7 October 2020
Congratulations to OA and AFU alumnus George Cowie and his company Superfolk Films on producing more than 60 short films in collaboration with the BBC for a series called “I Was There”, in which George and his team recorded interviews with survivors of World War Two.
Of the five month filmmaking process, George said, “It was a joyous and humbling experience to travel the length and breadth of Britain collecting this archive of personal stories. We worked with a wonderful team of people and learned a lot, not just about the war but about the importance of resilience and the importance of community in troubled times.”
The collection can be viewed here.
George revealed, “A few of my personal favourites include ‘Surviving a Torpedo Attack in the Ocean during a Hurricane’, ‘The Vicar Who Faced German Occupation For His Parish’ and ‘Making the Decision Not to Fight in WW2’
This tremendous project follows on from several earlier successes for George and Superfolk Films. His film “Dial-a-Ride”, about the importance for a rural Welsh community of their local dial-a-ride bus service, won numerous awards, while his documentary “Someone Else’s War”, made for the Guardian, focused on the stories of middle class parents whose children were killed after leaving Britain to fight against the Taliban.
George made his first short films as one of the early members of the AFU. ‘Rosie’, his affectionate and award-winning portrait of an elderly aunt made in 2005, can be seen here.
