America at a Crossroads: Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience

A documentary explores the searing firsthand accounts of American troops through their own words — fiction, verse, letters, essays and personal journals. The film is based on the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA) initiative by the same name, which was a series of writing workshops conducted by distinguished authors at domestic and overseas military installations. Combining interviews and dramatic readings, the film transforms this remarkable collection of writing into a deep examination of life on the front lines. The film provides depth and context for these experiences through conversations with great American writers from previous wars, including Tim O’Brien and James Salter. The stories recounted are sad, funny, violent and uplifting. The writings come to life with readings by Josh Lucas, Aaron Eckhart, Blair Underwood and others. "Operation Homecoming" evokes the universal emotions of war with a haunting poignancy and raw emotion.

Executive producer: Tom Yellin, The Documentary Group
Producer: Richard Robbins
Airdate: April 16, 2007 at 10 p.m. Check local listings.