A documentary on the life of the late ANZAC, Alf Carpenter, has been listed as a finalist for the Kalamata Short Docs Film Festival in Greece next year.
‘Second Generation ANZAC – The Story of Alf Carpenter’ was produced by Australian charity This Story Australia prior to Alf’s passing in September this year at the age of 105.
The Founder and Executive Producer at This Story Australia, Jeff Hughes, told The Greek Herald it was an ‘absolute no brainer’ to interview Alf last year before his death and to have the documentary recognised internationally in Greece was an honour.
“We found out that ‘Second Generation ANZAC: The Story of Alf Carpenter’ was an official selection for the Kalamata Short Docs Film Festival in August, and in short, Alf was thrilled with the news,” Mr Hughes explained.
“We lost Alf in September at 105 years old and shortly after, received the news that the documentary on his life story had progressed to be a finalist.
“We will find out the result in late January 2023, but for Alf to know that his story was being shared with the Greek people, where he fought in WWII – is award enough for all of us.”
Mr Hughes first decided to document Alf’s life after speaking with Australian author, Deborah Wheeler. Alf had provided the foreword for her book ‘Silk Clouds and Olive Trees – Tales from the Battle of Crete,’ and she thought his personal stories needed to be preserved in documentary form.
From there, Mr Hughes and Ms Wheeler applied for a grant and after being successful in their application, they began interviewing Alf on October 27, 2021.
In the documentary, Alf spoke of his early life in Wagga Wagga, friendships, marriage and going to war. Alf described his journey through Northern Africa to Greece and on to Heraklion to defend Crete.
Alf’s personal diary entries are also interspersed throughout the documentary. They are narrated by Australia’s favourite contemporary poet, Rupert McCall OAM.
READ MORE: ‘An honour’: 105-year-old ANZAC Alf Carpenter awarded life membership of Cretan Association NSW.
