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But for Jennifer it all started even earlier when she began doing some research on the subject of military abuse. She read “The Lonely Soldier” and watched a documentary called “Lioness”. Then Jennifer realized that there was so much different information available on-line and she “just started doing a lot of reading, and looking at different interviews on-line and going to different sites and hearing stories that women were telling about their experiences. You are just horrified when you first hear about it because you think, ‘well, isn’t everybody supposed to protect one another? Isn’t that sort of the grand poetry of what the military can be, that you go to all kinds of lengths to protect one another?’ I just finished reading “Jarhead” by Tony Swofford and to me it seems that you are … more than defending your country, you are defending one another, those people that are in your unit. If somebody actually aggressing you, then how can you have faith in those people that are in your unit, how can you do your job, how do you stay whole as a human being? I don’t know how that’s possible. It really hurt me to think about it and I thought, ‘oh I have to find a way to tell a story about this.’ To that end I’ve been developing another project, which I should have some news about very shortly.

And that idea slowly developed into a three-episode series “Lauren”, starring Jennifer Beals and Troian Bellisario (“Pretty Little Liars”). It’s the story of a woman in the United States military (Bellisario) who comes forward to report a sexual assault she suffered at the hands of three fellow soldiers. The report is reviewed by her commanding officer, Major Jo Stone (Beals), who warns Lauren of the intense scrutiny she’ll come under if she proceeds with her accusations. The series, directed by Lesli Linka Glatter (True Blood, Pretty Little Liars, Mad Men), examines the difficulties that both Lauren and Major Stone navigate in seeking justice while remaining loyal to an institution they have dedicated their lives to.