In My Lifetime

In My Lifetime

In one lifetime a nuclear-armed world emerged, and with it the potential for global destruction on a scale never before possible.
Directed by a former ABC network news executive producer, In My Lifetime provides a comprehensive look at the full scope and impact of the nuclear age from its beginnings to the present day, including the international efforts by citizens, scientists and political leaders to reduce or eliminate the nuclear threat.
Through archival footage and contemporary interviews, In My Lifetime portrays the history of the nuclear era and the complex search for "a way beyond". Filmed in Europe, Japan and the U.S., the movie features international voices from many perspectives and different parts of the history.
Manhattan Project scientists, former military personnel, and survivors of the first atomic bombs remind us how the nuclear age began -- and what we seek to avoid from happening ever again. Central participants and historians recount the major developments that followed: the U.S. – Soviet Cold War, above-ground nuclear testing, the Cuban missile crisis, the historic summits between Reagan and Gorbachev, the spread of nuclear weapons, and nonproliferation efforts.
Through this history, the film attempts to uncover the forces that brought us to the present number of nuclear-armed countries, and the obstacles – both political and human – that have blocked the world from reaching the solution all ultimately desire. An inside view of the debates at a recent UN Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference is especially revealing, clearly showing how difficult it is for the world to move beyond the nuclear status quo.
In My Lifetime challenges viewers to learn from this history and find a way to accomplish what might seem like the impossible, because it is an absolute necessity.

PRESS

Interviews

  • The CTBTO Faces interview is with Robert E. Frye, Emmy award winning producer and director of documentaries and network news programes for over four decades. Frye was interviewed by CTBTO Spokesperson Annika Thunborg in Vienna in May 2012, when his documentary “In My Lifetime” was screened at the United Nations in Vienna. The film tells the story of the long struggle to fight the dangers posed by nuclear weapons. In this interview, he stresses the necessity to educate especially the younger generations and the need to remain both passionate and optimistic about the aim of nuclear abolition.

The In My Lifetime Learner’s Guide is a companion to the documentary In My Lifetime, which is part of The Nuclear World Project.

  • Robert E. Frye is an Emmy award-winning producer of network news programs and independent documentaries for over four decades. Frye was the Executive Producer of ABC World News Tonight with Peter Jennings in 1983.

  • The film includes archival footage of major historical figures, including: Leo Szilard, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Dwight Eisenhower, John F Kennedy, Robert McNamara, Ronald Reagan, Mikhail Gorbachev, Madeline Albright, Richard Perle, George Shultz, Ban Ki Moon and Barack Obama.

    Among the new, contemporary interviews are (partial list):

    Sergio Duarte, High Representative for Disarmament, United Nations Secretariat Jayantha Dhanapala, UN Under Secretary General, Department of Disarmament (1998-2003)

    Mohammed ElBaradei, Director General, International Atomic Energy Agency(IAEA), 1997-2009,Nobel Peace Prize, 2005

    Vigdis Finnbogadottir, President of Iceland 1980 – 1996

    Siegfried Hecker, Director, Los Alamos National Laboratory, 1986-1997 Joseph Masco, University of Chicago, Author, Nuclear Borderlands Shuntaro Hida, M.D., Hiroshima Survivor

    William Potter, Director, James Martin Center for Non-Proliferation Studies, The Monterey Institute of International Studies

    Ellen Wilder Bradbury Reid, Manhattan Project Historian

    Richard Rhodes, Author, Pulitzer Prize Winner, The Twilight of The Bombs

    Hugh Gusterson, Author, Nuclear Rites

    Ola Dahlman, Nuclear Arms Control Negotiator

    Rebecca Johnson, Executive Director, The Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy

    Kennette Benedict, Publisher, The Bulletin of The Atomic Scientists

  • This website includes special features for In my Lifetime regular updates on nuclear weapons developments and additional resources, including historical chronologies, all nuclear arms treaties, relevant articles, speeches, and links to books, publications and other information.

    CARNEGIE COUNCIL FOR ETHICS IN INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS FEATURES FILM WITH DISCUSSION QUESTIONS & BIBLIOGRAPHY:

    CARNEGIE COUNCIL

  • WORLD CHANNEL 6PM and 9PM EDT, July 31, 2015

    In My Lifetime 7pm

    In commemoration of the 70th year of the beginning of the nuclear age with the Trinity Explosion test blast on the 16th of July 1945, followed twenty one days later, on the 6th of August by the dropping of the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima 1945 and three days later on the 9th of August 1945 the Atomic Bomb exploded over Nagasaki.

    WORLD CHANNEL

    6pm and 9pm

    "In My Lifetime thoughtfully and thoroughly examines the 68-year history of nuclear weapons - the most destructive force ever invented. Filmed in Europe, Japan and the U.S., the film focuses on the continuing struggle of citizens, scientists and political leaders working to reduce or eliminate the atomic threat, while others search for ways to build nuclear weapons.

