A Towering Task

From Peace Corps Documentary:

“A Towering Task: The Story of the Peace Corps”

Founded during the Cold War, the Peace Corps stands as an icon of American idealism. From the beginning its mission of world peace and friendship proved to be a towering task. Imbued with the unbounded energy and vision of its charismatic leader, Sargent Shriver, and thousands of vigorous volunteers, the story of the Peace Corps is a uniquely American tale. From the political machinations to establish not just a brand new government agency, but a new concept in international relations, to the growing pains of an agency striving to define its mission, A Towering Task takes viewers on a journey of what it means to be a global citizen.

Host country nationals, Peace Corps Volunteers and staff, and scholars and journalists take a closer look at peace building, economic development, and political independence through the Peace Corps’ more than six decades of trials and transformations. Before being evacuated because of the pandemic, Peace Corps volunteers were serving in over 60 countries and more than 200,000 have returned since 1961, but America is reevaluating how to engage with the rest of the world. Now as the Peace Corps rebuilds with increased nationalistic tendencies in America and around the globe, and Peace Corps Volunteers at the forefront of some of the most pressing themes facing the global community, A Towering Task asks: What role should the Peace Corps play in the 21st century?

“If you have come to help, you are wasting your time. If you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.” — LILLA WATSON

Behind The Film In 2013, after a community screening of our documentary about conservationist Aldo Leopold (Green Fire), the team that had also produced The Greatest Good, a public television documentary on the 100-year history of the U.S. Forest Service, found in casual conversation that, in addition to being documentary filmmakers, three members of our team were returned Peace Corps volunteers. So, naturally we started discussing the possibility of a big-picture documentary about the Peace Corps: Had it been done? Would there be an audience for it? Could it be funded? And while we found that the answer to the first question was a surprising ‘no,’ we believed that the other two questions could be answered with a resounding yes.  And so we embarked on this journey of telling an important story of American citizenship and the global community.

Since then we have visited three countries: Liberia, the Dominican Republic, and Ukraine as a sample of Peace Corps countries. On the ground we interviewed Volunteers and staff, scholars and journalists, community leaders and community members. We have gathered interviews across the US with icons of the Peace Corps community, Returned Peace Corps Volunteers from across the globe, former and current staff, as well as scholars and journalists. We worked feverishly to assemble these important voices, the treasure trove of archival materials, music, graphics, and narration into the story of the Peace Corps. It is our hope that this footage will both preserve the legacy of the Peace Corps and inspire a national discourse about our world community.

“By thoughtfully telling the story of the Peace Corps’ past and present, and then taking a look at its future, we want to equip the American public to redefine what it means for America to join the world community - not as a wager of war, but as a peacemaker and problem solver.” — ALANA DEJOSEPH, DIRECTOR

Looking Forward Towering Task is being widely distributed nationally and internationally. Broadcast, streaming, and community screenings (virtual and hopefully soon again in-person) are making up the backbone of distribution. We are developing lesson plans, so we can take the story of the Peace Corps into the history, political science, sociology, global studies, and economics departments of universities and colleges across the country, and into social studies classrooms in high schools and middle schools.We are aiming to set up at least one screening in each of the 142 countries where the Peace Corps served. And, most importantly, we want to bring the Peace Corps back into the American discourse, not as a dream from ages past, but as a real, tangible effort that allows all of us to reevaluate who we as American and as global citizens can be.

A Towering Task Is Completely Accessible! In the true Peace Corps spirit and thanks to the generous support of Ken and Lucy Lehman and Michele Spitz of Woman of Her Word, the documentary is fully accessible with subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing, as well as audio description for the visually impaired. Ken and Lucy made possible the subtitles and captions in memory of Marca Bristo, relentless disability activist who changed the world. Professional voiceover artist, public speaker, advocate and philanthropist, Michele Spitz is dedicated to making the world accessible to all communities. Michele is most passionate about her audio description production and voiceover narration allowing access for visually impaired audiences to equally experience film and digital media, and the arts.

FAQ

Q. How Can I See This Film? A.  A Towering Task is currently available through our virtual theatrical release. You can purchase a ticket through any of the theaters listed here, and then watch the film online from the comfort of your own home. The theater does not have to be in your state or even in your country. However, watching the film through these movie theaters helps support local businesses that have had to reinvent themselves during the pandemic. You could also set up your own virtual screening. Have your friends and colleagues watch the film through a virtual community screening and then get together with Zoom or a similar platform to talk about it. More information on virtual community screenings here.

Q. Why Create This Film Now? A. As a nation, we are reassessing our role in the world community, and the question arises: How and why do we engage with the rest of the world? While the pendulum between globalization and isolation has been swinging back and forth for much of America's history, recent nationalistic tendencies may well spell the end of efforts like the Peace Corps. So as Americans, we ought to take a close look at these efforts before we abandon them.

The biggest challenge is the gap in communication we now have between the “echo chamber” around the Peace Corps which spends much of its time talking “inside baseball” and the general public that is barely aware the agency still exists. Naturally, the voices from inside the echo chamber feel like there is a need to advertise the Peace Corps. So many of the anecdotes we hear sound like public relations campaigns. But iconizing the Peace Corps does the agency a disservice. The story of the Peace Corps has passion, vision, and the potential to serve as a prism through which to view our society as a whole over the last six decades. The American public doesn’t need to be sold the Peace Corps, but rather it needs to understand it and feel that it is a part of the story.

“Is the Peace Corps less necessary for the 21st century than during the years when Kennedy started it? Is the Peace Corps needed at all, now that there is no cold war? Can we prove what their presence contributes to the American Economy? Or to American politics? Have we changed anything in America profoundly for the better?” — SARGENT SHRIVER, AT 35TH ANNIVERSARY OF PEACE CORPS

Q. Who Are The Producers? A. A Towering Task is an independent documentary. Alana DeJoseph (producer/director) is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer and documentary filmmaker. She has been a member of the production teams that brought you The Greatest Good: A Forest Service Centennial Film and Green Fire: Aldo Leopold and a Land Ethic for our Time. Dave Steinke is a documentary film producer, cameraman, and former Forest Service public affairs director. He was producer on both The Greatest Good and Green Fire. Shana Kelly is a screenwriter and book editor with numerous titles to her credit. All three strongly believe in the urgent need for an objective, in-depth look at the history and future of the Peace Corps. Visit our Filmmakers page to learn more.

Q. When Can I See It? A. The gala premiere was held at the Kennedy Center on September 22nd, 2019 in Washington, DC. Since then the film has been screened over 100 times and during the pandemic, virtual screenings and a virtual theatrical release have allowed audiences to stream the film online. In-person screenings have resumed, but virtual events remain an option. Visit our screenings page for information on where to see the film.

^ I watched this Documentary the other day and really liked it. It told the Whole Story of the Peace Corps (the Challenges, the Good and the Bad) that the Peace Corps had to, and continues to overcome, deal with.

I always wanted to join the Peace Corps, but different circumstances prevented that.

I met an American Peace Corps Volunteer one of the 5 times I was in Russia (Russia has since banned the Peace Corps) and in Costa Rica. ^

https://www.peacecorpsdocumentary.com/