F.D.

Firefighters know they face danger--and even death--every time they go to work. Why do they risk their lives for strangers? In F.D., firefighters speak from the heart as they explore the answer to that question. To make F.D., Paul Schwartz followed the Santa Rosa Fire Department from April 2001 to August 2002, sometimes staying with a station house for 24 hours a day. This award-winning film is an intimate look at the firefighters' highly-charged daily routine of responding to calls, living together at the fire house, and struggling to leave the job behind as they return to their families. Through individual interviews, the men and women of the SRFD reflect on the meaning of it all, as they talk candidly about the intensity of their experiences and challenge of coping with the constant stress that comes with the job. F.D.