1/13/2012 – Fort Lauderdale, Fla. — Opp-Guide president Lance Oppenheim announces the release of his first commissioned short film Reconciliation. Oppenheim, a student at the Pinecrest School in Fort Lauderdale, directed and co-produced this 9/11 documentary, which is based on the stories of three Pinecrest connections with direct ties back to September 11th. The film made it’s online debut this month, just four months after the 10th anniversary of 9/11. 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.
Michael Testa, a Pinecrest teacher and actor who worked at the New York City Opera on 9/11/2001
Along with his film class, he spent hours interviewing three people with ties to the school, each whom have different, yet interwoven, perspectives of 9/11. Michael Testa, now a teacher, was a performer at the New York City Opera, which was about to open its season. Pinecrest 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.
Many stories of 9/11 have emerged from across the country in the years since the attacks, however Lance’s film presents more than a simple retelling of the events of that day. A positive, heartfelt tone emerges, one of reconciliation, and of resiliency.
The performers of the New York City Opera sing "The Star-Spangled Banner" during their 1st performance after 9/11.
For Lance, the film was a way to present 9/11 to his peers, a way to transform what was for most of his generation merely a historical event and turn in into a living, breathing memory.
While Oppenheim was visiting Terezin, a Jewish ghetto and concentration camp, he found a small apartment building filled with inviting holiday lights, despite the memories of death that were still ever-present. That example inspired Lance to craft his tale, and the film was finished after an all-night editing session.
“The haunting images of what had occurred there somehow sparked a wave of adrenaline within me,” Oppenheim explains, “The emotional shock of a life-changing place enabled me to complete the film.”
And it’s clear that Oppenheim’s vision has resonated with his audience in just a short time after its online debut on Vimeo. In just a week Reconciliation has already garnered over 1,000 views and the interest of a National Film Festival.
Oppenheim has already been approached by a 2nd charity to produce another short-film, and Pinecrest has committed to showing Reconciliation to the entire school on the next anniversary of 9/11.
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 chad@oplaw.net
About The Opp-Guide
Founded in South Florida in 2004, the Opp-Guide helps youth locate service opportunities that they find interesting so that they can continue to serve their community. In 2011 it debuted a app on the iTunes store that allows users to search a nationwide directory of nearly 300,000 nearby community service opportunities by zip code, category, keyword and map with personalized results.
Lance Oppenheim
About Lance Oppenheim
Oppenheim, 15, is a sophomore at the Pinecrest 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 Pinecrest.
