KLRU-Austin LINCS Partnership: TATTOOED UNDER FIRE

Linking Independents and Co-Producing Stations (LINCS) provides matching funds (up to $100,000) to partnerships between public television stations and independent producers. To apply for LINCS funds, independents must first approach a public television station and establish a partnership.Learn more about a recent LINCS partnership with KLRU-Austin and the film TATTOOED UNDER FIRE, which looks at a tattoo parlor in Killeen, Texas where war-bound and returning soldiers go under the needle and confess their deepest secrets and fears. Maria Rodriguez, senior vice president of programming at KLRU-Austin, shares her thoughts about the film, which airs in November on public television.

I am deeply saddened by the events at Fort Hood this past week. My thoughts and prayers go out to the soldiers and their families at this time. When I first watched clips of TATTOOED UNDER FIRE by Nancy Schiesari, I saw an outline of a unique story that needed to be brought to public television. I saw young men and women just out of high school who were preparing to go to war in Iraq as they as visited a local tattoo parlor near their base. There they revealed their American pride, their concerns and fears about going over to fight. Then the film provides more revelations upon their return from Iraq. Each soldier gives their own personal perspective giving us the sense of the human and cultural cost of war. It gives a perspective and an experience that very few of us will ever experience in our lifetime.

As an independent producer, Nancy Schiesari has shown her skill in transitioning the original Fort Hood Diaries project into TATTOOED UNDER FIRE. The early cuts that I saw have now been polished into this one-hour documentary. I want to thank her for listening to the many voices providing her with direction to finish this film. I also want to thank the folks from ITVS with the assistance of LINCS funding in getting this program ready for air. They have provided lots of support to get this program on many of the public television stations. And the good news is that many of the public television stations around the country are planning to air the program in November around Veteran’s Day. TATTOOED UNDER FIRE is an excellent contemporary documentary that provides a unique look into our world. 

-Maria Rodriguez, Senior Vice President of Programming, KLRU-Austin