Jack Niedenthal
Title: Trust Liaison for the People of Bikini Atoll (hired by the Bikinians)
Born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA
Dual citizen of the U.S. & the Marshall Islands
Educated: University of Arizona (1978-80)
B.S. degree in Business Economics, cum laude with Academic Distinction, elected to the Beta Gamma Sigma National Honor Society for Business Majors
Clarion University of Pennsylvania (1975-77)
Vice President of Student Senate, NCAA All American swimmer (1976) & PSAC State Champion (1977)
PADI Divemaster, IANTD wreck diver
Peace Corps Volunteer, Namu Atoll, 1981-84
Certificate from the Guam Legislature recognizing various contributions to the Marshall Islands and Micronesia, presented by Guam Senator Sam Mabini in Guam in September of 2011.
Voluntary Public Service and other positions in the Marshall Islands and Micronesia:
Current positions held:
*Currently serves as the Chairman of the Board for the Marshall Islands Social Security Administration [MISSA] (Vice-Chairman from 2000-2003, Chairman from January 2003-present). Reappointed for a fourth three year term in January 2009.
MISSA NEWS:
Marshall Islands Social Security Administration Quadrennial Report [2000-2004]in PDF.
*Elected and currently serves as President of the Majuro Cooperative School (October 2003-present, serving 5th two year term). Also, voluntarily serves as webmaster for the Majuro Cooperative School website.
*Elected and currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Bank of the Marshall Islands. Sits as the Chairman of the Audit Committee. (Elected for the April 2003-2004 term, and then reelected each year from 2004-2011).
*Selected by the Marshall Islands government to serve a 3 year term on the College of the Marshall Islands [CMI] as a Regent on the Board of Directors, (October 2004-2007, reappointed for a second term, January 2008-2011, and a third term, 2011-2014), Chair of the 2005, 2009 & 2011 CMI Presidential Selection Committees, elected Secretary/Treasurer of the Board and has been reelected to this position each year since September 2005, sits as the Finance Committee Chairman for the Board and is also a member of the CMI Planning Committee and the CMI Bid Committee.
*Serves on the Board for the Prior Service Trust Fund Administration for Micronesia (2005--present)
*Charter Member of the National Language Service Corps (NLSC) as a Marshallese speaker (March 2009-April 2010).
*Founder of Microwave Films of the Marshall Islands, a community based film production company in the Marshall Islands, (May 2008 to present). Film Threat Interview in March of 2010 with Jack Niedenthal regarding Microwave Films and making movies in the Marshall Islands. Interview with Directors/Producers Jack Niedenthal & Suzanne Chutaro for the Guam International Film Festival Website, September 17, 2011
Past positions held:
*Peace Corps Volunteer, Namu Atoll, 1981-84 (2 years of service + 1 year extention)
*Elected and served as the Majuro Cooperative School PTA President for the 2002-2003 school year (October 2002)
*Elected and served as Treasurer of the Majuro Cooperative School (October 2003-Sept. 2007), Vice-President, 2007-2009, currently serving as Board Member and President.
*Served as Vice President of the Marshall Islands Chamber of Commerce for 2005.
*Served as a Board member and Vice Chairman for the Prior Service Trust Fund Administration for Micronesia (January 2003--March 2004), Chairman for (March 2004--March 2005)
*Elected and served as the President of the Marshall Islands Chamber of Commerce (January 2006-January 2008 for a two year term), also currently voluntarily serves as the webmaster for the Marshall Islands Chamber of Commerce website.
*Selected by the Marshall Islands Chamber of Commerce to serve on the President's Economic Advisory Council, Aug. 2007-January 2008.
*Served as Chairman of the Board for the Marshall Islands Service Corporation. (July 2006--September 2008)
*Selected by Marshall Islands President Litokwa Tomeing and the Cabinet to serve on a Commission of Inquiry into the 2007 General election, February of 2008. Read the FINAL REPORT OF THE COMMISSION OF INQUIRY.
