CRAZY BRAVE - MY MOTHERS STORY - EWA PONINSKA- KONOPACKI


CRAZY BRAVE - My Mothers Story is a 30 min. documentary about EVA PONINSKA- KONOPACKI a young woman who joined the Polish underground resistance movement in 1944 (called the home army — Armia Krakow AK in Polish) along with other civilians to liberate Warsaw from Nazi occupied Poland. EVA was given the highest award for bravery for her efforts during the resistance movement — The Virtuti Military — Cross of Valour — the most distinguished medal of honour of the time. It is estimated that 16,000 resistance fighters were killed in the 63 day uprising and 6,000 wounded.
Produced, directed by her daughter Margaret Konopacki, this short educational doc captures her mother’s involvement in one of the most tragic and controversial events of the Second World War.
Margaret comments: “ I grew up in a household in east end Ottawa and went to Polish School every Saturday. Growing up, many of my parents friends were from the Polish

resistance; immigrants like them. We were only allowed to speak in Polish at home and my parents patriotism and views about their homeland impacted me deeply. I knew at a young age about their involvement in the Warsaw Uprising but was surprised that most of my Canadian friends had never heard about it. The Jewish Ghetto Uprising in Warsaw was always mistaken for the one my parents participated in. I made this very low budget doc to commemorate the efforts of Poles like my mother and father — a sacrifice for our own freedom.
I am deeply proud of my parents and my mother’s strength, courage and positive outlook. During my own bleakest moments facing unsurmountable bereavement my mom helped me to deal with death — with her steel will, unbendable Catholic faith and still positive view of the world. I feel that today in our challenging planet — more than ever young people need role models like my mom.
Historically, this was the largest single military effort taken by any resistance movement during WWII. This piece of history seems to be missing in our Canadian schools — the question remains — can we learn from the past and not repeat the tragic mistakes? Can our younger generation honour our hero’s and read our history and thank our veterans who lost everything for freedom.” On Aug. 1st each year we honour the hero’s of the Warsaw Uprising and for me they were my mom and dad.”
Eva joined 400,000 other poles who became the home army (AK) commanded by General Tadeusz Bor-Komorowski. This resistance attacked the German Forces all over Poland on Aug. 1st 1944 and within three days gained control of most of the city of Warsaw.
Germans sent in reinforcements bombing them with air and artillery attacks. Meanwhile the Soviet Army waited across the Vistula River in Warsaw waiting for the Poles defeat.
Many believe the “Warsaw Uprising” was the greatest betrayal by the Allies as the Polish insurgents fought alone for 63 days expecting reinforcements to come within a week — that never came.The Soviets halted their own offensive and refused to allow allied planes to help resupply the Poles as the Home Army split into disconnected units and was forced to surrender after great casualties (16,000 died) and lack of supplies. Bor- Komorowski and his forces were taken prisoner including my mom and dad (Thaddeus Konopacki)
The Germans then systematically deported the remainder of the Warsaw population and levelled Warsaw to the ground while herding the defeated Home Army into Prisoner of War Camps. Mom ended up in Oberlangen, Germany and dad in Bergen- Belson.
The uprisings failure allowed the Soviet Government to take over Poland while the Polish Government in exile in London watched helplessly as Warsaw capitulated and was totally and completely destroyed.
HISTORICAL FACTS:
*1939 — BEFORE THE SECOND WORLD WAR BEGAN,
*36 MILLION PEOPLE LIVED IN POLAND: 1 MILLION IN WARSAW
*ESTIMATED THAT 16,000 MEMBERS OF THE POLISH RESISTANCE WERE KILLED AND 6,000 BADLY WOUNDED
*200,000 CIVILIANS WERE KILLED MOSTLY FROM MASS EXECUTIONS DURING THE WARSAW UPRISING
*IN TOTAL 6 MILLION PEOPLE DIED IN POLAND DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR — HALF WERE POLISH CITIZENS OF JEWISH DESCENT
*BEFORE IT WAS OVER, IT IS ESTIMATED THAT THE SECOND WORLD WAR TOOK THE LIVES OF 50 MILLION PEOPLE IN EU

  • Margaret Konopacki
    Director
    Age of E for Vision TV and Wisdom Network (USA) Lives Interupted series for Vision TV, a number of biographies for Bravo TV, Series called "Adolescence The Stormy Decade for Vision TV
  • Margaret Konopacki
    Writer
  • Margaret Konopacki Jim Hanley
    Producer
  • Ewa Poninska Konopacki
    Key Cast
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    30 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    July 15, 2019
  • Production Budget:
    5,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Canada
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16.9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Distribution Information
  • MK Productions (film makers company
    Country: Worldwide
    Rights: All Rights
Director Biography - Margaret Konopacki

