DEAR SIRS FILM
  • Dear Sirs Home
  • Screening Events
  • Store
  • Educational
  • The Story
  • The Route
  • Contact
  • Supporters
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Tickets are free for Veterans with code DEARVETS
Reserve Tickets
Picture
La Crosse Premiere
With Filmmaker Q&A
6:30 pm ​October 10, 2023

Weber Center for the Performing Arts
Tickets are free for Veterans with code DEARVETS
Reserve Tickets
Picture

From Audiences

From Audiences

To say, as a Soldier, I was emotional, is a complete understatement. I have never seen such a compelling documentary that hit me in the gut and in the heart. It is an incredible American story!
-- ​Ed Lundeen, Lexington, South Carolina
​   Master Sergeant Retired, United States Army, Lexington County Veterans’ Service Officer

I can’t name another time when 4 generations of people sat in the same room for 90 minutes, transfixed on a film.
​-- 
Joel and Jean Miller Wernersville, Pennsylvania
The film was heart rendering... A must see.
​-- Clarence, Sheridan, WY Screening
This is a very personal and riveting movie that is a “must see” opportunity all Americans should view!
​-- Susan Kruse, Metz, France Screening
It brought tears to my eyes.
​-- ​​Derek, Ansbach, Germany
Haunting, just can’t stop turning it over in one’s mind; in the way that truly classic films stay with a person. 
-- Lloyd, Jackson Hole, WY Screening, son of a WWII Veteran
It’s an amazing story. Take your friends.
-- Kim, Rock Springs, WY 
Dear Sirs is beautifully done.
​-- Lillian, North Little Rock, Arkansas
A timeless film.
​-- Emergency War Surgeon, Jackson Hole, WY Screening
Such an inspiring story.
--The America Center, Hamburg
After seeing the documentary, Silvio’s story made a major impact on me, made some of my Vietnam experiences easier to accept now and has helped to heal me mentally from the Vietnam war. Thank you Silvio Pedri for your service and all you have done and thanks Mark for sharing his story so others might benefit from the trials and tribulations that your Grandfather had.
--Sgt Richard Reiter, 218th MP Co Nha Trang Vietnam, April 68-April 69
Picture

Watch the Trailer

About the Film

Despite working with him for years, filmmaker Mark Pedri never learned the details of his grandfather’s experiences as a Prisoner of War in WWII. Ten years after Sgt Silvio’s death, Mark found an incredible archive of photos and letters which inspired him to bike over 800km across Europe to retrace his grandfather’s harrowing journey and better understand the man who raised him.

Originally created to save just one story, Dear Sirs has shown its ability to inspire audiences to share and preserve the stories closest to them. We have seen the power of this film to awaken empathy, compassion, and trust through the sharing of deeply personal wartime experiences. Dear Sirs has proven to be a catalyst to bring family, friends, and communities together to connect with the veterans closest to them which, in turn, helps bridge the gap between civilians and veterans.

Dear Sirs has been invited to screen at film festivals, museums, conferences, universities, high schools, cultural centers, and US military bases across the country and around the world. As a testament to the power of the story told in Dear Sirs, the US Embassy in Berlin and Paris have both sponsored screening tours of the film. Dear Sirs was featured as the opening film for the 2022 GI Film Festival in San Diego and was awarded the prize for Best Documentary Feature. The film will have its national PBS premiere in November 2023.

About the Filmmakers

About the Filmmakers

Picture
Mark Pedri (director) formerly of Sundance Institute and Dr. Carrie McCarthy (producer) formerly of the University of Southern California in Los Angeles have been making documentary films together for more than ten years. Focusing on stories from off the beaten path, their films have screened at festivals worldwide, on national PBS, on major streaming platforms, and in international screening tours.

Since the completion of Dear Sirs, Mark and Carrie have traveled with the film to more than 50 screenings across the U.S. and Europe.
Dear Sirs is a film that must be shared with all generations. The story of Silvio J. Pedri makes us understand the magnitude of his and his generation's effort during World War II. Filmmakers Mark and Carrie lovingly and accurately portrayed the history of Silvio, a POW, while at the same time, fully engaging the audience. Well done, is far too little to say about this remarkable film. 
-- Val Burgess, WWII POW Historian, Archivist, Educator and Speaker
Dear Sirs is a film that must be shared with all generations. The story of Silvio J. Pedri makes us understand the magnitude of his and his generation's effort during World War II. Filmmakers Mark and Carrie lovingly and accurately portrayed the history of Silvio, a POW, while at the same time, fully engaging the audience. Well done, is far too little to say about this remarkable film. 
-- Val Burgess, WWII POW Historian, Archivist, Educator and Speaker
Contact
Share a WWII Story
Make a Tax-deductible Donation to the Film
  • Dear Sirs Home
  • Screening Events
  • Store
  • Educational
  • The Story
  • The Route
  • Contact
  • Supporters