They survived war, yet over the years, four U.S. military veterans from different generations must find their own unique bridge of connection to survive and thrive back home.

Interview with Writer/Director/Producer Jillian Moul, Matthew Moul

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

Thank you! My father served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, and both Matthew and I have many other relatives who have served. By 2007, the War in Iraq had been raging on. We were hearing about troops being sent to Iraq and Afghanistan for multiple deployments, returning home with injuries that would have killed them in previous wars. We thought about the huge burden on them and their families. Yet we didn't have contact in our personal lives with veterans and the general public didn't seem very interested in what was going on.

Veterans are in our own neighborhoods and we don't even know it. Donating to veterans' organizations, being active and up-to-date on veterans causes and legislation wasn't enough; we felt a tremendous need to get out and meet veterans, truly connect with them by listening to their stories. So in 2008, and over the next eight years, we met about 50 veterans from different generations across the country, including those in our own families, to document their stories of sacrifice, perseverance and triumph after military service.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

To gain a much deeper insight into the sacrifices made by members of our military and their families and how those sacrifices can reverberate over the years in many different forms. To understand more about the effects of war and the power of the human spirit to overcome extremely difficult challenges. In addition, we hope that our film moves you to connect with veterans in your own families and communities, to support veterans' legislation and organizations, and to help keep veterans at the forefront of American consciousness.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

All of the stories in our film involve extremely difficult situations for veterans, yet each veteran not only rises up in unique and creative ways, but they take that important next step in helping others rise up, too. This is something every human being can learn from. Our own sphere doesn't have to be insular; our individual lives are most powerful when they expand to include others and to support others who might need our help. This is the only hope for human beings as a species - coming together and caring for one another.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?

We set out to meet with veterans and to follow them in their everyday lives. We didn't know what that would mean. We didn't realize the scope of what veterans and their families were dealing with in regards to their post-war burdens, often over a period of years and even decades. We also didn't realize how passionate veterans were about what they learned in the military - to work as a team, to care for their fellow team members. So in their newly formed civilian lives, once they were able to, they naturally wanted to reach out and help others, and that's what they did and what they are doing. We didn't know that this would be a big part of their stories and our film.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

Every person who sees our film is profoundly moved by these stories. Civilians feel that their eyes have been opened, and they're thinking about veterans in their own families and communities and what they might be going through, too, and they want to become involved in veterans' causes. They want to know what they can do. Some civilians are frustrated to see so much pain and suffering. They even get angry and wonder why we keep sending troops to war. We encourage them to use this energy to take action in reaching out to veterans in their own families and communities, and to become more involved in whatever way they think is right for them, whether it's getting involved in veterans' legislation, organizations, volunteering, or becoming more active in the pursuit of peace as a society.

Veterans appreciate that their voices are being heard. It's meaningful to them that people want to hear their stories. They're seeing that they are not alone in their post-war battles and that civilians deeply care about their service and their sacrifices. They appreciate that we're including a broad picture of their stories, which we were able to do by following stories for eight years, and not just one small part of it.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

We aren't surprised. We felt that if we were deeply moved by these stories, any human being would be, too. But it is meaningful and rewarding to know that this ten year endeavor is doing what we hoped it would - inspiring veterans and civilians to come together to support veterans and take action to improve veterans' re-integration back home.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

The more people who see our film, the more people will understand some of the things veterans go through. Hopefully, this brings about a feeling of connection rather than disconnectedness between civilians and veterans. There's a huge chasm between the veteran and civilian population since less than 1% serve in the military, and in order to improve veterans' re-integration into society after military service, we need these two sides to come together, to be connected. We hope that's what Surviving Home can do, and the more people who hear about our film will hopefully see it and be moved to connect with veterans. This is a chain reaction that can be very powerful. It is palpable at our screenings.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

We need a producer to help with outreach screenings, we need a sales agent, buyer and distributors. We need PR and media to help get the word out about our film so that we can reach a much broader audience. By the reaction of all of our audience members, we see first hand the incredible catharsis, reception and embracing of these stories and what that could mean to bring veterans and civilians together and create real change so that veterans have a much more positive re-entry into civilian life after military service.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

We would like it to have the impact it is already getting, but on a much bigger scale. Reaching larger audiences, getting more notice for our film, would help to create a powerful shift in the broader society.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

How can I meet veterans in my own community? How can I become more involved in veterans' causes? How can we, as a society, set up a better re-integration process so that service members have a much more positive experience after service.

Would you like to add anything else?

We met veterans in our own families on this amazing journey. My father spoke to us for hours for the first time about his experiences during his wartime service.

The opening shots in the film are from the U.S.S. Franklin, where one of Matthew's grandfathers was KIA when it was attacked during WWII. One of the veterans who speaks in the film about flashbacks, remembers Matthew's grandfather. If we hadn't made this film, we would never have met Howard and heard about what Matthew's grandfather was like. It's the only account of who Matthew's grandfather was. No one spoke of him while they were alive, and Matthew's father was just a year old when his father was KIA during WWII. It's just one amazing story that happened for us on this ten year journey.

What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?

We're taking our film on the festival route and will also be screening it around the country in communities big and small. In addition, I'm currently editing a documentary series for Netflix about music and social causes. Matthew is Co-Executive Producer on another series for Netflix.

Interview: April 2018

_______________________________________________________________________________

We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, scifi, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

_______________________________________________________________________________

Surviving Home

They survived war, yet over the years, four U.S. military veterans from different generations must find their own unique bridge of connection to survive and thrive back home.

Length: 85 minutes

Director: Jillian Moul, Matthew Moul

Producer: Jillian Moul, Matthew Moul

Writer: Jillian Moul, Matthew Moul

About the writer, director and producer:

Originally from Hawaii, Jillian Moul has been a film & television editor for almost two decades, working on films produced by Paramount Pictures, Universal Pictures, Blumhouse and Open Road. Ms. Moul is a Primetime Emmy Award nominee and a member of the prestigious American Cinema Editors.

Born in Dubuque, Iowa, Matthew Moul is a Primetime Emmy Award-winning editor and producer who has been involved with projects that have also won the Peabody Award, critics picks, and the Prism Award.

Key cast: Robert Henline, Claude AnShin Thomas, Tracey Cooper-Harris, Richard Green, Jeff Prutz

Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists):

Outreach producer, sales agent, buyer, distributor, press/PR

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/survivinghomemovie/

Other: http://survivinghomemovie.com/

Executive Producers: Kirk Moul, Lydia Moul, Frederick Marx

Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Bentonville Film Festival

Screenings at the Bentonville Film Festival are this Friday at 5:45pm at Skylight 5, and Saturday at 1:15pm at Walmart Museum World.

Surviving Home is an Official Selection in the Documentary Competition category.
https://tickets.bentonvillefilmfestival.com/shows/show.aspx?sh=BVF18DSUR&v=MBT&p=EBVF2018733MA