IT WAS LIKE THEY WERE WAITING AND I OPENED THE DOOR BY LOOKING AT THE LYRIC AND IN THEY COME IN.

THAT'S THE WAY IT CAME TOGETHER.

IT TOOK ME ABOUT 30 MINUTES TO ASSIGN.

>> THERE WERE SEVERAL TIMES WHERE YOU REFERENCE THE FACT THAT IT'S NOW LATER AND LATER AND LATER IN THE NIGHT.

IT'S NOW EARLIER AND EARLIER IN THE MORNING.

I DON'T THINK PEOPLE REALIZED THAT THIS WAS AN ALL NIGHT JAM SESSION WITH THESE HUGE NAMES.

>> THESE VOICES ARE THE VOICES OF A GENERATION.

IT'S EASY TO SHINE A CAMERA ON SOMEONE AND JUST LET THEM GO.

IT'S REALLY CREATING THOSE MOMENTS OF TENSION, OF VULNERABILITY, OF ANXIETY THAT CREATED THE NIGHT AND MAKING IT NOT JUST KIND OF A CONVENTIONAL MUSIC DOCUMENTARY BUT SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE ENGAGING TO AUDIENCES WHO MIGHT NOT KNOW WHO SOME OF THE ARTISTS ARE AND MIGHT NOT KNOW WHAT THE SONG IS.

I WAS ALWAYS TRYING TO ENGAGE THE STORYTELLING ASPECT WITH ALSO THIS FLY ON THE WALL OBSERVATIONAL STYLE OF JUST BEING IN THE ROOM WITH ALL THESE AMAZING ARTISTS.

TO SEE HOW IN ONE MOMENT THEY ARE VERY NERVOUS AND WHEN THEY STEP UP TO THE MIKE, YOU KNOW, THE BEAUTY OF HUMAN CREATIVITY AND ARTISTIC CREATIVITY SHINES.

HOW NERVOUS THEY GET RIGHT BEFORE THEY HAVE -- I THINK SOMETIMES THAT SENSE OF GRIT, THAT PRESSURE AND ALL THESE ARTISTS AROUND THEM MAKE THEM SHINE EVEN MORE.

>> DO YOU THINK THIS IS POSSIBLE TODAY?

>> I THINK THE GLUE FOR THIS ENTIRE ENDEAVOR WAS THAT WE WERE SERVING A HIGHER PURPOSE.

IT WASN'T ABOUT US.

WE WERE TOOLS.

DOING SOMETHING THAT WAS GOING TO FEED PEOPLE, GIVE THEM MEDICINE AND GIVE THEM CLOTHING.

THAT WAS WHY WE WERE THERE.

OTHERWISE, WE WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN THERE.

I THINK THAT THAT PERMEATED THE ENTIRE NIGHT.

I FELT IT.

IT REALLY WAS A FLOWING, LOVING NIGHT.

I LOVE THE FACT THAT BOW PUT THE LAST STATEMENT IN THERE WHEN WE WERE LEAVING AT 8:00 IN THE MORNING, AND IT WAS DOWN TO KEN, QUINCY, DIANA ROSS AND ME WALKING OUT OF THE STUDIO.

OF COURSE, THE SUN IS UP MUCH IT'S 8:00 IN THE MORNING.

WE ARE WALKING TO OUR CAR.

ALL OF A SUDDEN I HEAR DIANA CRYING.

QUINCY IS WALKING WITH HER.

HE SAYS, DIANA, ARE YOU OKAY?

SHE SAID, I DON'T WANT THIS TO BE OVER.

THAT WAS, TO ME, REALLY THE HALLMARK OF THE NIGHT IS THAT IT WAS SUCH A GREAT EXAMPLE OF, WE WERE THERE TO MAKE SOMETHING, AND WE DID IT.

>> TOM THE VOCAL ARRANGER, AND BOW, THE DRETIREC, THANK YOU FOR JOINING US.

>> WHAT A GREAT STORY.

>>> A REMINDER OF LIGHT SHINING THROUGH DARKNESS.

AT THE HEIGHT OF WORLD WAR II, ONE JAPANESE DIPLOMAT ISSUED VISAS THAT HELPED THOUSANDS OF JEWS ESCAPE THE SOVIETS AND THE INVASION OF NAZI GERMANY.

