At Commerce screening only: Festival Introduction  by David J. Magidson, followed by
Presentation of the Gottlieb Award and introduction of filmmaker Sue Marx

In this unforgettable feature, Tunisian/Jewish actress Agnès Jaoui has an irresistible warmth as the real-life Nina, director of a “house of hope,” established by the French government for surviving Jewish hidden children.

While there may seem little to add to the cache of film devoted to World War II, this is new.

Toward the end of the war, the French government found several large locations to house Jewish children who had hidden successfully during the Occupation. They were later added to those who survived the camps as they began to be liberated.

Life at one of these halfway houses is portrayed in a cinematic masterwork from the late Oscar-winning writer/director Richard Dembo (Best Foreign Film, 1984, La Diagonale du Fou).

With a blend of discipline and maternal affection, Nina guides her charges. This delicate balance is thrown into chaos, though, when survivors from Eastern European concentration camps arrive with new, often unmanageable traumas. They are a disparate, wild, damaged group, and conflicts occur between the secular French Jews and the survivors who feel obliged to practice the faith of their murdered families.

We see the psychological and practical difficulties of providing shelter, security, food and love as the children adjust to a world emerging from madness.

This startling motion picture is based on an amalgamation of true stories. As the children of Nina’s Home recreate themselves from the shadows, we sense that hope and life will prevail.

At 5 p.m. Monday, May 5, as part of Irwin & Judith Elson’s Voyages of Discovery, a discussion of this important film will be held in Birmingham after the screening. Designed for middle-and high-school students at local Jewish/Hebrew schools, the event will include FREE refreshments. Please join us