Cristina Karrer, born in 1961, lived mostly in dangerous foreign countries instead of the safe Switzerland. After studying geography, she wrote reports from the former Eastern Bloc and lived for several years in Iraq until she emigrated to South Africa in 2000. Since then, she has been a freelance Africa correspondent and documentary filmmaker. In 1991, she received the Zurich Journalist Award. Two of her films have won awards. She has written several books, the latest about herself and her mother, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease.