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New WWII Veterans Film Featured at Heritage Center

Presented by State Historical Society of North Dakota at North Dakota Heritage Center

November 8, 2009

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A new documentary film telling the story of World War II through the eyes of nine veterans from McKenzie County in western North Dakota will be shown Sunday, November 8 at 2 p.m. at the North Dakota Heritage Center in Bismarck. The one-hour film, Small Town Soldiers, is being shown in honor of Veterans Day.

The screening is free and open to the public.

Of the nine veterans interviewed, five are still living and have been invited, along with their family members, to attend the viewing at the North Dakota Heritage Center. The five veterans are John Pojorlie of Grassy Butte, Barney Bertinuson of Alexander, Thomas Kellogg and Jim Taylor, both of Watford City, and Jack Bazer, formerly of Cartwright, now living in Glendive, Montana, The other four veterans also featured in the film are now deceased. They are John Winden of Alexander, and Christian Stenberg, William Faulkner and Joel Grotte, all of Watford City.

“I’m a military history buff, and I’ve always been fascinated by these seemingly regular, gray-haired guys who survived the most harrowing chapter of the 20th Century,” said Cody Shimek, the Watford City native who produced and directed the film. “With my business I occasionally do History Channel shoots on World War II, so I thought it would be great to do something similar with veterans from my hometown.” As part of the November 8 program, Shimek will also discuss the making of the film.

Small Town Soldiers has no narration; stories are told entirely by the McKenzie County veterans in their own words. The former soldiers describe growing up during the Depression, their reactions to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, combat ranging from Guadalcanal to the European air war and what it was like coming home – in most cases forever changed.

Shimek produced the documentary during a six-year period starting in 2003. Small Town Soldiers was created using nine hours of interviews, scenic shots of McKenzie County, soldiers’ personal still photographs, scans from local newspaper archives, U.S. National Archives photos and footage from 1940s World War II documentaries.

“I started editing the program in February 2008 and worked on it on and off again until finishing it,” he said. “This is the first documentary I’ve created, and it’s been a rewarding learning experience.”

Major funding for the documentary came from the McKenzie County Veterans Service. The film premiered this past June 26-27 during Watford City’s Homefest activities.

Shimek is a 1991 graduate of Watford City High School and a 1995 graduate of the University of North Dakota. He now lives in Minneapolis and is the owner and director of photography for Media Men Inc., a television film crew company with clients such as ESPN, MTV and “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” For more information, visit http://www.mediamen.tv.

DVD copies of Small Town Soldiers are now available for purchase at the North Dakota Heritage Center Museum Store.