Community Gathering at the Creativity Centre on Mother's Day: Symbolic Cinematic Bonding for Community Development
Hangin' with Shorty in "Am Schöpfwerk": Life Imitating Art
You got Shorty sittin' pretty in the arcade café of the residential complex "Am Schöpfwerk", nestled in Vienna Meidling. Ol' Mrs. Ulli, the original owner, ain't here, but the memories are strong.
"This place, it's where the actors from 'Mother's Day' used to kick it," Shorty shares, a laugh in his eyes. Even the iconic line from the film, "go shit," was pretty much a regular occurrence around here, he recalls.
The film we're talkin' 'bout is none other than "Mother's Day," the debut work of director Harald Sicheritz. It's based on a cabaret program by the young and rowdy "Schlabarett" bunch, featuring Alfred Dorfer, Roland Düringer, Reinhard Nowak, and Andrea Händle. Yep, that's right, the very film still gracing our TV screens today on ORF.
Catchin' up with Mother's Day
Ursula Ofenboeck, whose put a smile on many faces, can't get enough of this classic. "I couldn't help but get ticked off when he sped past on that bike of his," she reminisces, laughin' about the postman from the movie, Düringer. She's still standin' in that old driveway, the one she lived on with her two kids when "Mother's Day" hit the screens back in '93. "We always made sure things were peaceful, then that literally flew in the face of it," she jokes - 'cause, you see, most folks didn't even notice they were filmin' in the complex.
Hangin' with the family
Today, she watches the film again. "I never parked on the guinea pig," her son immediately pipes up when the topic turns to Mother's Day and the movie.
Ofenboeck looks back on some good times in the complex, livin' there for a quarter-century before movin' to the neighborin' allotment garden settlement: "We had everything here, a bank, numerous shops, only young families lived here," she muses. "The kids went to school here and grew up together. It was like a dream."
The kids are back in town
During a local check-up, a postman - yep, just like in the movie - appears out of nowhere. Unlike the speed demon in the movie, he moves his cart through the complex with care, avoidin' any little tykes.
And there are plenty of kids after school in the green courtyards. You got a girl doin' homework on a park bench, a boy playin' in another courtyard on the playground, sayin' hi to his buddy Peter.
Peter's a long-time resident. "I thought you were my dad from afar," the boy says, laughin' as he sizes up Peter's bike. "We still remember each other around here," Peter says, reflectin' on Mother's Day and the changes it sparked.
Changes
The church at Schöpfwerk - where Evelyn Schöbinger and Edwin Neugebauer used to confess their sins instead of prayin' - is now under the control of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
In this complex, you can find a penny market, a doner shop, an Ece mini market with fresh veggies, a Turkish barber shop, a social market, and a tobacco shop.
Around the corner is the kindergarten, where a pedagogue can be heard in the garden. "We agreed to keep an eye on things," she says to two children, soundin' suspiciously like the youth leader from the movie.
Mother's Day in Austria: A century-old tradition of love and recognition
Ofenboeck, who lived here for years, never seemed to mind the movie: "It's down-to-earth entertainment. I was happy whenever our beautiful apartments were featured on TV." And, just in case you missed it, you can catch it again at 8:15 PM tonight.
So, there you have it - the vibrant life in Am Schöpfwerk, just a stone's throw away from the big screen!
- The pedagogue at the kindergarten around the corner from Am Schoepfwerk seems to have taken a page from the youth leader in 'Mother's Day', as she can be heard sounding suspiciously like her while keeping an eye on things.
- Ursula Ofenboeck, a former resident of Am Schoepfwerk, appreciates the down-to-earth entertainment value of 'Mother's Day', expressing her happiness every time their beautiful apartments were featured on TV, much like Vienna's residential complex life imitating art.
- In Am Schoepfwerk, diverse actors from economically and socially important fields such as entertainment, pedagogy, and trade can be found, proving the complex to be host to a wide range of characters.
- The Vienna postal service has evolved since the days of the 'Mother's Day' movie, with today's postman moving carts through the complex with care, ensuring he avoids any little tykes on the playground.
