National Geographic presents a portrait of one of America’s most sacred places. Once little more than a potter’s field, Arlington National Cemetery has become a national shrine and treasury of American history. Now, discover how this revered site came to be, and how it serves as the final resting place for both the famous and obscure, from John F. Kennedy to the Unknown Soldier. Through rare archival footage and captivating, true-life accounts, experience the moving stories of heroes and heroines and witness the daily activities and official rituals of the dedicated staff who strive to honor those who are laid to rest here. From fallen soldiers and daring explorers to political leaders and other honored Americans, the hallowed history of Arlington reveals a powerful portrait of this iconic and venerated landmark.

Experience the full force of coalition forces in Iraq and live life on the frontlines. THE DEVIL DOG DIARIES provides a rare, inside look at life in wartime from the perspective of the young men in a battalion of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force With veteran filmmaker Gary Scurka in tow, the marines encounter ambushes and fire fights, engage in dangerous missions in cities along the way, endure sniper fire and sandstorms and lead the charge into Baghdad. Yet despite their feats, most of these Marines are young cadets straight out of high school, shipped to a far off desert to engage in a war for reasons they may not fully understand.

One thousand miles from anywhere lay a lonely outpost of coral and sea called Midway. It was here in 1942 where the U.S. and Japan fought one of the greatest naval battles of World War II that changed the course of history. And it is here again where Titanic discoverer Dr. Robert Ballard now leads a team of experts and four World War II veterans on the voyage of their lives. They’re on a race against time to do the impossible: find at least one of the five downed aircraft carriers. Join them as they pay their final respects to their fallen comrades. 

Guy Gabaldon died on August 31, 2006 and the world lost someone very special.  During the bloody struggle for Saipan in July 1944, U.S. Marine PFC Guy Gabaldon is officially credited with capturing over 1500 Japanese soldiers and civilians - single-handedly, a record that is untouchable in the annals of American military history.  For over sixty years, Guy talked about his exploits on that island, sharing his experience and using his celebrity to inspire new generations who valued bravery and bravado.  However, war experience alone does not make a life, and Guy’s didn’t stop in 1944.  He lived many different lives and most importantly he took it upon himself to help the less fortunate, particularly the wayward teenagers he encountered when he returned to the Mariana Islands in 1980, where he would live for twenty years.

OCCUPATION: DREAMLAND is an unflinchingly candid portrait of a squad of American soldiers deployed in the doomed Iraq city of Falluja during the winter of 2004. A collective study of the soldiers unfolds as they patrol an environment of low-intensity conflict creeping steadily towards catastrophe. Through the squads activities Occupation: Dreamland provides a vital glimpse into the last days of Falluja. The film documents the citys waning stability before a final series of military assaults began in the spring of 2004 that effectively destroyed it.Filmmakers Garrett Scott and Ian Olds were given access to all operations of the Armys 82nd Airborne. They lived with the unit 24/7, giving voice to soldiers held under a strict code of authority as they cope with an ambiguous, often lethal environment. The result is a revealing, sometimes surprising look at Army life, operations and the complexity of American war in the 21st century.

Official Website: http://www.rumur.com/occupationdreamland

The battle of the Huertgen Forest was one of the bloodiest of World War II. American and German forces suffered in excess of 60,000 casualties over a freezing six-month winter campaign. For the soldiers who survived, memories of the horror of that battle have continued to this day. This is the true story of a battlefield reunion of American and German soldiers nearly 55 years after they fought in the Huertgen forest. This time they meet in the spirit of reconciliation, but vivid memories from the war and unanswered questions are never far beneath the surface.

Red, White, Black, and Blue tells the story of Bill and Andy, the two toughest 85-year-olds you’ve ever met. Together, these life-long friends fought against 3000 Japanese soldiers in a secret Alaskan invasion during World War II. Now, 60 years later, these two forgotten heroes embark on an intense and emotional journey back to the remote Aleutian island of Attu, where they relive the brutal 19-day battle that America was never told about. The desolate, wind-swept island is not only one of the most dangerous places in the world, but also a living museum littered with crashed airplanes, unexploded bombs, and collapsed buildings from the war. As Bill and Andy retrace their steps over this untouched battlefield, the line between past and present begins to blur and long-forgotten memories resurface with moving force. Through intimate interviews with Bill and Andy, the film explores what it means to be a soldier then and now. And for Bill, that means continuing the battle—even at the cost of his own peace of mind.

The story of Leon Cooper’s—WWII veteran and American original—return to “Red Beach”. Cooper, a veteran of the battle of “Bloody Tarawa,” returned to Tarawa in February 2008 in order to learn more about reports he had read about garbage on the fabled “Red Beach.”

In November 1943, Leon, a US Navy landing craft officer, helped launch the first major amphibious assault on a Central Pacific Japanese stronghold. Leon is dismayed to discover that this hallowed ground is strewn with garbage rotting in the sun, a painful insult to the sacrifice his fellow marines made for their country, during one of the bloodiest three-day battles in American war history.

Cooper’s trip is full of wonder, anger, amazement and divine providence as he and film maker Steven C. Barber visit what Leon suspects to be the graves of hundreds of Marines still buried on Tarawa. Follow Leon Cooper’s trip back in time, as narrated by Oscar-nominated actor, Ed Harris. A story of redemption and passion that will move you to tears.

An Unfinished Symphony is an emotional, poetic, and lyrical journey back in time to reflect on the highly contested Vietnam War. The film is divided into three sections which mirror the movements of Henryk Gorekis Symphony No. 3, the Symphony of Sorrowful Songs, to which the film is set.  The film focuses on a three-day protest in the form of a march, staged by newly returned veterans. Reversing the same path as Paul Reveres famous ride of 1775, the mounted protest sought to bring renewed awareness to a long-fought, losing battle.  Festivals Played:  Sundance Film Festival - January 2001, Woods Hole Film Festival - July 2001.

In 1998, World T.E.A.M. Sports (The Exceptional Athlete Matters) organized a 16-day, 1,200 mile bicycle ride through once war-torn Vietnam. Able-bodied and disabled veterans, from the U.S. and Vietnam, travel across a landscape where they once killed to stay alive. The former enemies ride as one team, joined by well-known rider Greg LaMonde and Senator John Kerry, in an emotional journey of peace, reconciliation, and athletic achievement. The biggest handicaps turn out to be the ghosts of the past, with their nagging reminders of conflict, injury and loss.

Iraq War veteran Herold Noel suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and lives out of his car in Brooklyn. Using Noel’s story as a fulcrum, this doc examines the wider issue of homeless U.S. military veterans-from Vietnam to Iraq-who have to fight tooth-and-nail to receive the benefits promised to them by their government.