I Am Here: The Most Inspirational Holocaust Survivor

Factual America

7 Apr

Written By

Ella Blumenthal is one of the oldest living survivors of the Holocaust. Despite living through one of history's darkest chapters, she brings a joy to life that few can match. On her 98th birthday, however, Ella reveals to close friends and family profound memories of her incredible survival in a way she has never done before.

Award-winning documentary I Am Here (2021) celebrates Ella's remarkable life and her magnetic personality and spirit that have remained undimmed.

South African filmmaker Jordi Sank, the director and co-producer of I Am Here, relays how he met this remarkable woman and decided to bring her incredible life story to the screen. In the process Jordi's film provides us with a first-hand account of the Holocaust.

“People need to learn from history so that we can have a peaceful future that’s worth living.” - Jordy Sank

Time Stamps:

00:00 - Introducing the guest and the synopsis of I Am Here.
03:10 - How Jordy met Ella.
04:30 - The unique conversations that came out on Ella’s 98th birthday.
05:50 - Ella’s secret to life and happiness.
07:30 - The importance of faith in her life.
09:46 - How she responds to anti-semitism.
12:18 - The challenges of getting Ella involved in the film.
14:34 - How they chose the style of animation for the film.
17:16 - Ella’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
18:24 - The importance of getting a first-hand account of the Holocaust.
20:15 - The next project Jordy has been working on.

Resources:

I Am Here (2021)
The MovieMaker Magazine
Innersound Audio
Alamo Pictures

Transcript for Factual America Episode 94: I Am Here: The Most Inspirational Holocaust Survivor

Matthew 00:00
This is Factual America. We're brought to you by Alamo Pictures, an Austin and London based production company, making documentaries about America for international audiences. I'm your host, Matthew Sherwood. Each week, I watch a hit documentary, and then talk with the filmmakers and their subjects. This week, it is my pleasure to welcome award winning documentary filmmaker Jordy Sank, the director and co-producer of I Am Here. The documentary celebrates the remarkable life of Ella Blumenthal, whose magnetic personality and spirit has remained undimmed, despite living through one of history's darkest chapters. One of the oldest living survivors of the Holocaust, Ella celebrates her 98th birthday, where she reveals to close friends and family profound memories of her incredible survival in a way she has never done before. Stay tuned to learn more about this most inspirational woman and the way Jordy brought her incredible life story to the screen. Jordy, welcome to Factual America. How are things with you?

Jordy Sank 00:57
Yeah, good, good. Thank you, Matthew. Thanks so much for having me on the program.

Matthew 01:00
Well, it's our pleasure. You're our first South African - and hopefully, not our last - but just want to welcome you to the podcast, again. The film is I Am Here. Festival premiere last year, you won multiple awards, I know; believe there's been a theatrical release in the US, last week? Think, March 11. What about streaming? Will you be streaming? Are you streaming yet? When's that gonna happen?

Jordy Sank 01:28
We'll be streaming from May 24. So, it's still, yeah, still coming in the next few months.

Matthew 01:35
Can we say where it's going to be?

Jordy Sank 01:37
So, to be honest, I'm actually not entirely sure where it's going to be just yet. But we'll have you know. As soon as I know, I'll have you know. But also let me just say that I'm very honored to be your first South African guest. Wow. Amazing.

Matthew 01:55
Well, I mean, the honor's all ours because thank you so much for bringing Ella Blumenthal to our attention. What an amazing story. Why don't you kick us off, just give us a little synopsis of what is I Am Here all about.

Jordy Sank 02:11
So, I Am Here really, you know, it's a celebration of life, you know, Ella is a - when we were filming it was her 98th birthday. She's a Holocaust survivor, and we really just wanted to take her incredible zest for life that she possesses and a incredible positive outlook on life, and, you know, we juxtapose that with her harrowing and uplifting tales of survival during the Holocaust and her traumas experienced and really the film is a juxtaposition between her tales of survival and the way that she lives a beautiful life in the present.

