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KINO INTERNATIONAL TO RELEASE OFF TO WAR (2005), A LANDMARK 10-EPISODE TV SERIES FOLLOWING TWO YEARS IN THE LIVES OF 57 AMERICAN SOLDIERS SERVING IN IRAQ.
 Kino International is proud to release in a single four-disc box set, and for the first time on DVD, the 10-episode TV series OFF TO WAR (2005). Originally broadcast in 2005 on the Discovery Times Channel, this "close-up and compelling look at who serves and who sacrifices when America goes to war,� (Tony Perry, Los Angeles Times) follows 57 citizen soldiers of the Arkansas National Guard from Clarksville as they leave their jobs and families to deploy in Iraq. Marking the first time that a unit of soldiers was ever followed by a media crew from the beginning to the end of their deployment at war, OFF TO WAR constitutes a rare and never-before-seen window into the lives of soldiers - through their training and eventual struggles in a war-torn area - and their American families. Considered to be "(the) most intimate and memorable look at Americans in the Iraqi conflict," (The New York Times), OFF TO WAR portrays the transformation of a myriad of lives and communities by the traumatic effects of a brutal war.
Totaling more than 450 minutes of eye-opening and heart-wrenching footage and offering exclusive and previously unreleased special features, including a memorial film, extra scenes and a commentary track by the film's directors and soldiers, the four-disc set OFF TO WAR is set to prebook on September 19, 2006, with a SRP of 49.95. OFF TO WAR streets on October 17.
Brother filmmakers Brent and Craig Renaud embedded themselves with the Arkansas National Guard in Iraq - between the years of 2003 and 2005 - while filming OFF TO WAR. From training to guerilla fighting on the streets of Iraq, OFF TO WAR captures part of the largest deployment of Guardsmen to a combat zone since World War II. Fifty-seven of the National Guardsmen called to duty are from a town called Clarksville, a place with approximately 7,000 habitants. The Arkansas National Guard arrived to Iraq in April of 2004, just as the security issues were spiraling out of control. They lost their first soldier to a mortar attack less than 18 hours after arriving, and by the end of their first month in Iraq, they had the highest fatality rate of any of the National Guard units in Iraq.
In the series� first chapter, we meet Sergeant Ronald Jackson and his stepson, Tommy Erp, as they leave their turkey farm in the care of Jackson's wife. Baptist minister Sergeant Joe Betts leaves a new church and congregation, as well as three stepchildren and a wife. The parents of 19-year-old Matt Hertlein are apprehensive about his deployment since he, like many of the other soldiers in his unit, has never traveled beyond the borders of Arkansas. But for many, a call of duty seems like a much needed chance to prove to the world that indeed, they are men of value.
As they begin their training, Operation Iraqi Freedom begins - and the Army employs Iraqi and Kurdish-American actors to simulate actual war conditions. Back in Arkansas, their families grow more fearful that these Guardsmen, who work in sales, farming and other non-military jobs, could become the targets of Iraqi militia groups bent upon attacking Americans. Once in Baghdad, the unit was intended to engage in civil missions, but it is almost immediately deployed on combat missions. By the end of the first month in Iraq, the Arkansas National Guard has lost eight men and seen many more injured. Among the injured is one of the 57 men covered in OFF TO WAR: Sergeant Wayne Irelan is wounded during a mortar attack.
In Iraq, the Arkansas Guardsmen track and disarm roadside bombs responsible for killing many American troops. We also witness Specialists Matt Hertlein and Tommy Erp debate the Abu Ghraib scandal, while back at home, we see Cheryl Jackson worry about the effect the scandal will have on the safety of her husband and son in Iraq.
And it is through this constant juxtaposition of footage at home and abroad that OFF TO WAR has become one of the most touching and relevant war documentaries ever made.
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS:
Born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas, Brent and Craig Renaud are brothers and filmmakers. Since 1995, they have been working with celebrated documentary filmmaker Jon Alpert, at the Downtown Community TV Center in New York, on award-winning projects in places like Afghanistan, Cambodia, Bolivia, China, Pakistan and Iraq. One of their recent docs, DOPE SICK LOVE, a film about heroin users on the streets of New York City, aired on HBO in 2005.
Their programs have aired on HBO, PBS, CBS, the Discovery Channel, the Discovery Times Channel and ESPN. OFF TO WAR was edited into a two-hour feature film which was nominated for the prestigious 2006 Directors Guild Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary.
MEET SOME OF THE ARKANSAS GUARDSMEN:
- Sgt. 1st Class Curtis Rohrscheib
Curtis Rohrscheib joined the National Guard in 1983 when he was 19 years old. "I joined because all of my buddies were joining." He is now 42 years old, and his soldiers call him the "Old Man" of the platoon.
- Sgt. Joe Betts
Joe Betts is a local minister in Clarksville. He has been working hard for the past year to start a multi-cultural church with a friend in the rural community. Joe is afraid that the small congregation he has worked so hard to build will dissipate during his absence.
- Sgt. Ronald Jackson
Ronald Jackson has been a turkey farmer since 1995. He has six turkey houses on his farm with a total of 64,000 birds. He was in the Navy for almost 20 years, and joined the National Guard as a way to continue his military career until he reached retirement. Jackson's 19-year-old stepson, Tommy Erp, is also being deployed to Iraq.
- Spc. Tommy Erp
Tommy Erp joined the Guard when he was 17, which required a signature from his parents. Tommy and two of his best friends thought that the Guard would be a fun way to earn a little extra money. The result is that Cheryl Jackson now has her husband and son going to Iraq.
- Spc. Matthew Hertlein
Just down the road from Ronald Jackson lives Tommy's best friend, Matthew Hertlein. Tommy talked Matt into joining the Guard when they were 17. Matt and Tommy have hardly ever been out of Arkansas, and are excited about the deployment. Matt's family isn't.
- Sgt. 1st Class David Short
David Short is a police officer in Conway, Ark., in his civilian life. Short's unit has been on the front lines of the war in Iraq since arriving in April. In addition to being shot at on a near daily basis and surviving a number of roadside bomb attacks, he's already lost two good friends.
CRITICAL ACCLAIM FOR OFF TO WAR:
"(The) most intimate and memorable look at Americans in the Iraqi conflict."
� Ned Martel, The New York Times
"�OFF TO WAR' was one of the first films to deal with the ongoing problem of U.S. troops having inadequate equipment and unarmored vehicles in Iraq."
� Democracy Now, show hosted by Amy Goodman
"The cameras are unflinching in their portrayal of life in a combat zone, whether it involves soldiers detonating improvised explosive devices intended to kill them or weeping as they leaf through family photos."
� Andrew Wallenstein, The New York Times
"The result is a realism that is candid and even painful at times to watch."
� Tony Perry, Los Angeles Times
"�OFF TO WAR' calculates the war's cost not just in bodies maimed but in lives disrupted and derailed. From patrols in Baghdad to Little League games at home, the sense of dread never goes away. A-"
� Andrew Clevenger, Entertainment Weekly
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