War-Torn

I originally shared this video early into my time here on the blockchain, but it has been a few years now and there have been some updates to the people involved in it.

War-Torn is a feature length documentary that I made back when I was in film school and it was my first long film that I had made. It took me well over 400 hours to complete it, but I would do it all over again because there is so much meaning to this film.

It is a documentary about this man here, Lynn Gillies. He was a helicopter pilot back in the Vietnam War. It talks about his military career and his time during Vietnam and how the war has impacted him and his family's lives.

During the war, he was sent on a mission to rescue a group of US Marines that were pinned down by the enemy. During the flight in, his crew was killed, but Lynn was able to pilot the helicopter into enemy territory and rescue the Marines.

Terry Reid was one of the men rescued on that day and we were able to reunite these two heroes and get their stories of that day. It is such an incredible story of bravery and brotherhood.

One of the main reasons I wanted to make this film was to get Lynn's story out there. Lynn struggles everyday of his life with PTSD and depression because of this incident, but he has overcome so many obstacles and has touched so many lives. Lynn's actions led to those Marines being saved that day and gave them the opportunity to be with their families again and live their lives.

Terry died a few months back and I am grateful that I was able to get this film out before his death so that his family could see the hero that he was. He was a great man and a joy to be around. I will cherish this film as one of my most meaningful pieces I have ever put together.