Matthew 02:49
Yeah, I mean, oh my goodness, if I was like her even now - forget being 98, or now I guess she's 100 - because it's more than a survival story, isn't it? This feisty, magnetic personality belies what she went through. Now, do I understand correctly? You kind of grew up with Ella in your life, is that right?

Jordy Sank 03:10
Yeah, I was very lucky. I grew up in the same community as her. And yeah, I grew up very, very close to her. I met her once, sort of by chance, we were at a Friday night dinner together, and she stood up and she started telling these harrowing stories of survival. But then something really fascinating happened. She started dancing, singing, playing with the kids, and I just have never seen someone who, you know, let alone someone who survived the Holocaust, but anyone, really, exude so much energy and positivity in the room before. She really just lit up the entire room. And that really got me thinking, Wow, I've got to get close to this woman. And, you know, there's so much to learn from her. And that was sort of the start of a beautiful, beautiful friendship.

Matthew 03:56
Oh, wow. And then, so, the centerpiece of the film is her 98th birthday. So, you - I mean, as you say, there's these incredible stories and probably even made more incredible because of who's delivering it and how she delivers it, and - but, so, her 98th birthday becomes a centerpiece; now, she tells these in a new way, is that right? What's happened in the 98th birthday that's different than the first 98 years that she's sharing with her family and friends?

Jordy Sank 04:30
So, the 98th birthday was an amazing opportunity for us because we really got to be a fly on the wall and watch family from around the world come to celebrate her. And, you know, it was also, you know, I think sometimes when these things are so close to you, you kind of don't, you know, don't deal with them so head on. So, it was an amazing weekend that we got to spend with the entire family, where they got to ask Ella, their mother, their grandmother, these, you know, sort of questions that they'd never been able to ask her before. And, you know, we sort of as filmmakers, we got them to sit down all in a room together, and we, you know, just sort of, I guess, gave the conversation a little push, and, you know, it was just very fascinating to see that conversation between the whole family just spiral from there. And it was actually, really a privilege.

Matthew 05:20
So, you had an inkling that this could be a special moment. You helped it along a little bit, as filmmakers sometimes have to do, but you never knew exactly what you were going to get, but it's incredible what you have captured.

Jordy Sank 05:35
Thank you.

Matthew 05:37
I mean, so, what is, I mean, Holocaust survivor, yet this most amazing, vivacious personality. What is Ella's secret to life?

Jordy Sank 05:49
Sure, it's hard to put into words really, you know, her secret to life is that she's just able to wake up every day, you know, with this joie de vivre, this zest for life, and she says that she never sleeps with her curtains closed, she always sleeps with her curtains open, because, you know, every time the sun rises, she's thankful for another day, and, you know, it reminds me of another story that she tells, that she told me, during the pandemic, during Covid-19. Her daughter was standing on the balcony with them, and they were both looking out, at the beautiful view in Cape Town, and her daughter was complaining, saying to her, Look at this Covid, look what's happening in the world. And Ella just said to her, Look at the beautiful view that's in front of us, right now. Like, let's just, like, stop for a minute and appreciate how, you know, be thankful for us being able to just experience what we're experiencing, right now. And, you know, it's just - it's two people looking at the exact same thing, two people looking at the exact same thing, but with such a different outlook on life, and it's really hard to put into words what that outlook is, but you just have to spend time with Ella to see that she just lights up a room, and she has this magnetic personality, and this way of looking at the world that I haven't really seen in many people.

Matthew 07:08
I mean, and I guess then, on top of that, the fact that she has survived the Holocaust. I mean, it's, I think, I mean, how much does her faith play into this as well? Because, I mean, I think there's even - it's a bit poignant, the title of the film, isn't it?

Jordy Sank 07:27
So, yeah, she kept her faith throughout her experiences in the Holocaust, you know, and I think any of us would have, you know, if she had lost her faith or decided to no longer believe, I think any of us would have understood after all the horrific incidents that she had been put through. But she just has this unwavering faith and belief in God and that everything happens for a reason. And, you know, it's just inspiring to, you know, even when she tells her stories, she said that she always knew that she would survive so that she could tell the world what these murderers had done to her and her family. So, it's just inspiring to hear someone who, you know, who has this faith.

