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Did You Kill Anyone? Reality in War Movies | Film 2011 | SXSW

1,061 views · Published 17 November 2011 · 8:45 · Indexed 27 September 2026

Channel: SXSW · 2011 · Film & Animation

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Civilians haven't experienced what is like for our service members abroad, and fictional accounts of the war haven't been effective in changing the perceptions of the American public. With Sebastian Junger and Tim Hetherington's 'Restrepo', they have created a film that answers the question of "What was it like over there?" in a way that no other film has been able to do. 'Restrepo' chronicles the deployment of a platoon of U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan's Korengal Valley. The documentary focuses on a remote 15-man outpost called Restrepo. Filmmakers Hetherington and Junger dug in with the men of Second Platoon, making a total of ten trips to the Korengal between June 2007 and July 2008. Together with Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, National Geographic is using 'Restrepo' to encourage the dialogue that this film fosters between veterans who have experienced combat and the general public. In this panel, we'll explore the ways in which a film can change the lives of the troops featured, the service members that go see the film, and the civilians that are exposed for the first time to real combat in Afghanistan. We'll discuss the ways in which 'Restrepo' is connecting veterans within their communities, and already helping to ease the transition home for many. IAVA will also discuss what Hetherington and Junger did right in 'Restrepo' and what so many other filmmakers have gotten wrong in their depictions of our current conflicts.

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