The Brothers At War Workshop uses the power of film, guided reflection, and honest conversation to help service members and their families talk about the experiences they often carry alone. Built around the award-winning documentary Brothers At War, the workshop creates a safe, meaningful space to reflect on deployment, reintegration, family, resilience, and the challenges of coming home.
Created by director and producer Jake Rademacher, the workshop uses documentary storytelling as a catalyst for journaling, practical resilience skills, and facilitated group discussion. Led by military-connected Resilience Trainers, the experience helps participants reconnect with themselves, their families, and their community through an insider’s lens.
The Brothers At War Workshop has reached more than 60,000 service members and family members over the last two decades. Gary Sinise has championed the mission from the beginning, sponsoring the first tour, and the Gary Sinise Foundation now helps make these workshops available to military units and families.
For Service Members and their families currently serving in the military
Brothers At War Movie Trailer
Brothers At War Workshop
About the Workshop
Movies make tough subjects easier to talk about. For many service members and families, Brothers At War opens the door to conversations about service, sacrifice, stress, transition, and the emotional weight of coming home.
The workshop is not a lecture or traditional military briefing. It is an interactive, trauma-informed experience that combines film scenes, journaling, psychoeducation, resilience skills, and facilitated discussion. Participants are invited to reflect privately, listen to others, and share when they are ready.
The workshop focuses on post-traumatic growth, family communication, emotional resilience, and the importance of community support during the reintegration process. A peer-reviewed Pepperdine University study found that participants responded strongly to the program’s film-assisted storytelling, military-connected facilitation, community connection, and family-inclusive approach.
Film Synopsis
In Brothers At War, director Jake Rademacher risks everything — including his life — to tell his brothers’ story. Often humorous, sometimes dangerous, and deeply personal, the film follows Jake as he embeds with four combat units in Iraq.
The result is a rare and intimate look at the bonds of service, the courage of America’s warfighters, and the profound impact their service has on the families they leave behind.
Sample Brothers At War Workshop Schedule
Introduction —15 minutes
Feature Film: Brothers At War — 1 Hour and 45 Minutes
Discussion — 1 hour and 15 minutes
Lunch Provided by the Gary Sinise Foundation — 45 minutes
Short Films, Journaling & Discussion — 2 hours
Supporting documents about our Workshops:
“The documentary film, BROTHERS AT WAR celebrates the courage and integrity of the American Service Member and the American Military Family. The Workbooks and the Workshop grew out of their reactions to the film, as an opportunity for them to tell their own stories. I am proud to be part of this project that has helped so many take the next step in their journey home and helped bring many families back together.”