Official Trailer for ‘Vishniac’ Doc Film About a Forgotten Photographer
by Alex Billington
January 8, 2024
Source: YouTube
“I would ask him about the people in the pictures, and he would say ‘these are our people.'” Abramorama has revealed an official trailer for a documentary film titled Vishniac, about a photographer who has been forgotten in time. Difficult and flamboyant, Roman Vishniac captured iconic images of Jewish life, from the cafes of pre-war Berlin to the shtetls of Eastern Europe. But it would be up to his daughter to preserve his legacy. American-Israeli Director Laura Bialis (Rock in the Red Zone), along with executive producer Nancy Spielberg and producer Roberta Grossman, take us on a journey through the various chapters in the life of the photographer. From the cosmopolitan streets of pre-war Berlin, to the shtetlach in Poland and Lithuania to the Princeton offices of Albert Einstein, Vishniac’s achievements in art & science invited praise and controversy. Vishniac explores the person behind the photos, while illuminating the many surprising chapters of his life. It’s opening in NY & LA cinemas first before expanding to a few more art house theaters.
Here’s the official trailer (+ poster) for Laura Bialis’ documentary Vishniac, direct from YouTube:
Roman Vishniac is best known for having traversed Eastern Europe from 1935 – 1938, on assignment to photograph Jewish life. Less than a decade later all these communities would be wiped out and his iconic photographs would provide the last visual records of an entire world. Through his photographs, we see Jewish life – in Eastern European shtetls and in Weimar-era Berlin – and witness the Nazi rise to power. After the war, his work continued with images of Berlin in ruins and Jewish children in Displaced Persons camps. Vishniac delves into the person and story behind the photos as it frames Vishniac’s legacy as a key modernist photographer and preserver of memory. Through his stunning images, Vishniac introduces new audiences to a lost world that is quickly fading from our grasp. Vishniac is directed by American-Israeli filmmaker Laura Bialis, director of the doc films Tak for Alt: Survival of a Human Spirit, Refusenik, View from the Bridge, and Rock in the Red Zone previously. It’s produced by Roberta Grossman and Laura Bialis. This initially premiered at the 2023 Santa Barbara Film Festival last year. Abramorama opens Vishniac in select US theaters (NY then LA) starting January 19th, 2024 coming soon. For more, visit the official site.
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