The film shows the outpouring of support from a community toward its World War II veterans. Why do you think there continues to be such strong and broad support for World War II veterans more than 70 years after the beginning of the war? 

I think because for many, World War II represents a war that the U.S. was clear about. While there were certainly those who didn’t want to intervene militarily, once Pearl Harbor was attacked, our country really rallied and worked to defeat an unequivocally evil enemy. Contemporary conflicts are a lot more nuanced and at times, confusing, so Americans reflect on World War II nostalgically and think of it as a time when there was no question that we did the right thing. So that’s part of it, but more important is the sense of urgency. These men and women are dying at an astonishing rate, as many as 800 to 1,000 per day. It’s really the last chance for their families and friends to hear stories and also to thank them, not just for service in the military, but for being good parents and grandparents. If not now, then when? So that certainly was motivating for the community as well.

 

What has the feedback been from the veterans involved in the film? 

They love it. Though maybe a little bashful at first, I think they’ve now fully embraced their rock star status. We had one of the veterans, Harvey Kurz, out here in D.C. this past week and he must have had a hundred pictures taken with his adoring fans at The National Press Club. A group in Wisconsin even started a “Harvey Fan Club.” He’s so grateful for the experience and I think he’s well aware that his story isn’t just meaningful for him, through the film he’s representing the millions of World War II veterans out there who have a similar story. So they love the film and I think they’re having a lot of fun.

 

Honor Flight seems to have a strong grassroots element to it, with the web videos, social media outreach, unsolicited donations, and the largest film screening in history. Was that intentional or did the film seem to build its own grassroots momentum? 

I think it’s a combination. I’m a sort of self-taught filmmaker and hit the wave at the right time. I was interested in production and graduated college with an amazing new distribution tool at my disposal – Youtube. Youtube, Facebook, cheaper production equipment and the web have really revolutionized the way that people communicate and share. So when my business partners at Freethink – Clay Broga and Kmele Foster – decided to do this project, we wanted to be sure to use those tools to the fullest. We’ve got a great team of designers, social media experts, and marketers at Freethink, so it’s been fun for us. We were conscious of the online potential from a marketing standpoint, but that only means so much. Stars and Stripes Honor Flight has an amazing group of volunteers and they were ready to help spread the word. And Honor Flight nationally is also a very grassroots organization. There are now 110 Honor Flight hubs across the country.  We’ve also been supported online by the Library of Congress’ Veteran’s History Project, Student Veterans of America and Got Your Six. So we helped provide the infrastructure for folks to share, but the network of military families and other organizations have helped us a lot.

 

What do you hope viewers of Honor Flight take away from the film? 

I’m hesitant to answer, because I want people to come to their own conclusions, but what the heck. Perspective. I hope that people watch the film and it inspires them into action in their own life. There is a lot of uncertainty in the world right now – divisive politics, an unsteady economy, turmoil in the Middle East and elsewhere, but despite all that, we’ve got a lot to be grateful for in this country. If you kinda zoom out and really think about that, I think viewers will be more likely to think, “What can I do with this unbelievable gift of freedom?” I know that’s what our team at Freethink thinks about and it’s what drives us