Red Autumn In Chortitza

1919. A civil war sweeps across the disintegrating czarist empire. Caught between the frontlines, the two friends Willi and Maxim find an abandoned machine gun. For Maxim it is a gift from heaven, for Willi the greatest challenge to his faith. As the son of Mennonite settlers he learned to spurn all forms of violence. It is a real test of their friendship. Whereas Willi’s family struggles to survive and keep their faith in the upcoming soviet dictatorship, Maxim joins the new regime. The two friends do not know if they will ever meet again. The author looks back on one of the darkest chapters of European history and retells a part of his own family history.