In 2006, Anderson wrote and directed the documentaryThe Luling Ferry Disaster for his Master's thesis project in Communication at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The film recounts the story of the MV George Prince ferry disaster, the worst ferryboat accident in U.S. history with 77 fatalities. The documentary was released on the 30th anniversary of the disaster on October 20, 2006. The success of the film generated a movement, initiated by Anderson, to build a monument in St. Charles Parish for the victims and survivors. The Luling/Destrehan Ferry Disaster Memorial Committee, led by St. Charles Parish Councilman Larry Cochran, was established on January 28, 2009, consisting of family members and friends of the deceased, St. Charles Parish Council members, and concerned citizens, along with Anderson. Through the work of the bureau, a memorial was finally erected. It was unveiled in a solemn ceremony on October 17, 2009 at the East Bank Bridge Park in Destrehan, Louisiana. St. Charles Parish Councilman and architect Paul J. Hogan designed the monument. In 2007, Anderson wrote and film director the documentary The Continental Grain Elevator Explosion. The film documents the deadliest grain dust explosion of the modern era, occurring on December 22, 1977 at the Continental Grain plant in Westwego, Louisiana. 36 lives were lost. Pan Am Flight 759 is Anderson's third documentary, released in 2012. The film examines the worst plane crash in Louisiana history, occurring on July 9, 1982 in the city of Kenner. At 76 minutes, it is his longest film to date. An edited-for-TV version of the documentary was aired on Cox 4 in three Louisiana regions: New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and Acadiana. Anderson's 4th film, The Upstairs Lounge Fire, documents the 1973 UpStairs Lounge arson attack in New Orleans. The documentary was released on June 24, 2013 to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the fire. Anderson's latest project, Mother's Day Bus Crash on 610, investigates the worst vehicular accident in Louisiana history, occurring on May 9, 1999 on Interstate 610 in New Orleans. 22 perished.
Awards and honors
Anderson's filmsThe Luling Ferry Disaster and The Continental Grain Elevator Explosion were honored at the Pelican d'Or Short Film Festival at Nunez Community College, winning the Best Documentary category in 2007 and 2008. He was awarded Delgado Community College's Circles of Excellence Outstanding Alumni Award in 2011. At the 2013 Lake Charles Film Festival, Pan Am Flight 759 won the Best Documentary category. The UpStairs Lounge Fire was selected the best Documentary Short of the Boomtown Film & Music Festival in Beaumont, Texas in 2016. Anderson was invited to Princeton University as a guest speaker to screen and discuss The UpStairs Lounge Fire in 2014. He was also an invited guest speaker at Tulane University, Loyola University New Orleans, and the FBI New Orleans Division. His documentaries have been accepted into The Historic New Orleans Collection, one of Louisiana's prestigious archives.
