The Keeper
Heavily impacted by his fellow veteran's suicides, George Eshleman (Angus Benfield), an Army Veteran, decides to help raise awareness for military member suicides by hiking the entire nearly 2,200-mile Appalachian Trail from Maine to Georgia. On the trek, he carries 363 name tapes from the uniforms of military members who committed suicide, given to him by their families.
Along the way he is given the trail name of “The Keeper” (of the names) and finds support and comfort from fellow hikers, civilians, and military Veterans alike, in the "Hiker Universe.” This adventurous subculture forms a network of hikers that revel in their common purpose and an unspoken meaning of life that drives them down the trail and over the next peak.
From the beginning, George meets four unique, military Veteran hikers (Michael Maclane, Haley Babula, Andrew Ferguson, Nicholas Asad), who shadow his hike, motivate his efforts, and seem to keep tabs on him from beginning to end. Despite the support of fellow hikers and Veterans for his noble mission, his own depression threatens to overtake his judgement as he plots his own suicide along the trail. With his darkness only a few paces from his mind, George fights a daily battle along the trail as he struggles to prove his mettle, conquer his depression, and focus on the mission of finishing the trail.
Based on a true story.
| Director: | Angus Benfield, Kendall Bryant Jr. |
| Studio: | LAMA Entertainment |
| Producer(s): | Angus Benfield, Ruth Benfield, Kendall Bryant Jr., Steven Lafferty |
| Cast: | Angus Benfield, Michael Maclane, Haley Babula, Andrew Ferguson, Nicholas Asad, Carrie Keating, Bailey McCann |
| Writer(s): | Todd Tavolazzi |
