The following is the rest of my interview with Jake Rademacher:

Sidebar: We started talking about the differences between Iraq and Afghanistan and how stable Iraq has become. I expressed concern about my sons going to Afghanistan, and here’s what Jake had to say…

Jake: Iraq? Iraq is so stable right now. What you see are just the few insurgents blowing sh*t up. Here’s something for you. The Iraqis are not emigrating to the US nearly as much as before because their economy is now perceived to be in better shape that ours.

Me: Wow! That’s an eye-opener.

We also started talking about Ft. Bragg and my son going to Afghanistan

Me: Yes, my sons are headed to Bragg shortly.

Jake: With the 82nd?

Me: Yes, they both graduated from ROTC last May and have been finishing up their continued training since they were commissioned and are headed to Bragg within the next several weeks. My son, Matt, next week, and my son, Sean, when he finishes Ranger School.

Jake: Wow, that is really cool. Isaac did Ranger training.

Me: Yes, I know, I saw the patch on his uniform in the movie.

Jake: If it’s any comfort to you all all, you know, the guys in the 82nd take their job very seriously, they are very well trained, very well focused. They really work well together, they train hard all the time. So, the benefit of that from a mom’s standpoint is that there is some comfort knowing they are that well trained.. Isaac went over as part of the 82nd and every single one of his men came back.

Me: There are so many of us out here with a passion, and who have made it our mission to help our soldiers in whatever way we can, whether it be through sending cards or care packages or organizations who help our wounded soldiers and vets……

From your perspective, what else can we do to get this word and your message out so that it becomes bigger and at the forefront of the American public’s eyes?

Jake: This is such a great question. Like, you, we want the movie to become a movement… at the end of the day, it’s the definitive movement of the military family and their sacrifices. What will happen is that more films like this will start to come out.

So, what people can do? I’m shooting a high definition feature film in a war zone. Now here’s the problem.
The movie can’t be done on a scale of 1 – 10. This movie was done out of love and we need other people to do this because there is an audience…so, let’s continue to make these kinds of films.

So, what can people do?

• First… take the website Brothers at War, take the Ebert Review… take the front page of the Washington Post article, the 2 minute trailer.. the opening weekend trailer of base visits and put that together in an email, send it every one you know to let them know the film is coming to their town.

• Arrange for the movie to be seen with a vets group… buy out the theater…have an event to talk about the film afterward

• Here’s the thing. Samuel Goldwin Films only requires 1,000 tickets to be pre-sold for a movie to open up and the first 2 weeks are the most important for a movie. If people don’t come out for opening weekend, it’s sunk. It’s important there are tons of people to come and support the cause.

• You can do a press release in town, a big company can pre-buy 1,000 tickets and sell them and sponsor the film, host a big black tie event, donate tickets to local reserve units.

• Designate a Sunday for a special event for veterans, or the America Legion or to give tickets to people in their company.

This isn’t just my movie any more… it’s everybody’s movie and we need as many people as possible to help spread the word.

Sidebar: We talked about the Internet, and how we’re using social media, such as Facebook and Twitter to help get the word out.

Me: Jake, the Internet has really allowed us to reach people in ways that were never available to us before, especially Facebook and Twitter. This is how I found out about Brothers at War.
Jake: Yes, the Internet is amazing and very powerful in that way. It’s an awesome tool to use, yet we still need to get people to the theaters.

Me: Right, absolutely.

Me: Jake, I want to thank you again so much for taking the time today to speak with me. You can be sure that you have all my support and the support of people that I know.

Jake: Oh, it’s been my pleasure, this has been great, and don’t forget to call my mom.

Tags: brothers at war movie, interview with jake rademacher, jake rademacher

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