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HBO: Your previous film, 'Baghdad ER,' was a
gut-wrenching look at the human cost of the
Iraq war as seen through doctors and soldiers
who served there. 'Section 60: Arlington National Cemetery' brings the war
experience back home. What inspired you to
make the film?
Jon Alpert: I think we have to credit (HBO's) Sheila
Nevins who was haunted by her personal
contacts with people from the films we've
made. In this case it was Paula Zwillinger, the
mother of the Marine who dies at the end of
Baghdad ER. Her son is buried in Arlington
Cemetery. And Sheila called Paula who was
at Arlington Cemetery on the second
anniversary of her son Bobby's death and
found Paula in Section 60. And Sheila could
feel the emotion. And the next thing Matt and
I knew we were standing in Arlington
Cemetery with Paula. And the same type of
deep, haunting emotion that we tried to
capture is what we felt that day. That's really
the genesis of this film.
Matthew O'Neill:
And it's different from 'Baghdad ER,' because
all the action and visceral pain that you feel
when you are thrust into 'Baghdad ER' is
uniquely different than the overwhelming
sense of loss, love, and yearning in Section 60.
It's a totally different emotional place. And yet
both relate directly to war.
Jon Alpert: And as reporters and citizens, we look for
ways in which we can communicate
something about war - and very specifically
about the wars that we are involved in right
now. There isn't a lot of war coverage
anymore on TV or even in the general
conversation right now. It's been wiped out by
the sort of war on Wall Street. But people are
dying in Iraq and Afghanistan. And we're
trying to help people understand that.
Matthew O'Neill: It's important to remember that there are
many, many families out there that continue
to confront the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
as a concrete reality that they are dealing with
on a daily basis. And you see it in Arlington
Cemetery, and you see it at military bases
across the country. These families are largely
invisible to most Americans.
HBO: The film doesn't take a position on the war, or
have an agenda. Was that a conscious choice?
Matthew O'Neill: Actually, I think we do have an agenda,
because we've had an agenda with all of our
films, which is to bring awareness and to raise
people's consciousness about what's
happening in Iraq and Afghanistan and what's
happening here at home as it relates to the
wars. You know, you never see the faces of
the fallen in the film because we're paying
attention to the faces of everyone who is left
behind. And whether you fall on the "right"
side of the war or the "left" side of the war, or
someplace in between, everyone needs to
understand in concrete terms what war
means, its ramifications, and how it affects
Americans and American families.
HBO: What did you learn from them? And how did
the making of the film evolve as you began
capturing their stories?
Matthew O'Neill: Well, we really became part of the cemetery.
We got there first thing in the morning when
the groundskeepers were arriving, and we left
as they were locking the gates, almost every
day for four months. We became part of the
community and were accepted by the
community. We never pushed in with our
cameras when we weren't wanted. But when
appropriate, we did become part of those
intimate, sacred moments. You know, there
has never been anything like Section 60 at
Arlington before, where the people who are
recently killed overseas are all being buried in
the same place, and it's created a community
of Section 60 families who can lean on each
other and support new people that come into,
as they call it, "the club that no one ever
wants to be part of."
HBO: What can viewers learn from these families,
and the film?
Jon Alpert: I think there's something quite important,
which is: if the sacrifice of these families goes
unknown, and if the cost of war goes
unknown...that to some degree we are all
dishonoring these families and the soldiers.
Because it's really, really important that the
American people think about who pays the
price when we wage war. We shouldn't go to
war if we are uneducated about that cost. We
shouldn't let people make decisions for us.
And we should think about the people who
sacrificed, and the fact that it could be your
next door neighbor or your son or your
daughter someday. But you shouldn't have
your eyes and ears covered.
Matthew O'Neill: Of course many of these families have political
opinions, some are against the war - and
some for the war. But they do not want to put
their kids' service and sacrifice - nor would I -
in a political context, or use it for political
gain. All the families at Arlington Cemetery
want the memories of their loved ones
preserved, and want their heroism and
sacrifice known to other people. They were all
our allies in helping to tell this story.
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