Film
The Cleaners
Other titles called The Cleaners: the series in development (Prime Video).
A documentary about the thousands of content moderators who filter the internet's worst material for major platforms. You watch people in Manila, Berlin and elsewhere process images and videos most of us never see, then grapple with what that labour costs them. It's unflinching about the gap between the web we experience and the hidden machinery that makes it possible.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you want an investigation that follows the unseen labor behind your feed, and you're willing to sit with uncomfortable questions about who decides what stays online.
Skip it if you need a tidy narrative arc, since this is an argument built from testimony and screen evidence that circles its points rather than resolving them.
What it asks of you: Eighty-five minutes of steady, sober attention; the material it discusses is raw and described plainly, with little relief between the hard stretches.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
The Social Dilemma2020
Examines how tech platforms engineer addiction and manipulate behaviour. Complements The Cleaners by showing you the systems that create the content moderation crisis in the first place.
But Heavily dramatised with actors, and sometimes oversimplifies complex issues into neat villain-versus-user narratives.
Coded Bias2020
Documentary about algorithmic discrimination in AI systems. Explores how the tools that supposedly make moderation objective often encode human prejudice instead.
But Focuses more on bias than on the human cost of moderation work.
The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz2014
Profile of Aaron Swartz and his conflict with institutions protecting digital access. Raises related questions about who controls information and who pays the price.
But Now a decade old and focused on a specific historical figure; less immediately connected to moderation than others here.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Cleaners
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Nightcrawler2014
Both examine the people who encounter graphic violence as labour, and both ask what happens to you when exposure becomes routine.
Fiction film about a man who films traffic accidents and sells footage to news stations. Explores the market for human suffering and the psychology of people who profit from it—a darker mirror of moderation work.
But Fictional and deeply cynical in a way The Cleaners isn't. Jake Gyllenhaal's character is actively predatory, not collateral damage.
More like this (3)
Human Flow2017
Ai Weiwei documents global refugee crises. Thematically aligned with The Cleaners in asking who bears witness to suffering and at what cost to themselves.
But A very different kind of documentary—sprawling, poetic, requires patience. Not specifically about tech or moderation.
A Gray State2017
Investigates a filmmaker and his descent into conspiracy theories and extremism. Illustrates the mindset behind some of the content moderators encounter daily.
But Difficult subject matter that can feel exploitative. Less focused analysis than character study.
Lo and Behold: Reveries of the Connected World2016
Werner Herzog's meditation on the internet's history, philosophy and consequences. A reflective, humanistic counterpoint to The Cleaners' direct investigation.
But Herzog's poetic style won't suit everyone. Feels more like essay than argument.
People
Directing
- Hans BlockDirector
- Moritz RiesewickDirector
Writing
- Georg TschurtschenthalerWriter
- Hans BlockWriter
- Moritz RiesewickWriter
Recommended by
The Facebook Dilemma, Kill Chain: The Cyber War on America's Elections, Searching Eva