Matthew 08:12
We're gonna give our audience a very quick break. So, we'll be right back with Jordy Sank, the director and co-producer of I Am Here, theatrical release in the US on March 11. Streaming soon, come May.

Factual America midroll 08:29
If you enjoy Factual America, check out the MovieMaker podcast. That's all one word: MovieMaker, where our friends at moviemaker.com interview everyone from filmmakers just breaking in to A-Listers like David Fincher and Edgar Wright, about their moviemaking secrets, and behind-the-scenes tricks of the trade. They go deep, and let the guests speak uninterrupted, to get you the most film insight. Now back to Factual America.

Matthew 08:57
Welcome back to Factual America. I'm here with award winning filmmaker Jordy Sank, the director and co-producer of I Am Here, theatrical release on March 11 in the US, and will be streaming later this year, I think about May. Jordy, at the beginning of the doc we were talking about, obviously, Ella Blumenthal and what's her secret to life. Your film starts with a story, it's kind of relayed by a DJ, about Ella. Now, it kind of stops there. But could you relay that story to us? What was this hook at the beginning that gets mentioned about this, something to do with an anti-semitic, or neo-Nazi something that happened, she wrote this letter.

Jordy Sank 09:46
So, there was a South African influencer that posted, you know, had a really, really wide following, and posted the most horrific anti-semitic remarks and Holocaust denial on her social media platforms and, you know, Ella saw this and was shown this, and was completely shocked and decided to write an open letter to this influencer. And, you know, I don't know, if it was me after experiencing something as traumatic as the Holocaust, I would be furious at this influencer, but Ella did the most incredible thing, and what she did is she wrote this letter, and she approached this influencer in such a way of love. And she offered, she said to this influencer, Let's sit down, let's meet for a cup of tea, and let's, you know, let's exchange our ideas, and let's talk about our views, and what we'll find in doing so is that there's far more that unites us, than in what divides us. And it's an incredible, really, you know, there's no other way to explain that, than it's just Ella, you know, it's just this positive way of approaching someone who's full of so much hate. So, you know, just really just something remarkable that we felt had to be put at the beginning of the film, just to show how remarkable Ella really, really is.

Matthew 11:11
Did that cup of tea ever happen?

Jordy Sank 11:13
Unfortunately, it didn't. But Ella's very hopeful, whenever I speak to her and I ask her about it, she always says that she's still hopeful that, hopefully, one day that tea will happen. So, you know, only time will tell.

Matthew 11:29
And this is some 90 something year old who's coming across a social influencer on social media. I mean, that's - also, I guess, you'll probably tell me Ella to a T as well.

Jordy Sank 11:42
Yeah, Ella's very active. She loves Facebook. She can sit on Facebook for hours. And you know, she's great. She loves to see what's going on. Even at her age of 100.

Matthew 11:55
I mean, so, we've discussed it already a little bit. But how did this project come about? I mean, you know, knew her. But, I imagine many 90 somethings would have said no. But she said yes. How did that work? Or was she reluctant?

Jordy Sank 12:19
So, she was actually, I think it's because we built such a relationship over the many years that I've known her, but she was actually very, very game. And, you know, she was very excited about the idea. She had been speaking to schools and groups before, and I think she really just understood that filmmaking and documentaries have such a power to connect with audiences and really be spread around the world. So, she was very excited about that. But the only thing that she was somewhat reluctant towards was the animation because we really wanted to include this 2D animation to depict her memories, because we just felt that the stock footage, the way that she told her stories with such emotion, and really, you just sort of felt like you were there, the way that she tells her stories, and the stock footage just really wasn't working with it. So, when we started speaking to her about 2D animation, she, you know, her not having really been exposed too much to it, she was very weary and cautious about it, but when we actually animated the clip of - there's the clip of her in the Warsaw Ghetto, and when the Ghetto's set on fire, and we showed her that - we did a sort of a test for her - and when the moment that she saw that she was absolutely sold on the idea of animation, because, you know, she could see that it brought the audience really to be on this journey with her as a character and to really to sort of relive her experiences with her. So, yeah, that was really the only difficulty that we experienced. But she, you know, once we sort of proved it to her, she was completely on board.

