By Nicole June
AFGHANISTAN – Active Duty U. S. Army Chaplain Captain Justin David Roberts has added one more credential to his Curriculum Vitae: Film Director.
No Greater Love is a feature-length documentary film that tells his story as an infantry chaplain deployed to Afghanistan in 2010-2011 with the legendary NO SLACK battalion of the 101st Airborne, where he spent most of his time on missions with his soldiers.
This is not a common duty for a chaplain since they don’t typically carry weapons. Roberts had a sincere desire to serve infantry soldiers after interning at Brooke Army Medical Center while in graduate school.
“I absolutely wanted to serve these guys, wherever they’re at, I wanted to go and I wanted to be their chaplain,” he said.
That combat deployment was Chaplain Roberts’ first deployment and it was a rough one for the 800-man battalion. They came home with more than 200 purple hearts and 18 made the ultimate sacrifice.
Roberts’ combat footage is layered with honest, heartfelt interviews with the soldiers of No Slack and the families of the fallen. This footage was not shot on training missions but in actual combat in Kunar Province, Afghanistan from 2010-2011. The interviews tell stories from the hearts of the soldiers – the true cost of war.
“This film is about what we fought for, and what our crew worked for,” said No Slack Sergeant Bob Evans, Infantryman and No Greater Love Production Assistant.
Photo courtesy of Atlas House Productions
Roberts formed the Production company, Atlas House, and included Emmy Award Winning Producer Brent Dones, who was Co-Executive Producer of last year’s critically acclaimed documentary The Hornet’s Nest which featured soldiers from the same deployment. The Hornet’s Nest is the only Documentary Feature ever endorsed by the USO. Every soldier going through basic training at Fort Benning, Georgia is now required to watch the film.
“This project is more than a film. It’s a movement that aims to raise awareness about the day to day lives of our country’s soldiers in a very human way. In addition, the film also highlights some of the less talked-about issues that veterans face like PTSD, suicide, injury and disability,” Dones said.
Chaplain Roberts’ vision is to start a conversation between soldiers and civilians and demonstrate what it was like to serve in Afghanistan, and what it’s like returning to civilian life after serving in combat.
Ultimately, Roberts learns more about love, honor, service, leadership and faith as soldiers teach him about brotherhood, love of country, love of God, and love of family: on the mountaintops in Afghanistan.
For more information, visit the No Greater Love Facebook page.
Watch the trailer for the film below:
http://youtu.be/rKQ9XUFERuc