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Film Follows Iraqi Translator And Torture Victim To New Life In US

Director, Erin Palmquist, Ghazwan Alsharif and Ghazwan's Army friend Tom Stewart pictured in 2008.
Courtesy of Erin Palmquist
Director, Erin Palmquist, Ghazwan Alsharif and Ghazwan's Army friend Tom Stewart pictured in 2008.

When filmmaker Erin Palmquist met Gazwan Alsharif some 10 years ago, his story seemed at once compelling and dramatic.

The day after the arrest of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, Alsharif, a translator for the U.S. Army, was also arrested, suspected of passing information on the U.S. military to Iraqi tribesmen.

He was tortured for several weeks and then suddenly let go with an apology.

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To Erin Palmquist, his story, complete with physical danger, family drama, upheaval, culture shock, and ultimate success was worth telling.

The film "From Baghdad To The Bay," 10 years in the making, is the result.

The film will screen at the GI Film Festival Friday at 6 p.m.

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