*Appointed to the "Comprehensive Adjustment Program Advisory Group" by the Cabinet of the RMI government (April 2009).
Having lived, studied and worked in the Marshall Islands from 1981 until the present, he speaks fluent Marshallese. His wife, Regina, is a Bikini islander. They have five children, two of them by adoption, and one grandson.
His first six years in the Marshalls were all spent in the isolated jungles of the outer islands. He was a Peace Corps volunteer on Namu Atoll (1981-84). He then contracted to work with the Bikini Council on Kili Island (1984-late 1986) teaching English to the adults, teaching in the elementary school and working with the Kili/Bikini/Ejit Local Government Council.
After the death of former Trust Liaison, Ralph Waltz, he was asked by the Council to begin work as the Trust Liaison for their local government (1987 to present).
Duties of the Trust Liaison for the People of Bikini include the management and coordination of the funds allocated by the United States government to compensate the Bikinians for their suffering and to facilitate the radiological cleanup of Bikini Atoll. He acts as a liaison for the Council to the media, the U.S. government and its various agencies, the scientists who work on Bikini, the Bikini Council's attorney, trustees, money managers, construction companies, engineers, project managers, auditors and business associates. The Trust Liaison also coordinates travel schedules, is used as an advisor and translator, manages the Bikinians' scholarship program, and is responsible for the Bikini Council's accounting.
He also manages the Bikini Atoll tourism operation for the Bikinians [read a letter to customers].
The government of the Marshall Islands awarded him an honorary "Public Benefit" Marshallese citizenship in December of 2000.
Along with his book about the people of Bikini, he has published a number of articles, academic papers and photos about the Bikinians in The Guardian (United Kingdom), World View magazine, The Health Physics Journal, the San Francisco Chronicle and others. He also published a chapter about Bikini Atoll in the book, Everything You Know is Wrong, compiled by Russ Kick.
Chosen "Best of Festival" at the 2011 Guam International Film Festival
out of 130 films from 24 countries
"Jack Niedenthal and Suzanne Chutaro have successfully brought the Marshall Islands into the realm of global cinema - and the film world is a richer place thanks to their distinctive efforts."
-Phil Hall, Film Threat, July 2011
"My first thought as the film ended was, 'How Marshallese!'...
It's bound to be a big hit with Marshallese currently living out of the country. And it highlighted some of the important social issues in Majuro... The special effects were very good for a low budget production and the music was great."
—US Ambassador to the Marshall Islands, Martha Campbell, June 2011
Lañinbwil's Gift, A full length feature film in Marshallese premiered in theaters on May 21, 2011 in Majuro of the Marshall Islands, was written by Jack Niedenthal. He also directed and produced the film along with Suzanne Chutaro using College of the Marshall Islands students, Majuro Cooperative School students, staff and parents, Marshall Islands High School students, Women's Athletic Club members and numerous Bikinians as the cast and crew.
"Niedenthal’s and Chutaro’s skillful use of folk stories, elements of magic as well as the backdrop of Majuro, a community with many idiosyncratic yet universally relevant problems, make this film a unique and indeed important contribution to the debate on what it means to act morally... Lañinbwil's Gift gives us a unique perspective on life in a nation that has much wisdom to offer to the world... a perfect blend of entertainment and question-begging reflection."
-Peter Sutoris, film maker, June 2011
"The drive-by images that flicker through the film capture downtown Majuro in its rough, sometimes bombed-out looking urban ugliness of patchwork fences and half-built concrete structures. The taunting of a homeless boy by kids and adults presents a mirror of how Marshallese society has changed from the old days when the phrase ‘jouj eo, mour eo’ (kindness is life) governed people’s lives in this rapidly changing western Pacific nation."
-The Marianas Variety, June 2011
(read full review "Thousands Flock to View New Marshalls Film")
"Yokwe Bartowe must be the most honest film I have ever seen. Raw, down-to-earth and true to reality, it becomes a statement about the Marshallese identity: humble, yet charming; troubled, yet smiling; magical, yet believable... Many Hollywood directors indeed have a lot to learn from Niedenthal, Chutaro and their crew."
