By Kyle Twardowski, Triton’s Call Staff
The College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Lecture Hall of UOG filled to capacity with standing room only at the first ever screening of “Manenggon, March and Concentration Camp Survivor Accounts,” a film by Rlene Santos Steffy on Tuesday Nov. 10.
The film’s overall premise was to present collected audio and visual archives from Steffy of various survivors of the Manenggon Concentration Camp, which was operated under Japanese command during the Second World War.
Steffy was asked in 2002, while working with K57 Radio, to interview Manenggon survivors and document accounts as part of project to help preserve these words for generations to
come. In 2003, Steffy began her journey in gathering these accounts, not knowing what it would become.
“This process has taken over twelve years,” Steffy said. “It’s been a very difficult twelve years, a very enjoyable twelve years, a very rewarding 12 years, and a very frustrating 12 years.”
Steffy relied on her knowledge, access to resources, and experience in various media outlets to create the film.
Spanning a little over two hours, the film took the viewers on a journey through the words of the people who lived and breathed through these troubling times on their way to Manenggon, and also through some of their time spent within the camp. The film is filled with the hardships, the feeling of personal loss, and experiences of how it felt to march to Manenggon.
The film, which includes over 50 accounts of Manenggon survivors, was not an individual effort. Jessi Jon Santos, Steffy’s niece, and UOG graduate of communication and journalism, also edited the film.