When making a documentary, filmmakers often encounter complex, challenging and thorny crossroads within the story they are telling. At these consequential moments, the stakes for the story are typically at their highest, and the creative and ethical decisions filmmakers make play a pivotal role in defining the trajectory of the film. A group of DC-based filmmakers reflect on their experiences when faced with risky, sensitive and controversial decision points, and how they creatively “leaned into” the complexity, using the filmmaking process to directly confront, explore and better understand what they are bearing witness to. In this honest, open and frank discussion, we will explore the ethical and creative decisions filmmakers make to tell nuanced stories.