-Peter Sutoris, Filmmaker
“Yokwe Bartowe...can sincerely lay claim to being among the most original cinematic endeavors to emerge in quite some time... it slam dunks with spirit and personality... If the film is missing the razzmatazz of the CGI-heavy productions from Hollywood, it more than compensates with the raw, visceral power one associates from folk art – it throbs with a genuine sense of emotion and honesty, demanding that its voice be heard and respected.
Yokwe Bartowe, A full length feature film in Marshallese premiered in theaters on January 29, 2010 in Majuro of the Marshall Islands, was written by Jack Niedenthal. He also directed and produced the film along with Suzanne Chutaro using College of the Marshall Islands students, Majuro Cooperative School students, staff and parents, Women's Athletic Club members and several Bikinians as the cast and crew.
Hopefully, Yokwe Bartowe will find its way around the world. This is an extraordinary work that deserves to be seen!"
-Phil Hall, Film Threat, February 25, 2010 (read entire review)
Ņa Noniep (I am the Good Fairy)
The very first full length children's feature film in Marshallese released in March of 2009 was written, produced and directed by Jack Niedenthal using Majuro Cooperative School students, parents and staff, and some Bikinians as the cast and crew."It was thrilling to see a film that was conceptualized, written, cast, filmed and edited in the Marshall Islands... Marshallese kids can now see that their lives and reality are worthy of exploration in film..."
--Dartmouth College Professor Andrew Garrod"I thought it was wonderfully entertaining with a strong moral message...an uplifting movie that should nurture a sense of pride and self-worth among the Marshallese people, and anyone interested in fostering principles for a more tolerant and caring society..."
--United States Ambassador to the Marshall Islands, Clyde Bishop"Ña Noniep is the film drawing the crowds..."
--The Marshall Islands Journal, March 13, 2009Radio Bikini produced by Robert Stone [nominated for an Academy Award in 1988]. Toured with Bikinian elder Kilon Bauno publicizing the film. [left: At the Academy Awards in 1988. No, I don't know who she is, nor do I remember her. As I recall, she reflects the way everyone looked to me on that evening].
Film Credits
A sellout crowd attends Ña Noniep during opening weekend at K & K Theaters in Majuro, March 8, 2009Radio Bikini produced by Robert Stone [nominated for an Academy Award in 1988]. Toured with Bikinian elder Kilon Bauno publicizing the film.
Nuclear Exiles produced by the National Geographic Explorer series[nominated for an Emmy Award in 1988]. Credited for all translation work, responsible for taking the film crews to Bikini, Ejit and Kili Islands.
Bikini: Forbidden Paradise produced by Bill Livingston for ABC's World of Discovery [nominated for an Emmy Award in 1994]. Credited for all translation work, responsible for taking the film crews to Bikini, Ejit and Kili Islands, also, some of writing for this film was taken from an unpublished book by Jack Niedenthal.
The Bikini Atoll produced by the A & E Channel in 1996. Credited for all translation work, responsible for taking the film crews to Bikini, Ejit and Kili Islands.
Live from a Shark Cage with Al Giddings by the Discovery Channel in 1999. Credited for all translation work, responsible for taking the film crew to Ejit Island, assisted in the underwater production of the live broadcast.
Ņa Noniep (I am the Good Fairy), a full length feature film in Marshallese released in March of 2009, was written, produced and directed by Jack Niedenthal using Majuro Cooperative School students, parents and staff as the cast and crew.
Yokwe Bartowe (Poor Bartowe), A full length feature film in Marshallese that premiered in theaters on January 29, 2010 in Majuro of the Marshall Islands, was written by Jack Niedenthal. He also directed and produced the film along with Suzanne Chutaro using College of the Marshall Islands students, Majuro Cooperative School students, staff and parents, Women's Athletic Club members and several Bikinians as the cast and crew. This film was an Official Selection for the Big Island Film Festival in Hawaii in May of 2010.
