{"id":70944,"date":"2024-01-16T11:55:33","date_gmt":"2024-01-16T18:55:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/?p=70944"},"modified":"2024-01-16T13:13:06","modified_gmt":"2024-01-16T20:13:06","slug":"kiss-the-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/kiss-the-future\/","title":{"rendered":"War, U2 and the desire to make a difference"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Like all young people, Northern Arizona University students sometimes feel uncertain about the future. One of their professors can relate.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Nearly 30 years ago, after experiencing a painful loss, <\/span><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">Bill Carter<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\"> made the spontaneous decision to leave his life in the United States, travel to the Balkans and commit to doing whatever he could to help local people embroiled in the Yugoslav Wars. He had $200 in his pocket, next to no humanitarian work experience and no clue where his life was headed.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cI didn\u2019t know what I was doing; I was a wounded creature,\u201d Carter said. \u201cWhen you lose someone you love, you don\u2019t know where to put your feelings. You can go down some bad roads: substance abuse, isolation. I wanted to use this pent-up energy I had to at least help people.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Carter, now a professor of practice at NAU\u2019s School of Communication, said that youthful decision continues to open doors to life-changing opportunities, even 30 years later. To wit: He recently worked with producers Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Sarah Anthony and the band U2 on the documentary film \u201cKiss the Future,\u201d which tells the story of the bloody Siege of Sarajevo and U2\u2019s efforts to raise awareness of the conflict. The new film, directed by Nenad Cicin-Sain, was written by Carter and is based on his 2004 book \u201cFools Rush In.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>(Editor&#8217;s note: The trailer below contains some profanity.)<\/em><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Kiss the Future new clip official from Berlin Film Festival 2023\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/rYXhA6AtXrM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cKiss the Future\u201d hasn\u2019t yet been widely released, but the NAU and Flagstaff communities can attend a special pre-screening and discussion of the film at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 23,<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> in the Cline Library assembly hall on NAU\u2019s Flagstaff campus. The event, part of the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/nau.edu\/college-arts-letters\/events\/film-series\/\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">College of Arts and Letters Film Series<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\">, is free and open to the public.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Carter may rub shoulders with A-listers today, but his beginnings in Sarajevo\u2014now the capital of\u202fBosnia and Herzegovina\u2014were humble: As a member of The Serious Road Trip, a humanitarian organization that brought aid and entertainment-based therapy to people in need, he drove trucks and delivered food and supplies dressed as a clown.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Then, he got a truly insane idea: Why not get a hold of U2, the biggest band in the world, and see if they wanted to help?<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cBono responded,\u201d Carter said. \u201cHe listened to what I had to say about what was happening in Sarajevo: the hunger, the daily shelling and sniper attacks, the underground music and art scene where people went to protect their sanity. U2 agreed to put Bosnians on air, live, and do\u202fsatellite feeds into their shows as they toured Europe. This would have been difficult under any circumstances, but from a besieged city with no electricity, no food, no water supplies and no gas, this was a huge undertaking. It speaks volumes to who they are as a band, and as humans.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_70947\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-70947\" style=\"width: 400px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-70947\" src=\"http:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wordpresst\/uploads\/sites\/153\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Bono-Bill-Edge-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Bill Carter posing with Bono and The Edge from U2\" width=\"400\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/402\/2024\/01\/Bono-Bill-Edge-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/402\/2024\/01\/Bono-Bill-Edge-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/402\/2024\/01\/Bono-Bill-Edge-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/402\/2024\/01\/Bono-Bill-Edge-1536x2048.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-70947\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Bill Carter, center, worked with U2 band members The Edge, left, and Bono, right, on the documentary film &#8220;Kiss the Future.&#8221;<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">The footage, broadcast to thousands of fans packed into massive arenas, featured interviews with Sarajevo residents who described their daily lives in the midst of war. U2 fans spread the word, and their activism led to increased international news coverage. When the Bosnian War came to an end in 1995 after a series of massacres that shocked the world, U2 made good on a promise to play in Sarajevo. At that now-legendary concert, parts of which are featured in the new film, Bono urged the crowd to put the past behind them and \u201ckiss the future.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Carter said his experience working with Bosnians on the satellite broadcasts showed him the incredible power of people who pool their skills and talents to fight for a cause.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cIt\u2019s one of the messages in \u2018Kiss the Future\u2019: Each of us has something to contribute,\u201d Carter said. \u201cMaybe you\u2019re the best cook in your apartment block and you can make everyone breakfast with very limited supplies. Maybe you\u2019re a puppeteer who can distract the children from the sounds of shooting next door. One Bosnian named Gino, who is in the film, put on a performance of \u2018Hair\u2019 every day for 1,000 days. The film is really about people who keep each other going in all these different ways, through art, culture, poetry readings and music being played in underground clubs.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Whether you\u2019re hauling sacks of potatoes or documenting the crisis through film, Carter said, you\u2019re making a positive impact\u2014and that\u2019s what he emphasizes to his NAU students each semester as they embark on storytelling projects about pressing social issues both global and close to home.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u201cI think a lot of students believe they are too young and inexperienced to make a difference,\u201d Carter said. \u201cI had just turned 27 when I arrived in Sarajevo. What my experience can teach them is that you can do something, even if you have no money and no expertise. Don\u2019t undersell the power of your original ideas.\u201d<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-56007\" src=\"http:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wordpresst\/uploads\/sites\/153\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/NAU_primary-281_3514.png\" alt=\"Northern Arizona University Logo\" width=\"134\" height=\"95\" srcset=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/402\/2019\/06\/NAU_primary-281_3514.png 905w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/402\/2019\/06\/NAU_primary-281_3514-300x213.png 300w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/402\/2019\/06\/NAU_primary-281_3514-768x546.png 768w, https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/402\/2019\/06\/NAU_primary-281_3514-600x426.png 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 134px) 100vw, 134px\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\"><br \/>\nJill Kimball | NAU Communications<br \/>\n(928) 523-2282 | <a href=\"mailto:jill.kimball@nau.edu\">j<\/a>ill.kimball@nau.edu<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><a class=\"search-results-excerpt-link\" href=\"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/kiss-the-future\/\">Like all young people, Northern Arizona University students sometimes feel uncertain about the future. One of their professors can relate.\u00a0 Nearly 30 years ago, after experiencing a painful loss, Bill Carter made the spontaneous decision to leave his life in the United States, travel to the Balkans and commit to doing whatever he could to&hellip;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":95,"featured_media":70955,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-70944","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-campus-community"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70944","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/95"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=70944"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/70944\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/70955"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=70944"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=70944"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=70944"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}