This week, U.S.-backed forces launched an attack to retake an ISIS stronghold in Syria, beginning what is expected to be a long and difficult fight in the midst of international terror attacks and diplomatic discord. In a new documentary, Hell on Earth: The Fall of Syria and the Rise of ISIS, filmmakers Sebastian Junger and Nick Quested examine the horrific conditions created by ongoing violence in the region, and how its effects reverberate around the world.

Junger and Quested previously collaborated on a series of documentary films including the Academy Award-nominated Restrepo. We spoke with Junger and Quested before the premiere of Hell on Earth, airing Sunday June 11 at 9/8c on National Geographic.

SJ: We decided to make a film on