by
David Hooper
By Karolina Powalka
Documentary filmmaker David Hooper has had a great deal of success over the span of his professional life.
Hooper, who was born in Argentina and grew up in the Detroit area, has built several businesses from the ground-up turning them into multi-million dollar companies.
A few years ago, though he began a new venture.
Hooper began doing research on Sept. 11, 2001 and the events leading up to that day.
What he found, in his words, was hard to process. He continued reading and downloading information, but as he dove farther into the material, his family and friends stepped away.
Hoping to salvage these relationships, Hooper decided to make a documentary about what he found and his personal journey.
The result is "The Anatomy of a Great Deception," that premiered at the Fillmore in Detroit on Friday night.
Not everyone buys into his suggestions of conspiracy involving our government. But he has his followers as was evident at the premiere Friday night.
DD: Many people have posed questions about what actually happened Sept 11. How did you go from that point to making a full film on the topic?
It was a slow-moving accident. I would try to show my wife and close friends different websites, technical reports and videos, but I would lose them. This film was my way to resurrect my credibility with those people. It was the only way I could effectively communicate the subject to them because if I made a film, they had to sit down and watch it.
DD: What was the process like in making the film?
It happened in an unnatural order. Before I had an inkling that I would make this film, I was downloading information. I thought I would write a couple articles and even maybe a book, but it wasn’t having the impact I wanted. With something like this, I needed a visual to back up the story.
David Hooper at his premiere on Friday night.
DD: How would you describe the film?
This film is a documentary-type analysis of the towers on 9/11. I put the movie in order of the questions that I had asked myself. It’s my personal story embedded into scientific research. I talk about the problems I had with the relationships in my life. Then in my private screenings I saw the switch from doubters to believers and the idea emerged to make this a movie.
DD: What would you say to someone who feels that you are for lack of a better term being un-American by questioning what happened on 9/11?
Number one, I would say that I agree that our government would never do this. I believe that certain people occupying positions in the government did. I don’t consider those people Americans. From the beginning, our country was built by risk-takers in opposition of tyranny. This is an extension of that. I think it is American and patriotic to delve into this topic. I also try to understand the cognitive dissonance people have when they first are exposed to the topic. I was there and I too, had issues understanding it all. I think this is what a 21st century soldier looks like. Our generation hasn’t had a really big war. This might be it. Instead of guns and bullets, it’s a war with information and technology.
DD: What is your overall goal with the documentary?
The movie is meant to pose questions and comes to hardly any conclusions. It’s meant to serve as an introduction to the topic in a gentle, entertaining way without being offensive. I think there have been enough screenings at this point, where I can say it’s not offensive.
DD: Will you make more documentaries? If so, what would the discussion involve?
I think so. I definitely have the filmmaking bug. I still have a great deal to learn, but I am interested. I am open to wherever this documentary making journey leads me.
Learn more about the film and David Hooper at the film’s website.
