The University of Tennessee Issues Committee will be showing the documentary "Inside Iraq: The Untold Stories" on Thursday, April 17, at 7:30 p.m. in the UC Auditorium. A question-and-answer session with Mike Shiley, the film's creator, will follow.

Shiley, who is not a professionally trained journalist, struck a deal with a local ABC television station in December 2003 to bring back stories about the troops in Iraq. The 90-minute film details Shiley's two-month journey inside Iraq, where he interviewed soldiers and local citizens, often at great personal risk. He equipped himself with only a digital video camera, a homemade press pass and a single number written on a piece of paper for the trip, according to the film's Web site.

His film seeks to describe the reality of life in Iraq by giving context to the stories we hear about in the news, according to the site. A description in the synopsis of the film reads:

"A car bomb explodes, and Shiley runs to the scene, camera in hand to capture the grim aftermath. Later he learns a typical strategy of suicide bombers is to detonate a second bomb after people gather in reaction to the first. The shock of experiencing this kind of violence doesn't go away easily or quickly, but Shiley continues capturing footage in Baghdad."

The film also portrays the situation in Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq, where citizens' newfound prosperity has fostered loyalty toward the U.S.

The film's site claims the documentary doesn't try to push a particular political point of view, but rather tries to catch a vast array of real-life scenes that portray reality as closely as possible.

Click here to view a trailer of the film.