Editor

Academy Award^® and Golden Globe^® winner Nicolas Cage, Tom Sizemore, Thomas Jane, Matt Lanter, Brian Presley, Cody Walker and Director Mario Van Peebles wrapped production this week on USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage. The production left the entire cast and crew deeply touched by the men and the memory of the USS Indianapolis.

The film is inspired by the true events of the sinking of WWII’s USS Indianapolis and her brave crewmen. The original script was written by Cam Cannon and Richard Rionda Del Castro of Hannibal Classics. From the start they wanted to tell the story of the crew and what they endured during those fateful nights, and days, stranded in the middle of the ocean in 1945.  They wanted the story of the crewmen, which received little recognition at the time due to the ending of WWII, to be told for all to see.  

Among the cast is Matt Lanter, whose grandfather, Kenley M. Lanter, S1, was a Survivor. Johnny Crane, the grandson of Survivor Granville S. Crane, Jr., MM2, was also cast as an extra.  

To pay tribute, the producers invited survivors and their families to the set. Survivor Richard P. Stephens, S1 (88), was brought to set by his granddaughter; his great-granddaughters in tow. All from the production were struck by his humility and kindness. Mr. Stephens wanted the story of his shipmates to be told truthfully. His anecdotes captivated the core group of young actors playing his shipmates, ensuring the memory of his comrades has reached a new generation.

This July 18^th marked the 70^th reunion of the Survivors of the USS Indianapolis. Thirty-one of the original 317 are living.  One, unfortunately, passed just before.  Fourteen were able to attend the reunion.

In the waning days of WWII, the USS Indianapolis secretly delivered one of two atomic bombs that would eventually end the war. The Japanese attacked and sank the heavy cruiser.  The USS Indianapolis’ mission was so classified it was not reported missing. No one knew they had been attacked until four days later. Of the 1196 crewmen, nearly 300 went down with the ship. The remaining survivors were stranded in the shark-infested waters of the Philippine Sea. The crew of the USS Indianapolis endured hunger, thirst, heat, delirium, relentless shark attacks and the death of many shipmates. Five days later only 317 men survived and eventually were rescued. 

“USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage” is produced by Rionda Del Castro and Michael Mendelsohn of Patriot Pictures, who is financing the film with Hannibal Classics. Executive Producers include Patricia Eberle, Timothy Patrick Cavanaugh, Cam Cannon, Dama Claire, Jamal Hanan, and Mariusz Lukomski.  Andrzej Sekula was the cinematographer, Pete Romano was the underwater cinematographer, Robert Ferretti will edit, and Laurent Eyquem is the composer.  Academy Award^® Nominee Walt Conti of Edge Innovations provided animatronic sharks. 

The film will be released worldwide in 2016.