Rangiora documentary maker Amy O’Connor
I recently interviewed Amy for essence magazine, in particular focussing on her recently completed documentary Strawberries with the Fuhrer. This is the title of Helga Tiscenko’s autobiography, in which she describes what it was like to grow up as the daughter of a Nazi General. The discomforting part of it, as Amy’s documentary so admirably captures, is that Helga really had no idea of the atrocities being committed by the regime of which her father was a high-ranking member. She remembers her parents as being kind and loving; only much later did she come to question how they could have been a part of something so evil. Amy also interviewed Helga’s daughter for this documentary and she describes the feelings of shame and guilt that she still has because of her grandfather’s actions in the war.
Amy screened her documentary in Rangiora on August 28, which I’m pleased to report was very well supported. The first screening was sold out so it was shown for a second time. This is great work from Amy, who is a very talented young producer and director.
