An Encore Presentation of Lioness, Thursday on IL

The documentary, by filmmakers Meg McLagan and Daria Sommers, takes an intimate look at war through the eyes of women on the front lines and the U.S. military policy that bans them from combat. Lioness will air Thursday as part of an encore presentation on Independent Lens.

How did five female Army support soldiers — mechanics, supply clerks and engineers — end up fighting alongside the Marines in some of the bloodiest counterinsurgency battles of the Iraq War? Directors Meg McLagan and Daria Sommers give an intimate look at war through the eyes of the first women in U.S. history sent into direct ground combat, despite a policy that bans them from doing so.

Through harrowing personal stories, these women candidly share their experiences in Iraq as well as from their lives back home to form a portrait of the emotional and psychological effects of war. Watch the trailer for Lioness after the jump.
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Tags: Afghanistan, Independent Lens, Iraq, lioness, Military, soldiers, u.s. armed forces, women and girls lead

Revisiting Red White Black & Blue

On this Memorial Day, we went rummaging through the archives to find Red White Black & Blue by filmmaker Tom Putnam, which aired back in 2007 on Independent Lens. The film examines a secret World War II battle that cost thousands of lives but was never revealed to the American public.

In June 1942, less than a year after Pearl Harbor, the Japanese army invaded the remote Alaskan island of Attu, in preparation for a larger advance into Canada and the lower 48 states. Although thousands of soldiers died in the ensuing battle, the American public was not informed of the attack for fear that widespread panic would occur.
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Tags: army, documentary, Independent Lens, jeff malmberg, Memorial Day, red white black and blue, soldiers, troops, veterans, war

Returning Home: Interactive Website to Honor American Soldiers

“It’s really a personal story not a political one. That goes for the greeters themselves as well. They have different views on the war, but their
main goal is to support the troops.”
— Aron Gaudet, director, THE WAY WE GET BY

On call for the past six years, a group of senior citizens have made history by greeting nearly one million U.S. troops at a tiny airport in Maine. THE WAY WE GET BY, an ITVS-funded documentary that aired last night on P.O.V., tells their uplifting and emotional journey and demonstrates the meaning of community at a time when America needs it most.

Inspired by the film, Returning Home is a new interactive website that seeks to ensure that American soldiers, both newly returned and those whose service ended many years ago, are not forgotten. Returning Home provides a place to share thoughts, photos, video or audio and to find support. Like the Maine troop greeters featured in the film, the site will honor American soldiers as they return from duty, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Visit Returning Home and learn more >>

Missed last night’s broadcast? The program is now available online in its entirety until December 12 on PBS’s video portal. Watch now >>

Learn more about the online project in this video interview with filmmakers Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly and others involved in the project.

Tags: film resources, Maine, Military, P.O.V., senior citizens, soldiers, troop greeters

THE WAY WE GET BY Premiering Tonight on P.O.V.

“If you watch/record one thing this evening, I strongly recommend THE WAY WE GET BY, Aron Gaudet’s moving documentary…”
- USA Today

On call 24/7 for the past six years, three senior citizens have made history by greeting nearly one million U.S. troops at a tiny airport in Maine. Filled with unexpected turns, THE WAY WE GET BY tells their uplifting and emotional journey and demonstrates the meaning of community at a time when America needs it most.

THE WAY WE GET BY premieres tonight at 9:00 PM on P.O.V. on PBS (check local listings).
A co-production of ITVS in association with WGBH and Maine Public Broadcasting Network

Get the latest updates about the film and talk with others by using #wegetby on Twitter. Follow the film >>

The program will also stream online in its entirety starting tomorrow to December 12 on PBS’s video portal. Learn more >>

Tags: Maine, Military, P.O.V., senior citizens, soldiers, troop greeters

TATTOOED UNDER FIRE Filmmaker Discusses Fort Hood Shootings

TATTOOED UNDER FIRE, airing this month on public television (check local listings), looks at the River City Tattoo Parlor in Killeen, Texas–home to Fort Hood, America’s largest military base–where war-bound and returning soldiers go under the needle and confess their deepest secrets and fears. Watch video clips from the film and read filmmaker Nancy Schiesari’s thoughts about the recent shooting at Fort Hood, which left 13 dead and 30 injured.

Nancy Schiesari, filmmaker of TATTOOED UNDER FIRE

The massacre at Food Hood was a terrible reminder of the vulnerability and mental fragility of our forces currently engaged on two war fronts with the prospect of multiple tours. One could only imagine last week’s fatal event––young men and women recruits waiting for flu shots and filling out paperwork, nervous and anxious about their eminent deployment, when suddenly they are being shot at with an automatic weapon. They had no means to escape or defend themselves.

Perhaps only families who have lost a son or daughter can understand the enormous grief that has befallen the parents and loved ones of those killed on November 5. The rest of us stand bewildered and distraught looking in from the outside at the impenetrable façade of Fort Hood.

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Tags: Fort Hood, Military, soldiers, tattoo parlor, tattoos, Texas

Revealing Documentary About Fort Hood: America’s Largest Military Base

As the nation continues to grapple with the causes and the effects of the recent tragedy at Fort Hood, ITVS and Austin PBS affiliate KLRU present TATTOOED UNDER FIRE, a new documentary shot on location in and around Fort Hood and Killeen, Texas.

Premiering this month on public television (check local listings), the film offers an intimate, character-driven portrait of Iraq-bound and returning U.S. soldiers, professing their pride, sharing their secrets and confessing their fears as they go under the needle at a tattoo parlor serving the Fort Hood community. Shot over four years TATTOOED UNDER FIRE has captured the chronological history of the stress and anguish of military duty experienced by these young men and women as they prepare and return from war. What emerges is an evocative, poignant and highly personal look at the human and cultural cost of war, and the pressures of life on America’s largest military base.

“When a tragedy like this occurs at a place like Fort Hood, it is very unusual that public television can respond immediately with a national premiere of a new program so deeply connected to these difficult events,” said Sally Jo Fifer, CEO and president of ITVS.

As we struggle to understand the meaning and impact of the horrific incident at Fort Hood that left 13 dead and 30 injured, we hope this very timely and important film will help shed some light on the lives and challenges of our soldiers, and of life in the Fort Hood community.

TATTOOED UNDER FIRE airs this month on public television (check local listings).
A co-production of ITVS in association with KLRU/Austin

Tags: Fort Hood, Military, soldiers, tattoo parlor, tattoos, Texas

New Flickr Group: TATTOOED UNDER FIRE

Tattoo artists spend countless hours creating and designing their work.

Next month, TATTOOED UNDER FIRE airs on public television and follows war-bound and returning U.S. soldiers as they go under the needle––openly professing their pride, sharing their secrets and confessing their fears.

Check out the new Flickr group inspired by the film. Are you a solider with tattoos? Share your photos with us.

Visit the Flickr group >>

Tags: Flickr, Military, soldiers, tattoo parlor, tattoos, Texas