Is a documentary about the war in Iraq inherently political? Richard Robbins (left), director of the International Documentary Festival Amsterdam opening night film "Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience," noted Friday that he hoped to craft a film focused more on the humanity of American soldiers fighting in Iraq, rather than the divisive issues surrounding the conflict. The film merges letters and other writing from soldiers (voiced by notable actors) with animation and illustrations to tell the stories of the troops' experiences in Iraq. But how could a film about Iraq leave out an exploration of the deeper issues or the soldier's opinions, probed Q & A moderator Debbie Zimmerman of U.S. based Women Make Movies, at IDFA's first nightly Talkshow discussion. "That's a different film," defended producer Tom Yellin (right), adding, "That's not the film that we set out to make." Talking about, "the politics of the war avoids having to talk about the human implications," Robbins explained, noting that the movie, which is on the short list for the documentary Oscar, has been embraced by both supporters and opponents of the Iraq war. And concluding, Robbins -- his voice hoarse -- explained that he maintains strong opinions about the war (even though he declined to share them) and added that he still views his movie as, "an incredibly political film." [Eugene Hernandez]