American Sons
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Haunted by a deadly deployment to Afghanistan, a Marine Brotherhood reunites on a mission to heal.
Houston — join us this Saturday, January 31 for a special screening of the PBS documentary American Sons at Rice University / Rice Cinema.
American Sons is a powerful PBS VOCES documentary that follows a brotherhood of U.S. Marines more than a decade after their deployment to Afghanistan as they reconnect, grieve, and search for healing after the loss of their brother, Cpl. Jorge “JV” Villarreal. Told in part through JV’s own video diaries, the film offers an intimate look at sacrifice, trauma, and the enduring bonds forged in war.
🎥 Screening begins at 7:00 PM, followed by a Q&A with filmmaker Andrew James Gonzales and producer Elizabeth Avellán.
📍 Rice Cinema, Sarofim Hall
🎟 Free and open to the public (tickets required – link in bio)
We cordially invite you to join us for this special evening of film and conversation.
A co-production of Latino Public Broadcasting and Black Public Media , with major funding provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
This project was made possible with support from California Humanities , a non-profit partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Additional support provided by the Jacquie Jones Memorial Fund and the AirPower Foundation
01/21/2026
Tomorrow San Francisco January 22, 6 PM at the Marine Memorial Theatre. Meet Producer, Laura Varela producer, Director, Andrew Gonzales, and film participant Billy Branch (India Battery 3/12). 
Marines’ Memorial Theatre: American Sons film screening and Q&A with the Director and Producer American Sons is a PBS documentary that has been screened at prestigious film festivals such as SXSW. The film is a profoundly intimate documentary that
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American Sons Go To War
American Sons focuses on the life and death of San Antonio-born Corporal Jorge “JV” Villareal, Jr. and the men from India Battery, 1st Battalion, 11th Marines, who served, fought and died with him in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan on October 17, 2010. Through verité, interviews, reenactments and recovered footage JV shot himself, this film explores what these men endured during those years and how they are living a decade after the heroic act that claimed his life.
For these men, life continues to be a war as they fight to adapt to civilian life in the country they fought so hard for. Though much has happened, they are still fighting these battles the same way — together.
