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# Teenagers document effects of Vietnam War
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/teenagers-document-effects-of-vietnam-war-2/
- Published: 2007-06-21T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T01:14:33.000Z
- Author: Melody Hanatani
- Tags: Opinion, Ocean Park, #archive-import, Homeless

OCEAN PARK Not all lessons are learned in the classroom.

Armed with just a simple handheld camcorder, Olympic High School students Marina Magallanes and Brenda Morales captured the stories of two local Vietnam War veterans and the differences in the quality of their lives in a documentary titled “Remnants of Vietnam.”

The compelling accounts of the two veterans — one a homeless man residing in the bathroom of an auto repair shop, the other a Santa Monica Police Department detective — earned Magallanes and Morales the praise of local film critics, the Santa Monica Budding Filmmaker Award at the Second Annual Santa Monica Teen Film Festival (SMTFF) awarded on June 16.

The award earned the two girls — Morales a graduating senior and Magallanes an incoming senior — a trophy, $350 gift certificate to Best Buy and a day on the set of the forthcoming film “Jack and the Beanstalk.”

“They juxtapose these two people and experiences in war and makes you think about the wide ranging ramifications... of how war affects people and the aftermath of war and how different people coped,” said Justin Yoffe, the producer of the film festival.

Perhaps more meaningful to these teenagers than the shiny new trophy and ticket to Renmar Studios in Hollywood is the lesson they learned in the process — war affects soldiers in different ways, some being able to handle the mental anguish more than others.

It was during the fall of 2006 when the two friends began considering an entry to the SMTFF, exploring different topics until Magallanes’ mother suggested an in-depth look at Vietnam War veterans.

With the help of a school mentor, the two students were able to get in contact with Abraham, a veteran who has lived in the bathroom of a Lincoln Boulevard auto repair shop since 1978, and Rene Talbot, a detective with the Santa Monica Police Department. No last name was given for Abraham,Magallanes said.

“Each got scarred deeply from the war,” Magallanes said.

The documentary features the teenagers’ interviews with Abraham, slouched back on the bathroom sink counter wearing a faded blue shirt that says “hang loose,” and Talbot, sitting in a formal

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/062107-19_01.jpg)

LOCAL GIG: Kemo the Blaxican is set to perform at Zanzibar in Santa Monica on June 27\. (Photo: Photo courtesy Sal Rojas)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 21, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/062107.pdf?ref=smdp.com)