On 26th of January 2017, we celebrated in connection with the day of commemoration for the victims of National Socialism the movie premiere of our film “Survival – Three Jewish generations”. For many years now Maria Hoffmann has supported former Leipzig Jews and other Holocaust survivors and their descendants in Israel.
Together with the director Anna Schmidt the idea for the production of this movie was born. All in all, they have been in 2014 and 2015 for more than 10 shooting days in Israel. In the Passage cinema Leipzig we have found open doors and support. We are very thankful for this and the magnificent cooperation and the film implementation by Anna Schmidt, the work of the cameramen Holger Berg and Björn Kowalewski as well as the effort of the cutter Tom Chapman and the support of the city of Leipzig.
The cinema auditorium on the evening of the film premiere was sold out. During the presentation, you could have heard a needle drop. The people were very touched by the heavy fates and the strong life affirmation of the survivors and their descendants in the film. They did not just survive but helped to build up the state of Israel to the only democracy in the Middle East and to a Jewish state – against all hostilities and adversities. They live deliberately in this country and like to live where they “don’t have to be ashamed of being a Jew” – as one wonderful woman expressed in the film.
The movie was followed by a panel discussion in which Prof. Golz from Haifa talked about the consternation for the second generation through the Holocaust. Anna Schmidt made with the realization of this movie a long dream come true.
We are very thankful for all the positive reactions about this film. It made us very happy that the management of the Passage Kino organized two more film screenings on the 29th of January and the 5th of February.
We are continuing working on the marketing of this film und make an effort of its distribution especially in schools.