Missing-In-America-Documentary

Many veterans upon their return from the war suffered from post traumatic stress syndrome, and many died forgotten, their cremains lying unclaimed on basement shelves for decades. This documentary will bring to light the efforts of one group to find and memorialize them.

Mission Statement: I and my partner are so passionate to examine how these men came to be unclaimed, to explore societies response to the returning GI's, analyze what their lives were like once they re-acclimated to civilian life, and show how the communities have gotten together to honor them beautifully in death.

What Makes This Unique: Many veterascame home from the war suffering from mental illness, and over time the spiritual impact of the violence they participated in took its toll. Mental and physical disabilities left many of them homeless, indigent and forgotten in death. Sometimes for decades. When I learned the fate of some of these brave men, I knew I wanted to shine the light on the soldiers who sacrificed their lives for their country. This documentary will immortalize their stories, and also showcase the efforts of the volunteers who are working to give these soldiers the honorable military burial they deserve. This is a little known story that deserves to be told.

The Approach: My producing partner and I will be speaking with veterans who will share their experiences of war (Vietnam/Korean/WWII) and their re-entry back into American life, as well as the issues they faced. We will also speak with other important officials in the veterans Administration about the mental health issues still plaguing soldiers today and the volunteers who help locate and identify them.

The Goal: Currently, veterans cremations can only be claimed for burial by surviving family members. If there are no remaining relatives, the ashes by law cannot be removed from the basement shelves where they sit languishing, and forgotten. We hope that the awareness this documentary will bring to the subject can help change legislature and bring peace at long last to these lost souls.

The Funding: With your help we will be able to travel to Texas where the heart of this story takes place, witness and film some of the military burials that will take place and interview the men and women who help give the soldiers their final resting place.

Once Completed: Once the project is completed, we will approach Netflix, Amazon and other streaming platforms. For those that donate, we will share a private link with you so you can see the finished project.

If we go over our campaign goal, that money will go into post production costs for the composer, editor, sound designer and film festivals. 

Filmmakers Story: I have been a director/writer and producer for about ten years now, having directed numerous award winning short films as well as two feature films. But I have always yearned to tell a poignant documentary story such as as this one. I am emotionally connected to the idea of being someone who is "Lost but Found" as it is a theme that runs through a lot of my work. It is serendipitous that I recently met Joshua Daniels who lives in the United Kingdom, and is an experienced documentary filmmaker. Together we will tell this relatively unknown story from two different perspectives -- from the American perspective and from the European perspective, which will add depth to how it's told. We want to not only make is visually appealing, but emotionally appealing with our interviews and storytelling.

INCENTIVES:

$25

Shout Out On Social Media from all of our social media pages for being awesome and supportive of our film.

$50

Special Thanks on IMDB/Film Credits & Social Media Shout Out

$100

Special Thanks on IMBB/Credits, be the first to see the finished film, and receive a digital copy of the film poster.

$500

Associate Producer on IMDB/Credits and your name on our film poster.

$3,000

Executive Producer IMDB/Film Credits and you get to be part of our screening event.

$5,000

Producer IMDB/FILM CREDITS & mentioned in ads for the film.

THE FILMMAKERS:

Director/writer Dianna Ippolito:

Dianna has worked as a writer/director and producer in both television and feature films for over a decade. She has received numerous accolades for her work, including a PGA Award for a short film "Cold War, Warm Hearts" that she co-wrote and directed in tribute to director Mike Nichols. She is also a three-time award winning recipient for Best Director from the Vegas Movie Awards, a multi-award winner at the Monaco International Film Festival for Best Screenwriter, and most recently recieved awards for her 2021 short film "Lost But Found" in London, Paris and Germany. Her new feature thriller "The Obscured" has just finished post-production, and will be available for streaming on various digital platforms in 2022.

Film links:

https://vimeo.com/496101331 (Short Film about Marilyn Monroe)

https://vimeo.com/558919116 (Short film about love, friendship and heartache)

https://vimeo.com/551299797 (Short film about savoring life's memories)

Website: https://www.diannaippolito.com

Co-producer/writer Joshua Daniels:

Is a Yorkshire based historian and documentarian. With a distinction in his Master's in Public History, Josh has developed his organizational and communication skills, and become a trained and experienced public speaker. He has produced, written and directed six documentaries on topics such as ex-striking miners, and Korean war veterans. He has also worked as a researcher for the BBC, and written articles for both Historic Houses magazine and Rotherham Life magazine. His research on the war, along with his unique English perspective, makes him a perfect presenter and interviewer for this project.

Website: https://www.joshdaniels.co.uk

Producer Mark Andrushko: 

Mark Andrushko: Founder and CEO of Scriptapalooza Inc., one of the longest running screenwriting competitions in the world. Mark has produced Award-winning films such as Tics, Passage,Close Your Eyes, Rob’s Problem, and Naked.

PLEDGE: This is the most direct way that you can help. We know that this story needs to be told and really tried to come up with incentives that we think you will love! Also, you'll be supporting the Veterans of America.

FOLLOW: More followers equals MORE support from the platform and shows the world how worthy this project is.

SHARE:  By sharing with your friends and family, you help this important story reach networks that we wouldn't be able to tap otherwise. You also are also playing a crucial part in SHARING THE STORY, even before the film is made.