Representing history through film with reference to the documentary film Captor and Captive : perspectives on a 1978 Border War incident

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This dissertation is supplementing a documentary film entitled Captor and Captive – thestory of Danger Ashipala and Johan van der Mescht (2010), referred to as Captor andCaptive, with a duration of 52-minutes. The film follows the story of two soldiers caughtup in the disorganized machine of war. Johan van der Mescht, a South African DefenceForce (SADF) soldier was captured in 1978 by Danger Ashipala, a South West AfricaPeople's Organisation (SWAPO) guerilla fighting for Namibian independence. Van derMescht was held as a prisoner of war (POW) in Angola before being exchanged for aRussian spy, Aleksei Koslov, at Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin in 1982.The main focus of the dissertation is to provide an analysis of representing historythrough film, with reference to Captor and Captive. It explores the manner in whichhistory can be represented through the medium of film and add value to historical text, aswell as historical text adding value to film, and how the two mediums can supplementeach other. In this instance, Captor and Captive was produced first and the researchconducted was used to inform the dissertation. It briefly discusses the history ofdocumentary film within South Africa; the reality of producing documentary filmsreflecting on Captor and Captive and the theoretical principles involved in the craft ofdocumentary filmmaking.The dissertation further provides details of the capture of Van der Mescht and hisexperience as a POW in Angola, against the backdrop of the Border War that wagedbetween 1966 and 1989 in South West Africa (SWA) and Angola. The politicallandscape and various forces at work within southern Africa during the period of Van derMescht's capture are discussed. It also provides detail of the role of Van der Mescht'scaptor Ashipala, and the liberation movement SWAPO. With independence in 1990,South West Africa became Namibia and will be referred to as such for the purpose of thedissertation. Mention will be made of other POWs during the Border War, providing abrief comparative analysis of their respective experiences.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University