Film makes short list for Academy Award

Oct. 9 started like most any other day in the life of local cinematographer Erik Daarstad. Up before dawn; a bite of breakfast while reading the morning paper, checking for any worthwhile news on television, and then out the door to do his early morning shopping. After shopping, it is a quick trip home to drop off his purchases before heading down town to meet some friends for coffee. From there, it is off to do some work at his favorite project, the Panida Theater.

Erik returned home for lunch about noon and it was then that routine went out the window. Upon entering his home, he was met with a relentlessly ringing telephone. He barely had time to say “Hello” when an excited voice said, “Erik, Erik, guess what! We made the cut on our Lt. Watada film and we are on the short list. Isn’t that great?” The person so excited on the other end of the line was producer/director Freida Mock, a long-time friend.

Freida and Erik had worked together on the film, “Lt. Watada: A Matter of Conscience,” which the Academy of Motion Pictures had just selected to be in contention for an Oscar. 

Awards are not new to Erik Daarstad. A film he photographed called; “Why Man Creates” won the Oscar in 1968. When asked if he was present to receive the award he said, “No, I was probably off somewhere working on another film.” The list of documentary films that he has had nominated for an Academy Award is impressive. They are:

n “Spirit of America” in 1964 was about Craig Breedlove’s attempt to break the land speed record on the Salt Flats of Utah.

n “Four Stones for Kanemitsu” portrayed the artistry of Matsumi Kanemitsu, a painter associated with the New York Abstract Expressionist School. Kanemitsu was skilled in four mediums: painting on canvas, ink drawing, watercolor, and lithography.

n “The Incredible Machine” was a 1965 National Geographic film nominated for an academy award for Best Documentary Feature. It takes the viewer on a journey inside the human body.

n “Notes on the Popular Arts” 1976 explored the art mediums of television, comics and publications, movies, and pop music.

n “Never Give Up” is about a Jewish composer-conductor from Austria who was confined in both German and Japanese concentration camps. He spent the later part of his life educating young people about the importance of music. “Never Give Up: The 20th Century Odyssey of Herbert Zipper” is a 1995 short documentary film directed by Erik’s friend and colleague, Terry Sanders.

n “Sing” — This 2002 film tells the story of how a community group, amid severe cutbacks in the arts, was able to develop a children’s chorus that is one of the best in the country. It stresses the importance of art and music in children’s lives.

Now the story of Lt. Ehren Watada has taken a big step toward the coveted Oscar. Daarstad states that he joins his friend Freida in her excitement because the Documentary Branch of the Academy voted their entry to the short list. He said, “There were 37 entries and they voted to create a short list of eight. In February, when all the nominations come out, they will bring it down to three to five nominations. I am excited that they saw the importance of the film because it shows how the United States operated in the world at that time. Many people felt it was an illegal war according to the Constitution and illustrates that a person, or a country, should not blindly march into decisions without counting the consequences.” 

Erik spent a great deal of time with Lt. Ehren Watada during the filming of the documentary and had this reaction to him.

“He was going to be a career officer in the United States Army. He had a tour of duty in Korea and his commanding officer told him, ‘Whatever you do in the future find out everything you can about your mission.’ He knew he would be sent to Iraq so he found out all that he could about that situation. He came to the decision that it was not a legal war according to the U.S. Constitution. He refused to go to Iraq but said he would go to Afghanistan. This decision led to an Army court-martial, which ended in a mistrial. Lt. Watada was brought up with a strong value system and was taught to do the right thing. His decision was not a snap judgment on his part but rather was part of the fiber of his being. That is what impresses you when you get to know him. The film portrays the impressive person that is Lt. Watada and it would be nice if there were more people like him.”

“You have to do what your own conscience tells you to do, no matter what the consequences.” Lt. Ehren Watada