The documentary film about the project was officially released in 2004. This film's genesis lies with Rachel Pinchot who initially saw an article about the Whitwell Middle School in
The Washington Post. She took the idea of a film to her husband, Ari Pinchot, of The Johnson Group. The Johnson Group sent a team led by directors
Joe Fab and Elliot Berlin to Whitwell to film key moments, such as the arrival of several Holocaust survivors from New York who shared their experiences with the community. They accumulated about 150 hours of footage over the course of the project. Out of that footage, Berlin created a seven-minute presentation which he sent to
Matthew Hiltzik, then head of communications at
Miramax. Hiltzik was impressed by the demo and showed it to the head of Miramax, convinced that the project was worth a full-length documentary. The film was produced by Fab, Hiltzik, Pinchot, and Robert M. Johnson. Ergo Entertainment helped to produce the film, with its partners Donny Epstein, Yeeshai Gross, and Elie Landau joining the project as executive producers. The film was described as being not yet another movie showing the tragedy, but a project of hope and inspiration. The movie features interviews with students, teachers, Holocaust survivors, and people who sent paper clips. It also shows how the railcar traveled from Germany to Baltimore, and then Whitwell. The movie was shown for the first time in November 2003 in Whitwell. ==Awards==