The Holocaust. Even now, the images make you want to turn away: the emaciated bodies in the concentration camps; the black-and-white footage of a frothing Adolph Hitler; a frail grandfather with his distant stare, recalling searing memories of a time he can't forget. . . 

But how will kids today ever manage to relate to such hellish recollections when even the few remaining survivors of the Holocaust—now in their 80s—will be no more?

One enduring testament might be a critically acclaimed student documentary. Thanks to an educator's commitment to teaching and his students' passion for filmmaking, younger generations won't soon forget this tragic history.

Three years ago, Doug Green, now a broadcasting teacher at Carlsbad High School (CHS) in Carlsbad, Calif., was commissioned by the Department of Defense to teach American educators on U.S. air bases in Germany about broadcasting. During his stay, he visited Dachau, the first Nazi concentration camp opened in pre-World War II Germany.

"Having taught 8th grade English previously and introduced 8th graders to the Holocaust via The Diary of Anne Frank, I knew there needed to be a more effective way of introducing the Holocaust to young people," Green said. "I came upon the idea of returning [to Dachau] with students and challenging them to take their digital storytelling skills and help tell the story of the Holocaust through their own eyes."

From there, Green and a group of students developed the idea of creating a documentary called "We Must Remember." Students (only one of whom was Jewish) were chosen based on personal essays they wrote describing why they wanted to participate in the project. Green made one thing clear to both students and parents: To make a documentary on the Holocaust, filming on location was crucial.
"From a filmmaking point of view, it was essential that the students travel to these places…I wanted my students to walk the same grounds, explore the barracks, see the gas chambers and crematoriums. This was needed for them to honestly tell their story."

For students, this meant taking weekly German-language lessons, doing research, and raising $3,600 for their trip to Germany. For Green, it represented a personal test.

"As a broadcasting teacher who teaches students to produce short 90-minute packages for the daily show, I was looking for an additional challenge. For students, the Holocaust is simply not in their frame of reference, and most documentary films are not engaging for young people."

Confronting history

With a commitment from the beginning to create a film with production values worthy of network television, the team purchased two JVC 720p High Definition cameras and shot the film at 24 frames per second to give it a "filmic" look. The production team had the opportunity to meet and interview Holocaust survivors living in their local California community.