They were the daughters of suffragists, the mothers of feminists. One hundred thousand soldiers. One hundred thousand women. This is the story of one of them.
In May of 1942, Congress approved a bill establishing the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps or WAAC. Women flocked from all over the country to sign up. For some it was a chance to support their country. For others it was a chance to break down the confines of society and prove their worth.
This documentary explores the experience of these warriors through the eyes of Ruth Blanton, a Bald Knob, Arkansas woman who went overseas as a stenographer during a time when most men believed that a woman’s patriotic duty was taking care of hearth and home.
DOCUMENTARY INFORMATION
2009[v1], DVD-NTSC-R1, 106:00
Produced, Written, Directed and Edited by Sarah & Emma Bailin
Narrator: Emma Bailin
Ruth Blanton Chaney: Sarah Bailin
Music: A US Army WAC and Thanks for the Memory (WAC version) from WAC official song book
Singer: Adrianne Owings • Piano Accompanist: Maureen Adkins
Interviewees: Merle Wilson, Marvin K. Bailin
AWARD WINNING DOCUMENTARY
2010 • APRIL
Co-Winner Adam Ford Youth Filmmaking Award and Official Selection, Youth Film Showcase, 11th Annual Crossroads Film Festival in Jackson, Mississippi
Official Selection, Student Films, 7th Annual Vail Film Festival, Vail, Colorado.
2009 • DECEMBER
Winner, Honorable Mention, Student Film Category, Los Angeles Reel Film Festival, Los Angeles, CA
Broadcast Selection, 2009 Junior Independents' Film Festival ON-AIR, Tampa Educational Consortium, Tampa, Florida.
2009 • NOVEMBER
Selection, 2009 Junior Independents' Film Festival, Tampa, Florida.
2009 • OCTOBER
Best Documentary, Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival, High School Video Competition, Fort Lauderdale, FL
Official Selection, 12th Annual Indie Memphis Film Festival, Southern Teen Filmmaking Showcase, Memphis, TN
Selection, 18th Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival, Hot Springs, AR.
2009 • AUGUST
On-Line screening, 2009 Brigand Shorts International Film Festival, Chattanooga, Tennessee • voted in the top 20 of 160 entries.
2009 • JULY
Selection, 2009 T Tauri Film Festival Young Filmmakers Competition, Locust Grove, AR • Award: THE KID WITH A CAMERA: A Soldier in Skirts, Emma Bailin and Sarah Bailin
2009 • MAY
Selection, 2009 Little Rock Film Festival and AETN Student Selects, Little Rock, Arkansas
Featured Film, 2009 AETN Student Selects Showcase, Arkansas Educational Television Network Broadcast 2PM, May 30, Arkansas
2009 • APRIL
First Place, Senior Division Group Documentary Film Competition, UALR History Day, Little Rock, Arkansas
Official Selection: WorldKids International Film Festival, 'Lessons in the Dark' school program, Mumbai, India
