AMERICAN VETERAN is Julie Cohen’s portrait of Army Sergeant Nick Mendes, who was paralyzed from the neck down by a massive improvised explosive device in Afghanistan in 2011, when he was 21. The film follows Nick through the five-year period after his injury—from the V.A. hospital bed to the fully accessible home where he now lives with his new wife Wendy, a medical caregiver he met in the hospital. Presented in an unflinching, closeup style, the film brings us into Nick’s world as he studies for a real estate license and learns how to excel in his new life.
Julie Cohen is an award-winning filmmaker and producer with eight feature-length documentaries to her credit. Her films include “The Sturgeon Queens,” “American Veteran,” and “Ndiphilela Ukucula: I Live to Sing,” which won a New York Emmy Award. She co-directed the documentary feature "RBG" which had its world premiere at Sundance 2018 and has continued touring the festival circuit.