Lañinbwil's Gift, A full length feature film in Marshallese premiered in theaters on May 21, 2011 in Majuro of the Marshall Islands, was written by Jack Niedenthal. He also directed and produced the film along with Suzanne Chutaro using College of the Marshall Islands students, Majuro Cooperative School students, staff and parents, Marshall Islands High School students, Women's Athletic Club members and numerous Bikinians as the cast and crew.
Niedenthal has also assisted in news reports filed by CNN, Newsweek, the McNeil/Lehrer News Hour, ABC News, the NY Times, the LA Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, the BBC radio and television network, Radio Australia, Radio New Zealand and many others.Contact Jack Niedenthal: bikinijack@gmail.com
Interview with Directors/Producers Jack Niedenthal & Suzanne Chutaro
Guam International Film Festival Website, September 17, 2011
Lañinbwil's Gift chosen "Best of Festival"
at the 2011 Guam International Film Festival
out of 130 films from 24 countriesRadio Australia Program (mp3)
interviews regarding the film, Ña Noniep, March 3, 2009
Radio New Zealand (mp3)
interview in March 13, 2009 regarding the film, Ña Noniep
Radio Australia Radio Program (mp3)
interview with Jack Niedenthal about Yokwe Bartowe, February 2010
Radio New Zealand Program (mp3)
interview with Jack Niedenthal about the film, Yokwe Bartowe, February 2010
Film Threat
interview in March of 2010 with Jack Niedenthal regarding
making movies in the Marshall Islands.
Radio Australia interview (mp3)
interviews regarding the film, Lañinbwil's Gift, May, 2011Bikini Trust Liaison Jack Niedenthal discusses the value of the August 2010 World Heritage designation for Bikini Atoll and
what it means for the people of Bikini in UNESCO's quarterly Voices Magazine, (in PDF) pages 10-11, January-March 2011
NPR/Jacqueline Froelich interview with Bikini Trust Liaison Jack Niedenthal about the Marshall Islands, Springdale, Arkansas, June 25, 2009
Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, March, 2009:
The World's Debt to Bikini
by Jack Niedenthal
Interviews With Jack Niedenthal:
Newsweek December 1, 1997 interview with Jack Niedenthal.
ABC News 1998 interview with Jack Niedenthal.
The August 6, 2002 "Nuclear Special" section of The Guardian (the United Kingdom) included articles by several Pulitzer Prize winning authors and a centerfold historical piece with photos about nuclear weapons testing on Bikini Atoll by Jack Niedenthal
The Cultural Journey
Interviews by Jack Niedenthal with the people of Bikini with regard to their proud heritage, customs & history.Epic stories of life at home and on the road with the People of Bikini.
Click on above image to read: Naked in Front of Unnaked People
Lost in Las Vegas
Death at Sea
THE MARSHALL ISLANDS NEEDS A CLEANUP SUPERFUND
A published essay from 2002 by Jack NiedenthalFor the Good of Mankind is
NOW AVAILABLE in EBOOK (PDF)!
FOR THE GOOD OF MANKIND: A History of the People of Bikini and their Islands
by Jack Niedenthal
226 pages w/photos, paperback, ISBN 982-9050-02-5] With a Foreword by Dr. Leonard Mason.*Details about the tragic history of the people and their islands
* Interviews with elder Bikinians and their leaders about their struggles from ancient to modern times and personal stories about the author's relationship with the islanders
*Details about the Bikinians' local government and trust funds
*Information on the radiological concerns and cleanup on Bikini Atoll
*Demographics about the people and the geography of their islands
*Brief histories about the ships now at rest in Bikini's lagoon and also info as to the whereabouts of the other ships that were used for nuclear testing on Bikini
*Tourism details and dive profiles
*Sources for researchers of Bikini Atoll's history
*Fully indexed
This book can be autographed at no extra charge. Profits from the proceeds of this book are given to the people of Bikini.Order from
