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Hernando Today

Springstead Student Makes Vietnam Film

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By LINNEA BROWN

Published: February 15, 2008

HERNANDO BEACH - HERNANDO BEACH - HERNANDO BEACH - This weekend, soldiers will be reliving the Vietnam War at Jenkins Creek.
Starting at 9 a.m. Saturday, anyone venturing near Linda Pedersen Park in Hernando Beach will hear gunfire, yelling and may catch sight of 20 to 40 uniformed soldiers with realistic weapons. They may even spot a member of the Viet Cong army, or see trails of smoke.
"It's going to be Vietnam out there, basically," said Spring Hill resident Matthew Wilcox. "Going through 'Hades,' if you will."
Hard to believe it's all the work of a local high school filmmaker.
The Jenkin's Creek island will be closed from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday as the 18-year-old Springstead High senior directs and films a movie about Vietnam.
Several dozen war re-enactors will travel from across the state to participate in the project, which will consist of bloody battle scenes, turbulent emotional moments and soldiers fighting for their lives.
While the island will be closed, the rest of the park will remain open.
Wilcox said he has spent more than $2,000 of his own money on the film's materials and props, with additional donations gleaned from fundraising outside Wal-Mart and help from other students.
"The community has really come together to make this look good," he said. "People really want to see this come true."
In terms of professionalism and Hollywood-style glitz, he estimated that the film is a "75" on a scale of 1 to 100. It will be shot digitally, then edited on computer.
The son of two high school teachers, Wilcox has been making films since ninth grade, including a small Memorial Day tribute in 2007 that was broadcast on several local TV stations.
He decided to focus on a tribute film about the Vietnam War over the summer, after learning that Springstead construction teacher Steve Knowlton is a Vietnam veteran.
"He's the kind of guy who would tell people if they asked, but wouldn't broadcast it or anything," Wilcox said. "That's kind of why I chose (him) to tell his story."
A soldier with the U.S. Army's 25th infantry division, Knowlton was drafted in 1968 and spent a year in Vietnam.
The film, tentatively titled "'Nam," is based on Knowlton's real-life experiences in the war — though they are not necessarily unique, and instead common threads felt by many.
"People at school may not know what he's experienced, but he represents a lot of guys' stories. His story combines a lot of peoples' ordeals there," Wilcox said. "I wasn't alive during this war, but I'm really trying to get it across to people my age that have no idea (what it was like)."
The film is not political, and instead aims to tell the truth about horrors felt by many, he added.
"There were a lot of examples where people were drafted and forced to go fight — and then came home with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and our government refused to help them," Wilcox said. "Even getting a job when they came back from Vietnam was hard because they were labeled baby killers or slaughterers."
He also hopes the film helps people see the similarities between Vietnam and the current war being fought in Iraq.
"We're in a war right now, yet no one cares. So I figured we could take something historical and help people see how it's (affecting people)," Wilcox said. "There are a lot of similarities to modern day."
With approval from Hernando County officials, a deputy from the Hernando County Sheriff's Office and a volunteer from the Hernando Beach Fire Department — where Knowlton is chief — will be on scene this weekend in case of an emergency.
Upon graduation in May, Wilcox plans to attend Pasco-Hernando Community College and Florida State University for film school.
The film is set to premiere on government access channels in Hernando and Hillsborough in May on Memorial Day.

Reporter Linnea Brown can be reached at 352-544-5289 or lbrown@hernandotoday.com.

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