    Anthropology Review – December 2013

    WEB EXCERPT

    “Impressive and rigorous documentary about the evolution of nuclear hazards from the 1940s to today…quite rich and instructive. In My Lifetime is a strong document which should be part of public libraries’ collection.”

    – Anthropology Review Database

    Broadcast on American Public Television

    "Highly recommended. With the end of the Cold War, the dread of global nuclear war and atomic Armageddon seems to have receded. Filmmaker Robert E. Frye (a former ABC News executive) aims to restore a sense of danger and urgency in this insightful documentary....A potent reminder of our technological rather than environmental capacity for self-destruction."

    - Video Librarian

    "Highly Recommended. People often say we live in the 'nuclear age,' but what that means is never entirely clear. This documentary captures that era – from its beginnings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki to the present. The film contains excellent footage and photographs as well as excerpts from U.S. Department of Defense clips."

    - Educational Media Reviews Online

    "Impressive and rigorous documentary about the evolution of nuclear hazards from the 1940s to today...quite rich and instructive. In My Lifetime is a strong document which should be part of public libraries’ collection." FULL REVIEW

    - Anthropology Review Database

    "When North Korea's ...Kim Jong Un threatened to nuke the United States...it seemed like an echo from a distant past. But not that distant, as you'll see in this thoughtful and sometimes harrowing account of the 68-year history of nuclear weapons."

    - Glenn Garvin - Miami Herald

    "One of the best documentaries of the nuclear age I have ever seen".

    - Avner Cohen, Senior Fellow, James Martin Center for Non-Proliferation Studies, The Monterey Institute for Int’l Studies

    "An incredible, thoughtful archival history of the nuclear age, as well as a wake up call that reminds us of the potential peril that awaits the planet if we do not act.."

    - Howard Weinberg, Adjunct Professor, Documentary, Columbia Journalism School

    "A superb pedagogical tool for conveying history and international affairs.... scrupulously avoids manipulation or bias. The editing, content, and delivery seize any audience and create historical context for understanding one of mankind's most pressing challenges. Far from leaving the viewer discouraged, the effect is galvanizing. Both as knowledge transfer and an appeal to action, the film is a masterwork."

    - Daniel Whitman, PhD, Assistant Professor, Foreign Policy, American University; Senior Foreign Service Officer (ret.)

    "A superb presentation of the history of nuclear weapons from 1945 to the present, including the latest concerns about nuclear proliferation. But more than this, it is a moving portrait of the human costs of these outsize weapons and a clarion call for action to end the scourge"

    - Professor Steven P. Lee, Hobart and William Smith Colleges Author "Morality, Prudence and Nuclear Weapons"

    "A powerful and persuasive film. Beautifully done. Shows the effects of nuclear weapons and the consequences on both the commonweal and on individual conscience. (The) film is haunting compelling and I marvel at its mastery of the subject and its personal attraction."

    - William Lanouette, Author, Genius in the Shadows (a biography of Leo Szilard)

    "For diplomats of my generation, it was a miracle that the Cold War ended. In My Lifetime demonstrates that the nuclear threat itself did not end, and is still hanging over us. Without prescribing what must be done, this brilliant documentary lays down a clear challenge to current and future policy-makers."

    - John Marshall Evans, former United States Ambassador

    "A chilling birds eye survey of the history of nuclear weapons, displaying iconic and terrifying stills and footage from Hiroshima and after."

    - Film Columbia

    "A very impressive piece of work and a powerful, intelligent and truthful depiction of the realities of nuclear weapons."

    - Jackie Cabasso, Director, Western States Legal Foundation

    "An impressive attempt to present the issues surrounding nuclear weapons....It is the product of detailed research and interviews gained through a long career as a TV journalist. His copious use of archival footage vividly recreates the past and shows how the world entered the nuclear age."

    - Joanne Bazely, Secretary, Wimbledon CND

  • APT Programming Excellence Award

    In My Lifetime receives American Public Television’s “APT Programming Excellence Award”

    Silver World Medal Award, The New York Festival's International Film and Television Awards

    Gold Award, Documentary/Historical Event, Aurora Awards

    OFFICIAL SELECTION

    Berkshire International Film Festival

    Global Peace Film Festival

    FilmColumbia Festival

    SPECIAL SELECTION

    Doc Market, Vision du Reel Festival, Nyon

    World Premiere Broadcast - Icelandic Television (RUV)

Director's Statement

Credits

Foundations

Christian A. Johnson Endeavor Foundation

Anna Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation

The Nathan Cummings Foundation

In Memory Of

Hila Richardson and Rebecca Klasfeld

in loving memory of David Klasfeld

Additional Support

Marma Foundation

hilip Oppenheimer and Mary Close

Personal Contributions

David H. Koch

Donald Glascoff

Hildegarde Ercklentz Mahoney

Fiscal Sponsor