Margaret Konopacki
Charity Founder & Director/Music Board Member
MARGARET KONOPACKI has worked in the Canadian Music, TV & Film industry in the areas of entertainment publicity, documentary directing/marketing and then switched her career into the health and wellness field becoming a Yoga Studio owner in Ottawa Ontario and Wickenburg, Arizona. Margaret’s background in Journalism helped her move into the TV industry in the 80’s. She graduated with a BA (Journalism & Political Science) from Carleton University, Ottawa and completed a 2 year Film and TV Production Diploma from Loyalist College in Belleville, Ontario,
Margaret’s TV career began at Toronto’s Citytv. Highlights included working on “I am a Hotel” with singer/songwriter Leonard Cohen and “Tamara” which starred Angelica Huston in Los Angeles, Ca. In 1986 Margaret was the Director of Public Relations for Alliance Entertainment/Alliance Releasing. Next - Publicity Director for CTV Entertainment. Highlights included: publicist for “Academy Awards,” “Canadian Country Music Awards,” “Law and Order”, “NYPD Blues,” “Night Heat,” “ENG,” “Counterstrike” and music specials with Celine Dion, Rita McNeil, George Fox and the Canadian Country Music Awards for half a decade.
By the late 1990’s Margaret started her own PR company — M.K. Productions specializing in designing marketing-driven publicity strategies for the film, television and music industries. Highlights included: director of publicity for the 1997 and 1998 Juno Awards with Joanne Smale and with NextMedia, designing and re-launching a number of new TV stations in Canada for CHUM TV.

Moving into Directing Documentaries

Directing a TV special about Louisiana crime-fiction writer James Lee Burke marked her directing debut in 1998. Next project was also for Bravo! about author Robert B. Parker, best known for his “Spencer- for- hire” detective stories. Many projects followed through Sleeping Giant Productions including: “Age of e,” (13 part series - Vision TV, Wisdom Network), “Lives Interrupted” (9 episodes - Vision TV, The Women’s Television Network.) In 2002 Margaret produced and directed her own series entitled “Adolescence: The Stormy Decade” inspired by her experience of dealing with raising a teen. (Canadian Learning Television Network,Vision TV)
Moving into the Health and Wellness business due to family health issues
In 2003 Margaret moved with son David to the US for a long term treatment option that was not available in Canada. She turned her attention to health and wellness and began training as a yoga/meditation teacher. What began as a one year exercise turned into a ten year transformation as she established a Yoga & Wellness Centre in Wickenburg Arizona and then in Ottawa Canada working with a number of private recovery center’s. She worked with established recovery center’s like Gatehouse and The Bridges in Wickenburg and Prescott Arizona.
In 2015 Margaret decided to sell her yoga studio’s and retire but on Sept. 24, 2017 her life stood still when her only beloved musician son David — who struggled with mental illness died in a psychotic breakdown in Ottawa. Unable to breath and struggling with bereavement and PTSD she moved in with her mom to find solace and acceptance and returned to documentary-making and completed CRAZY BRAVE - My Mothers Story - Ewa Poninska-Konopacki as a gift to the Polish Embassy in Ottawa and the Canadian Polish Veteran’s union — the story about her mother — a resistance fighter who received the rare honour — the Silver Virtuti Military Cross of Valour for a suicide mission in Zoliboz area of Warsaw where she risked everything by volunteering to follow orders and save the lives of a number of people while under Nazi attack.
She has turned bereavement into action and is in the process of launching a new Canadian Charity called BIRDSONG - David Martin New Music Foundation to help unpublished musicians who struggle with mental illness realize their dream of publishing their own music and message through lyrics to change the current society by offering the most current resources, apps, blogs, and help to change the existing public stigma around the diagnosis of living with mental illness.

Here next film will be the Polish version of CRAZY BRAVE with additional footage and interviews from Poland and it will run longer.

The next documentary in production is -- "DAVID'S Song" - a beautiful and heart-opening story about Margaret's only son David,: a gifted, handsome musician who struggled with mental illness from the age of 12. The documentary spans 15 years with footage from his rehabilitation in Mexico, Arizona and in Canada. We travel to TIbet, Nepal and India with David and his mother and hear the sound of his music and his evolution. Always with a guitar in hand "Davids Song" paints a different kind of picture of what it is like to struggle with bio-polar illness and how much his short life impacted so many. The tragic end of the story opens the door for new birth to help others like David in the form of a new national charity called BIRDSONG - David Martin New Music Foundation. DAVIDS SONG is more about hope than heartbreak and more about transformation through loss. We listen to DAVIDS SONG and feel the healing -- one song at a time.
Scheduled to be released 2021

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Director Statement

I have returned to making personal documentaries for my personal growth and healing. Thank you for caring and watching.