“Sorella’s Story” by Peter Hegedüs, Jaclyn McClendon, Bobbi Lea Dionysius


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Title:


    Sorella’s Story

Artist(s) and People Involved:


Symposium:


Artist Statement:


    Sorella’s Story came about through finding a photograph on the web while researching for another project on a Holocaust survivor – the photograph, taken in 1941, was of a group of Jewish women and 11-year-old girl, Sorella Epstein, half undressed, in freezing temperatures on the beaches of Skede, near Liepaja, Latvia, minutes before their execution by Nazi troops. I felt compelled to immortalise their story for future generations, to emphasise how prejudice if not challenged can lead to extreme violence.

    I wanted to be brave with this film… to pour all my energy into creating something that will go against the tide of Holocaust fatigue. To create an experience that emotionally connects people across cultures, demographics and economic divides, to the Holocaust and alert them to how genocides are continuing to occur in our world. I am the grandson of a Holocaust survivor and have personally experienced anti-Semitism. As a filmmaker, I want to tell stories about the Holocaust that push boundaries and engage with new audiences, especially the younger generation. I began to experiment with new media technology, filming in a 360 space. We shot the film in Hungary using professional and semi-professional actors almost exactly on the same dates as the massacre that happened 78 years earlier.

    The artists acknowledge Griffith Film School, Destructing Violence Beacon – Griffith University, Screen Queensland, Screen Australia, Dalarna University and the Gandall Foundation for their support.

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