SOUL WITNESS, THE BROOKLINE HOLOCAUST WITNESS PROJECT
After several sold-out Greater Boston area screenings, a documentary featuring Holocaust testimonies over 25 years old, comes to the Bedford Playhouse on Thursday, November 1, 2018
More than 80 hours of witness interviews, conducted by Lawrence L. Langer, one of the world’s foremost authorities on Holocaust testimonies were locked in a metal closet for decades and have never been seen by the general public. Now they have been finally thrust into the spotlight with the documentary film Soul Witness, The Brookline Holocaust Witness Project. In 2017, The film sold-out the 432 seat Coolidge Corner Theatre’s main playhouse within a few days of the release of its trailer and has sold out several screenings in the Great Boston area since.
A special screening of the film will be shown at the Bedford Playhouse on Thursday, November 1, 2018 at 7 p.m. The Bedford Playhouse, Home of the Clive Davis Art Center, is a recently renovated state-of-the-art film, arts and cultural center.
The documentary features a collection of interviews of Holocaust survivors, conducted in the early 1990s. Witnesses describe their lives before the war, growing intolerance; their lives during the war and the affect their experiences still had on them at the time of the interviews. Some of these witnesses survived death camps, some hid, others fought in resistance movements and many saved the lives of others.
Mark Skvirsky, Vice President and Chief Programming Office, Facing History and Ourselves on the film, “This film is important both for the stories that survivors share, but also for the way their voices are presented. The structure and tone of the film “humanizes” these individuals who might otherwise be perceived simply as victims.”
Following the film, there will be a question and answer period with the film’s writer, director and producer R. Harvey Bravman.
Director R. Harvey Bravman on the film, “These interviews contain some of the most epic and noble words I’ve ever heard. The stories and lessons from those who survived this unimaginable tragedy and who bravely shared their experiences 25 years ago provide an important message for our society. In many cases they talk directly about issues of intolerance, racism and genocide, as well as their immigrant and refugee experience.”
It is intended for a general audience with an advisory for children under 13.
Supporters of the film include the Facing History and Ourselves and the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies
More information on the film can be found at https://soulwitness.org.