Jake Rademacher, director of “Brothers at War,” with his brother, Army Capt. Isaac Rademacher at the fourth annual Warrior Resilience Conference. (Photo by: A Backpack Journalist)

First-time filmmaker Jake Rademacher discussed the documentary “Brothers at War” after it was shown at the Warrior Resilience Conference last week. The film follows his two younger brothers on the front lines in Iraq, but instead of speaking about making the movie, he first asked viewers: “What part of the film did you most strongly identify with?”

The audience had different answers.

An amputee Army veteran had a tough time returning home. A military spouse identified with the guilt Jenny Rademacher, wife of Army Capt. Isaac Rademacher, expressed when her husband deployed. An active-duty service member related to Isaac’s fear that his newborn daughter wouldn’t remember him. During his own deployment, an Army company commander reflected on Afghans moving a burning vehicle to save a soldier. In the movie, Jake films a group of dedicated Afghans side-by-side with American troops under fierce fire.

Having never served in the military myself, I related with Jake’s initial struggle to understand what it’s like to be a service member and deployed.

Jake’s brothers Isaac and Joe Rademacher are soldiers. He is not. The film follows Jake’s attempt to discover why his brothers chose to serve as he travels with troops in Iraq, to look inside what life is like for the deployed and their loved ones left behind. With childhood home movies, his own intense footage of war, moving interviews with family, and insight into the life of warriors, Jake shows a complete and intimate portrait of a military family and the brotherhood service members shared in Iraq.

When he returned home, Jake had similar reintegration experiences to his brothers and newfound military comrades. He recalled simple annoyances, such as civilians aloofly asking if he had killed anyone. Jake asked the audience: “What inappropriate questions have you been asked?”

An Army spouse was asked if she could visit her deployed husband for the holidays, or if the military simply sent him home.

“There are no holidays in war,” she said.

A service member found that many civilians question the amount of combat in war. A spouse shared her frustration with being asked how and why she chose to be a part of the military lifestyle.

“They have no concept [of the lifestyle], but it’s really difficult to have one unless you have experienced it,” she said. “My answer is that I don’t really know how you do it, you just do.”

The discussion was a refreshing way to examine Jake’s own experiences as he continues to explore what life is really like in the military, hearing personal reflections from those who continue to serve and sacrifice.

Learn more about the Warrior Resilience Conference.