THE TILL VICTORY MOVIES
Passionate about photography as well as film, having grown up watching Saving Private Ryan and Band of Brothers and as a great fan of historical documentaries, it is quite natural that I turned to video after my books. On my Youtube channel (youtube.com/c/tillvictory), you will find a few tutorials (how to colourize old photographs, research the background of a soldier...) and mini-documentaries of which here is a selection:
Till the Job is Done - in the footsteps of an officer of the 4th Infantry Division
Directed by: Clément Horvath
Release date: 10 June 2023
Duration: 118 minutes
Language: French with English subtitles
This two-hour documentary is complementary to Clément Horvath's third book "Till the Job is Done - World War II letters from an officer in the US 4th Infantry Division (1944-1945)", published by OREP and Amazon.
Whereas in the book, we followed the story of Captain Otis Hewett (8th Infantry Regiment) through his complete correspondence, in the film, the author follows in his footsteps, from Normandy to Germany, discovering relics of the fighting and meeting witnesses and historians.The film is illustrated with rare documents and faithfully reconstructed action scenes featuring actors in period costume.
In this way, viewing the film extends the reading experience... but it can also be enjoyed without having read the book! That being said, it's important to stress to readers and viewers that the two formats are very different, and that if you settle for just one of them... you've only got half of Otis's story!
The Missing Highlander
Directed by: Clément Horvath
Release date: 28 June 2022
Duration: 73 minutes
Language: English with French subtitles
76 years after they were written, a collection of letters from the Second World War caught the attention of the young historian and French author Clément Horvath: In the summer of 1944, a British soldier mentioned his nephew Joe, posted as missing in action shortly after the D-Day landings... What had happened to him?
The Frenchman embarked on a long investigation full of twists and turns, from the archives to the battlefields of the little-known and disastrous Operation Epsom. Through rare archive footage, exclusive interviews (veterans, witnesses, experts...) and re-enactment scenes, his documentary "The Missing Highlander" tells the story of Joe, gives an insight into the research work that led to the discovery of his fate, and pays tribute to the men and women who fell for our freedom.
Although it won several awards at festivals, the real success of the film was to pay a very concrete tribute to young Joe: following its release and a resounding report by the BBC, with the help of Joe's entire family and the mayor of the village where he was in fact killed, the monument on which the soldier's name had been missing for almost 80 years was updated, with a plaque bearing Joe's name unveiled in June 2023. This fabulous twist is detailed in this video update!
Red Beret & Dark Chocolate
Directed by: Clément Horvath
Release date: 3 December 2019
Duration: 15 minutes
Language: French with English subtitles
"Red Beret & Dark Chocolate" is a short film about the meeting, on the night of 5 to 6 June 1944, between little Thérèse Robert (5 years old) and Daniel Lyons (6th Airborne Division), one of the first D-Day paratroopers... and their very emotional reunion 75 years later!
This story is told in the Tome 2 of Till Victory (only available in French at this time). Following the death of Daniel Lyons in December 2018, I decided to pay tribute to him by going back to the place where he met Thérèse, and by interviewing this little girl, now aged 80. She still remembers refusing that night the chocolate ration offered by her liberator...
It was an immense privilege to be present at the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings with Daniel and Thérèse in Ranville.
Watch the short-documentary here:
War Correspondences
Directed by: Clément Horvath
Release date: Web series launched in October 2023
Duration: 10 minutes approx.
Language: French with English subtitles
Clément Horvath, author and filmmaker specializing in the study of letters from Allied soldiers in the Second World War, presents in this new series "War Correspondences" some of the letters and artifacts published (or not) in his books "Till Victory" or "Till the Job is Done".
In the first episode, published in October 2023, we take a look at a letter written on the night of June 5-6, 1944, on the ship taking a Major of the 3rd British Division to his objective: Sword Beach.
In the second episode, we discover the last letter written by a GI from the American 8th Infantry Division, who was awarded the Silver Star and died during the Battle of Brest.
Episodes will be released over time, and will all be available on this Youtube playlist.
Watch the first episode below!
75th Anniversary of D-Day on the French TV!
Directed by: 20h Le Mag (TF1) / Clément Horvath
Release date: 5 June 2019
Duration: 10 minutes
Language: French with English subtitles
On the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Normandy landings, I had the immense honour of receiving a visit from a National TV crew, for a report in the "20h Le Mag" show on 5 June 2019, in front of 8 million viewers!
We spent 3 days together, from my home town in the Loire Valley to my beloved Normandy, passing through Wiltshire in England where we visited Cecil Newton (veteran of the 4/7 Dragoon Guards), the only soldier in the first Tome of Till Victory still alive!
Michael Guiheux and Olivier Cresta succeeded perfectly in summarising the essence of my work and my mission in just 6 minutes... To which I have added a small "making-of" section and a quick report on a week of extraordinary commemorations!
Watch the report and its making-of here: