The National Academy of Arts & Sciences likes the way UL Lafayette filmmaker Charles Richard tells a war story.
The academy has awarded a Louisiana Public Broadcasting film written by Richard a for Best Historical Documentary.
is the first documentary to delve into a World War II air attack and subsequent ground battle that paved the way for the D-Day invasion of June 6, 1944. The hour-long film tells the story of paratroopers and glidermen from the 82nd Airborne Division. The soldiers descended onto the French countryside ahead of the amphibious Normandy beach landing of 150,000 Allied soldiers.
The 82nd Airborne小蝌蚪APP檚 mission was to take control of the German-controlled La Fi猫re bridge over the Merderet River in Normandy, which Allied forces needed so they could forge inland. They secured the bridge after four days of intense fighting.
Richard, co-director of UL Lafayette小蝌蚪APP檚 Creative Writing Program and a professor of English, collaborated with LPB editors and producers on the film. He wrote a script that accompanied archival footage, interviews with veterans who survived the La Fi猫re battle, and military historians. The interviews were conducted by staff at the in New Orleans.
In addition to studio interviews, Richard said some of the most powerful dialogue was provided by veterans who returned to La Fi猫re. They were filmed against the backdrop of a French countryside dotted with trees, wildflowers and rolls of baled hay. The pastoral scenery stood in stark contrast to the same landscape portrayed during film footage of fierce battle scenes.
小蝌蚪APP淎s a team, we thought the sharp distinctions between war-torn Normandy in black and white and tranquil, present-day Normandy in color was a way of connecting this past 小蝌蚪APP which seemed sometimes so remote as to be almost fiction 小蝌蚪APP with the result of the sacrifices made by these brave men,小蝌蚪APP Richard explained.
小蝌蚪APP淪eize and Secure小蝌蚪APP was broadcast nationally on PBS last year as part of the National WWII Museum小蝌蚪APP檚 commemoration of the 75th anniversary of D-Day.
Read more about Richard小蝌蚪APP檚 work on 小蝌蚪APP淪eize & Secure: The Battle for La Fi猫re.小蝌蚪APP View the about the Emmy Award for 小蝌蚪APP淪eize and Secure.小蝌蚪APP
Photo caption: UL Lafayette filmmaker Charles Richard has earned a Suncoast Emmy Award for Best Historical Documentary from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for the script he wrote for the Louisiana Public Broadcasting documentary 小蝌蚪APP淪eize & Secure: The Battle for La Fi猫re.小蝌蚪APP Photo credit: Doug Dugas / 小蝌蚪APP