‘When he came home from Vietnam, he didn’t wanna stay, he was gonna go back…‘

Gay film director Peter McDowell was only 5 years old when his enigmatic older brother Jimmy died in Saigon having returned to Vietnam as a civilian after his US military service.

Why did he go back? What happened to Jimmy in Vietnam? And how did he die?

An uneasy veil of family silence around Jimmy’s story prompts Peter to embark on a journey of questioning with a trusty camera in tow. Through hundreds of Jimmy’s letters, long-kept secrets and an unexpectedly close-to-home revelation, the truth about Jimmy’s life and death delivers a startling real-time documentary triumph.

A decade in the making, spanning continents, with a lifetime of questioning to make up for, Jimmy In Saigon is a heart-wrenching but ultimately life-affirming reconciliation with the truth.

If you believe life is stranger than fiction, and you like a good weep, you should let Jimmy In Saigon into your heart.

For lovers of… We Were Here, Coming Out Under Fire

Pre-Feature Short:

The Fishing Net

Dir. Anna Palinkas / Hungary / 2022 / 15m

Budapest, 1953, an era of spies and unease. Andras, a doctor and family man, is interrogated by Secret Police who have discovered his dangerous hidden life.