THIS WEEK HE WAS HONORED IN CHICAGO BY SURVIVORS, THEIR DESCENDENTS AND HIS RELATIVES FOR HIS WORKS.

>> BUT FOR THIS MAN, MY FATHER WOULD NOT BE HERE, I WOULD NOT BE HERE, OUR CHILDREN WOULD NOT BE HERE.

>> JAPANESE DIPLOMAT CHUN HELPED SAVE THOUSANDS OF JEWS FLEEING LITHUANIA DURING WORLD WAR II.

SURVIVORS AND THEIR FAMILIES GATHERED IN CHICAGO THIS FEBRUARY TO CELEBRATE HIS LEGACY AND TO HONOR HIM.

>> MY STORY IS A MIRACLE.

WE WERE CAPTURED BY THE NAZIS WHEN I WAS 7 YEARS OLD BECAUSE OF THE BRILLIANCE OF MY PARENTS, WE ESCAPED.

THERE ANOTHER MIRACLE OCCURRED, CHUN ISSUED OVER 2,000 VISAS.

>> AFTER GERMANY INVADED POLAND, TENS OF THOUSANDS OF JEWS FLED TO LITHUANIA.

HE WAS THE FIRST JAPANESE DIPLOMAT POSTED THERE.

IN THE SUMMER OF 1940, REFUGEES GATHERED OUTSIDE THE JAPANESE CONSULATE LOOKING FOR VISAS THAT WOULD LAW THEM TO PASS THROUGH JAPAN BEFORE SEEKING REFUGE IN A THIRD COUNTRY.

DESPITE RECEIVING ORDERS THAT THEY MUST HAVE FINISHED THEIR PROCEDURE FOR ENTRY VISAS AND HAVE MONEY TO TRAVEL, HE DEFIED HIS GOVERNMENT AND IN LESS THAN TWO MONTHS, HE ISSUED OVER 2,000 VISAS TO JEWS AND THEIR FAMILIES.

HE DIED IN 1986.

HIS GRANDDAUGHTER AND GREAT GRANDDAUGHTER ATTENDED THE CEREMONY.

>> AS A YOUNG GENERATION, I SOMETIMES SEE THE WORLD PESSIMISTIC WAY.

BUT HIS ACTION, IT'S SO IMPACTFUL.

>> TO STAND UP AGAINST IMMORALITY IS THE GREATEST DEED YOU COULD DO IN A LIFETIME.

>> JUST A YEAR AFTER HE ISSUED THE VISAS, GERMANY INVADED LITHUANIA.

WHEN HE GOT BACK TO JAPAN AFTER THE WAR, HE WAS FORCED TO RETIRE.

NOT WITHOUT SAVING THE LIVES OF THOUSANDS DURING HIS CAREER.

>> IT'S SOMETHING THAT SHOULD BE TOLD AND SHOULD GIVE AN INSPIRATION TO OTHERS TO SAVE THOSE WHO ARE IN NEED.

>> YEARS LATER, HE SAID, I COULDN'T ABANDON THOSE PEOPLE WHO HAD COME TO ME FOR HELP.

I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING SPECIAL.

I JUST DID WHAT I HAD TO DO.

>> THANK YOU.

>> HIS COURAGE AND SACRIFICE CONTINUES TO BE HONORED ALL THESE YEARS LATER.

>> BRAVE MAN WHO STOOD UP AGAINST IMMORALITY.

>>> WE BEGAN TODAY'S SHOW WITH TRIBUTES BEING PAID BY A DIFFERENT MAN, ALEXEI NAVALNY, AND PAID TO HIM IN MOSCOW.

HIS DAUGHTER HAS BEEN POST ED O SOCIAL MEDIA.

I WILL LIVE MY LIFE THE WAY YOU TAUGHT ME, ADDING, MOST IMPORTANTLY WITH THE SAME BRIGHT SMILE ON MY FACE.

PEOPLE ARE GATHERING IN OTHER CITIES AROUND THE WORLD TO PAY RESPECTS TO THE RUSSIAN OPPOSITION LEADER.

IN LONDON, IN GEORGIA.

PICTURES FROM MUNICH AND BERLIN IN GERMANY.

AN OUTPOURING OF GRIEF AND RESPECT WAY BEYOND RUSSIA'S BORDERS.