America Reframed: Examining U.S. Veterans’ Lives After Combat

DOCUMENTARY EXAMINING U.S. VETERANS’ LIVES AFTER COMBAT HOSTS NATIONWIDE WATCH PARTY FOR ITS AMERICA REFRAMED PREMIERE

Filmmakers and film subject will take part in post-screening Q&A
in San Antonio, ahead of Veterans Day

NEW YORK  — America ReFramed, the award-winning series from WORLD Channel and American Documentary, Inc. dedicated to showcasing stories from America’s changing landscape, is honoring veterans this November with the broadcast premiere of Surviving Home by Matthew Moul and Jillian Moul.

Through gripping interview and vérité footage gathered over eight years of filming, Surviving Home documents the lives of U.S. veterans of different generations as they adapt to the challenges of life after military service and work to increase understanding and dialogue within the veteran community and with the general public.

Surviving Home will premiere on Tuesday, November 5, at 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. CT/ 9 p.m. PST) on WORLD Channel and worldchannel.org in honor of Veterans Day.

To coincide with the broadcast and streaming premiere, a nationwide watch event will be hosted at Texas A&M University San Antonio on November 5. Following the screening, the film’s directors; one of its subjects Bobby Henline; and U.S. Marine Corps veteran Richard Delgado, Jr., director of military affairs at Texas A&M San Antonio, will take part in a 9:30 p.m. ET (8:30 p.m. CT) discussion designed to explore the film as well as create a national moment of conversation between the veteran community and the civilian public.

The post-screening Q&A will take place in front of a live San Antonio audience and will also be live streamed on the film’s Facebook page, allowing audiences nationwide to participate. Viewers can visit @survivinghomemovie on Facebook to become a part of the Watch event.

“We are proud to be able to bring this film to American audiences before a holiday that helps remind us of a segment of our population that deserves greater attention,” said Chris Hastings, executive producer and editorial manager for WORLD Channel at WGBH Boston.

Today, there are over 20 million U.S. veterans who have put their lives on the line in service to their country. But for many, surviving war is just the beginning. Surviving Home is a multiple-award-winning film that uncovers a detrimental gap between military veterans and the civilian populace they protected, while also exposing a culture of silence that prevents many veterans from talking about their experiences in war.

Through the bravery of the men and women who open up their lives and share their stories in this film, audiences are introduced to a diverse community of veterans who have discovered inspiring ways not only to survive but also to thrive back home, transforming their lives, and continuing their service to others.

Claude AnShin Thomas is a Vietnam War veteran whose actions in war caused him to feel a profound loss of humanity; leading to drug addiction, alcoholism, and a suicide attempt before a spiritual awakening led him to a new calling. In his new work as an ordained Zen Buddhist monk, he teaches mindfulness and meditation to help veterans cope with their own memories and post-traumatic stress.

Henline, a Gulf and Iraq War veteran whose severe injuries ended his military career, gradually overcomes his lost sense of identity through perseverance and humor, reinventing himself as a stand-up comedian to help heal his physical and emotional wounds of war.

Tracey Cooper-Harris, also a Gulf and Iraq War veteran, fights through the effects of military sexual trauma and post-traumatic stress to wage a landmark civil rights battle against the U.S. government with the hope of securing veterans’ spousal benefits for same sex couples. World War II veteran Richard Green, a sailor who returned home from war with no money and no place to go, was jailed twice for vagrancy and denied military benefits for many years.

At his advanced age, he needs help with some of his basic needs, yet he still finds a way to give back to his community with the help of a young, civic-minded Marine Corps veteran, Jeff Prutz, who looks after Richard and other veterans at the local American Legion.

“This is an eye-opening film that we hope will start a dialogue among our viewers, as well as between civilians, veterans and those still serving,” said Justine Nagan, executive producer and executive director of American Documentary.

Closing out season seven of America ReFramed, Surviving Home will also stream on worldchannel.org, amdoc.org and all station-branded PBS platforms including PBS.org and on PBS apps for iOS, Android, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire and Chromecast.

Media Contacts

For interviews and special requests, journalists and reviewers may contact Erin Callanan at 617-300-3270 or via email at [email protected] or Alimah Boyd at 201-552-9239 or [email protected].

About America ReFramed

America ReFramed is a co-production of the WORLD Channel and American Documentary, Inc.

America ReFramed curates a diverse selection of independent documentaries that brings to national audiences compelling stories which illuminate the changing contours of our ever-evolving country. Viewers will be immersed in stories that span the spectrum of American life, from the streets of towns big and small to its exurbs and country roads.

The documentary series presents an array of personal voices and experiences through which we learn from our past, understand our present and are challenged to seek new frameworks for America’s future. America ReFramed is the recipient of a Peabody Award and an Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award for broadcast journalism.

The series has earned several Christopher, Gracie, Telly and Cine Golden Eagle Awards, as well as multiple nominations for Emmy, Independent Documentary Association, and Imagen Awards.

America ReFramed Series Credits

Executive Producers:     Justine Nagan, Chris Hastings, Chris White

Supervising Producer:   Carmen L. Vicencio

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America ReFramed Co-Producers

American Documentary, Inc. (AmDoc) is a multimedia arts organization dedicated to creating, identifying and presenting contemporary stories that express opinions and perspectives rarely featured in mainstream media outlets. AmDoc is a catalyst for public culture, developing collaborative strategic engagement activities around socially relevant content on television, online and in community settings. These activities are designed to trigger action, from dialogue and feedback to educational opportunities and community participation. AmDoc is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. For more information, visit: www.amdoc.org

Based at WGBH in Boston, WORLD Channel tells stories that humanize complex issues. WORLD shares the best of public media in news, documentaries and fact-based informational programming that helps us understand conflicts, movements and cultures that may be distinct from our own. WORLD’s original content offers a national platform to makers examining issues too often ignored by mainstream media.

These emerging and master filmmakers spotlight a diversity of voices, telling

stories not heard elsewhere. WORLD has won a Peabody Award, an Alfred I. duPont-Columbia Award and numerous national honors — including 1st and 2nd place Native Media Awards, an RTNDA Kaleidoscope Award, a Media for a Just Society Award, two Lesbian & Gay Journalist Awards, a Gracie and an Asian American Journalists Award. Carried by 157 partner stations in markets representing nearly 65% of U.S. TV households, WORLD can also be experienced via WORLDChannel.org and social media platforms.