9/11 Short Film, Directed by Florida Teen Filmmaker, to Debut at National Film Festival

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., April 24, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Reconciliation, a documentary directed and co-produced by Pine Crest High School Student Lance Oppenheim, makes its screen debut this Thursday at the 4th Annual Wallabout Film Festival.

Reconciliation recounts the tragedy of September 11th, 2001, through the eyes of three people at Pine Crest, a teacher, a parent, and an alumni, who each share a personal connection to the fall of the Twin Towers.

Michael Testa, now a teacher, was a performer at the New York City Opera, which was about to open its season. Pine Crest parent Janet Roy's brother was a celebrated captain in the FDNY who was called to duty that morning.

Charlie Cobb, an alumnus, lived and worked close to Ground Zero and found himself thrust into the center of the chaos. Each recounted their 9/11 memories to Oppenheim and his film class, and how they choose to remain hopeful despite the events of that day.

The short film, which has already garnered the attention of thousands after debuting online earlier this year, will be screened for the first time at Wallabout, a student-run film festival produced by The Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York.

Wallabout is a forum for supporting student filmmaking and screens student films for peers, artists and industry professionals.

Reconciliation will be shown this Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at IndieScreen, an independent theater located at 289 Kent Avenue in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Oppenheim, a budding young filmmaker who will be interning for a major Hollywood studio this summer, is proud to have his film debut alongside nearly two dozen other shorts produced by other high school, college and graduate students.

"Making this movie was a visceral experience and I'm looking forward to sharing it with a live audience of my peers," Oppenheim said. "This was my way of transforming what was for many of us a historical event into a living, breathing memory."

Lance Oppenheim will be on-hand for the screening and will answer questions following the screening at 7:45 p.m.

Reconciliation has been recognized with an honorable mention by the Suncoast Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, which administers the Emmy Awards, and will also be screened at the Seattle True Independent Film Festival in May.

It was originally accepted into the East Coast Film Festival but had to be disqualified because the festival is open to college students only.

The Hands On Network, one of the largest volunteer networks in the country, provided Oppenheim with a grant to make the film. It was also supported by GenerationOn, a global youth service organization.

Watch Reconciliation: http://vimeo.com/34647517

For more information or to arrange an interview with Lance, please call Chad Cookler, PR Manager for the Opp-Guide, at 954-384-6114 or email [email protected].

Photos: Michael Testa, a Pine Crest teacher and actor who worked at the New York City Opera on 9/11: http://www.ereleases.com/pic/ReconciliationTesta.png

The performers of the New York City Opera sing "The Star Spangled Banner" during their first performance after 9/11: http://www.ereleases.com/pic/Reconciliation-NYCOpera.png

About Lance Oppenheim

Oppenheim, 15, is a sophomore at the Pine Crest School and a budding filmmaker. He serves as the president for the Opp-Guide, and is a member of the national youth advisory board for GenerationOn. In addition, he is currently the president of his class at Pine Crest.

This press release was issued through eReleases(R).  For more information, visit eReleases Press Release Distribution at http://www.ereleases.com.

SOURCE Lance Oppenheim