N.C. native, N.Y. film student making documentary on Helene, starting in Marshall

By Rex Hodge

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    MARSHALL, North Carolina (WLOS) — Helene hit in one day, two months ago…but recovery will likely take years.

Point a camera in any direction in Marshall, and there’s a story to tell. News 13 met a university film student to who intends to do just that with her camera.

North Carolina native Caroline Griffith is using the lens of her camera to keep the focus on the ongoing recovery from Hurricane Helene.

There are countless stories to record about the impacts of Helene.

“I thought that the damage — the Hurricane Helene damage in WNC would be an interesting topic,” Griffith told News 13 on Thanksgiving Day.

Griffith is a High Point native but currently studying film at New York University, taking time on Thanksgiving to make a documentary about a history-making storm.

“Instead of it just being your usual full of joy, it’s kind of a bittersweet moment for a lot of people, especially if you’ve not been able to reach certain family members or even if some of your family members have passed because of this,” she’s said.

It’s a daunting assignment but one that resonates with Griffith, coming to a place her family is fond of visiting.

“They love Zadie’s. They love seeing the old Marshall jail,” she said.

But seeing Marshall beyond her phone screen and in person hits hard.

“It’s honestly shocking,” she said.

It’s the same for her boyfriend, who is helping her with the shoot.

“We were driving earlier and we saw a home on the side of the river that was not built there originally. It was drug down by the river,” Cleveland Armentrout told News 13.

From Marshall, they’ll go on to other badly damaged areas, like Swannanoa, Asheville’s River Arts District and likely Chimney Rock as well, they said.

It’s being done for more than a university assignment, which is due in a couple weeks

“A lot of why I wanted to make this documentary is because people in the country have kind of not been talking about WNC anymore,” Griffith said. “Big things happen like the election that took a lot of the focus off of the people here, and I don’t think people understand that.”

Griffith’s camera will keep a spotlight on the recovery efforts beyond her classroom.

“If all goes well, maybe some festivals in North Carolinajust small ones,” she said.

Recovery likely to take some time.

“The streets still look like this, and people are still hurting — people only just got water this past week,” she said.

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