A moving 11-minute film by filmmaker, Doug McMains, may be a life changer for 5 young men who stood in for those lives lost ... .


This is one of the films produced for the anticipated Visitors Educational Center at Port Chicago in Concord.  It memorializes the tragic event that occurred on July 17, 1944 when 320 lives were lost.  The film has been entered into a dozen or so film festivals starting next month in Sacramento.  Will keep you posted on how it is received by audiences and judges.

Meanwhile, on Sunday, July 29th we will be sharing -- for the first time -- the screening of "... Into Forgetfulness -- with these five young men, their friends, and families.  The young men only learned of the story of the horrific explosion and the mutiny trials during the filming, and have no idea that their images have been immortalized in this moving piece as it will be shown for the next few decades in our Visitors Center and with the whole world on the Internet.

They were filmed aboard the historic Kaiser-built ship, the SS Red Oak Victory, where they learned to "square" their sailor hats from Chief Engineer, Bill Jackson, and heard the stories of that fatal day from Park Ranger Ed Bastien who assisted on the shoot.

As is so often the case, I'm cited in the credits, but can't recall a single thing I contributed -- except for being present and accounted for.  But now that the work is done and being publicly seen,  I'm finding guilty pleasure in having my name associated with still one more brilliant artist's creation.  Maybe I shouldn't question the why of it; just sit back and enjoy, right?

... maybe it is a question of simply being -- and not doing.

Photo:  Peter Gray, Aaron Sio, Francois Johnson, Ismaeel Muhammad, and Marquez Johnson.