When Romania came out of the shadows of totalitarian communist rule late last century, the world was shocked by the images that emerged from its hospitals and orphanages.
Thousands of abandoned children stared blankly at the TV cameras that came to see if the stories of a lost generation were really true. Many of the institutionalised children were beyond help; years of confinement and neglect had left many of them severely disabled.
Some were adopted by willing parents from a variety of countries, including New Zealand. Sue van Schreven, a Queenstown mother of two, decided to go even further. She raised enough money and support to establish an orphanage in a needy part of central Romania, to take in unwanted or abandoned youngsters from neighbouring towns.
In the process, Sue found her orphanage, affectionately known as Casa Kiwi, filling a growing need, as Romanian authorities placed ever tougher restrictions on foreigners seeking to adopt children and take them out of the country.
This documentary by film-maker Rob Harley follows Sue's efforts in Romania and New Zealand to get to the bottom of some of her abandoned children's fractured families and lives. Along the way, viewers meet children whose stories will both sadden and inspire.
Where things are now
Someone, Somewhere Loves Me screened on TVNZ in 2008 and introduced thousands of New Zealanders to Orphans Aid International. Nearly twenty years on, it remains the first chapter in a story Rob Harley and others have kept filming ever since. Today Orphans Aid International continues its vital work to support and care for children around the world.
Running Time: 46 mins
© 2007 Bravo Communications. A TVNZ production in association with NZ On Air.