TOWER

In 1966, a sniper opened fire from atop a tower at the University of Texas. This is the story of America's first mass school shooting.

animated picture of student running from school shooter
Series
Independent Lens
Premiere Date
February 14, 2017
Length
90 minutes
Funding Initiative
Series and Special Projects
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    2017 News and Documentary Emmy Awards-Outstanding Historical Documentary
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    2017 Peabody Awards-George Foster Peabody Award
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    2016 Cinema Eye Honors-Outstanding Achievement in Graphic Design and Animation
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    2016 Cinema Eye Honors-Audience Choice
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    2016 Critics Choice Documentary Award-Most Innovative Documentary
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    2016 South by Southwest Film Festival (SXSW)-Audience Award
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    2016 South by Southwest Film Festival (SXSW)-Documentary Feature Special Jury Award
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    2016 South by Southwest Film Festival (SXSW)-Louis Black “Lone Star” Award
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    2016 Critics Choice Documentary Award-Best Direction of a Documentary Feature
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    2016 Critics Choice Documentary Award-Best Documentary Feature
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    2016 Critics Choice Documentary Award-Best First Documentary Feature
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    2017 Producers Guild of America (PGA)-Best Feature Documentary
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    2016 IFP Gotham Awards-Best Documentary Award
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    2017 Sebastopol Documentary Film Festival- Best Feature Documentary
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    Producer/Director

    Keith Maitland

    Keith Maitland is the director of the ITVS-funded, Emmy-nominated The Eyes of Me, a year-in-the-life of four blind teens. The film was broadcast on PBS's Independent Lens and was honored with a Barbara Jordan Media Award by the State of Texas. Director of documentary features, commercials, and TV series, his credits also include seven seasons with NBC's Law & Order… Show more as an AD. Keith is a graduate of the Director's Guild of America Trainee Program and the PBS Producer's Academy. Show less

    Other ITVS Films
    The Eyes of Me

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    Learn more about funding opportunities with ITVS.

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    The Film

    On August 1st, 1966, a sniper rode the elevator to the top floor of the University of Texas Tower and opened fire, holding the campus hostage for 96 minutes. It was America’s first mass school shooting. When the gunshots were finally silenced, the toll included 16 dead, three dozen wounded, and a shaken nation left trying to understand.

    Drawn from first-hand accounts of an ensemble cast of witnesses, survivors and heroes, Tower, an action-packed, animated documentary, reframes the events of that day via the perspectives of those who lived through it and examines the effects of the shooting over the last 50 years. The lessons from that day are more relevant now than ever.

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