Matthew 13:58
I mean, now that you've raised it, I was gonna ask you, I mean, much has been made of the animation, I think rightfully so. That's a fine line to getting that right, isn't it? And how did that process go? And I guess that was working with - is it, Greg Bakker? Was your DP involved with that as well, in terms of - because I, you know, that could go in many different ways. You've achieved perfect balance, I would argue, but, you know, how did that process work?

Jordy Sank 14:33
Yes, so, we were very lucky. We did quite an extensive search for local South African animators, and we found Greg Bakker, who really, we just felt that the style in which he's done before, really, it sort of spoke to the project. So, you know, we got him on board at a very early stage, and, you know, our DOP was also fantastic. He helped us in terms of achieving the color palette that, really, we felt delved well with the film. You know, so it was really just, you know, it was a lot of experimentation. The beauty in it is that we had Ella's stories and we had her voiceover. So, the amazing thing was that we would listen to her voiceover of her telling a particular story over and over and over again. And we would all brainstorm together how the best way for us to pick that story, and, you know, we'd do test storyboards, and then we'd move to sort of finer line work and do a bit of motion to see how it all feels. And then, at the end, what we would do is show it to Ella, and Ella would pick up on certain things that we could, you know, we would never have been able to pick up on, you know, sort of finer details, you know, that we felt like we had to correct because then we, you know, then we sort of staying true to her memories. So, yeah, it was quite a long process. The animation ended up taking a year. So, it was the longest process within the film, but I think it's the most rewarding, because it really, you know, it allows the audience to go on this journey with her, and to empathize with her on that journey.

Matthew 16:23
I mean, exactly. I mean, it's, these are horrific stories. If there's something - it's not that the animation is disarming at all, that's not the point. It is just kind of - but it's somehow there's something about it, that allows you to sit there and listen to her voice, and kind of, and maybe understand in ways we will never be able to truly understand what it was like to go what she went through. And it's, you know, it's an incredible story. And then now, here we are in 2022, and another European war wages. I mean, have you had any interactions with Ella about that? I mean, she must be, I mean, I think it's even in your film, she even says towards the end, you know, stuff like this could happen, very well happen again, doesn't she say that?

Jordy Sank 17:14
You're correct, she says exactly that. When I've heard her speak about it, she's just shocked, you know, she can't believe that in the times that we're living today people haven't learned from history's lessons and haven't learned from, you know, what the Holocaust and what happens when hate is taken to the extreme. And, you know, one thing that I've heard her say is also just, you know, in these day and ages, it's, you know, it's so much easier for people to throw bombs at one another and to shoot rather than actually just wanting to sit at a table and to talk and to, you know, to find ways to solve issues. So, I know from her, it's almost like she's seeing World War Two playing in front of her eyes in color. So, it's really just, you know, she's very shaken by what's happening.

Matthew 18:09
And is this one reason you've made the film? Lest future generations forget? I mean, she is practically one of the last people on earth who could tell this story, horrible tale firsthand, isn't she?

Jordy Sank 18:23
Yes. No, no, definitely. Us wanting to get her story out there, you know, there's many reasons, but I think one of the most important for us is, you know, we want people to be able to connect with a Holocaust survivor's story, so that people can learn from the Holocaust, so that it can never happen again, and people can learn, you know, and - this is almost a cautionary tale of what can happen when people hate one another, you know, no matter our beliefs, our religions, our skin color, you know? It's, yeah, it's this film, it really, really is - I think it's more relevant now than ever, you know, than when we actually completed the film. Now, seeing what's going on in the world, it's even more relevant because people need to learn from history so that we can have a future that's worth living and a peaceful future.

Matthew 19:28
I mean, indeed, you must have had no idea that - none of us did - that something like this was going to happen. Well, thank you again, because it's a great - I mean, I've got a new hero in life in Ella, and I was thinking, I couldn't get the printer to work on my way over here, and I was, like, about to - I was about to hit the printer and I was, like, wait a minute, there's much worse - this is nothing; not to make it so glib, but - Jordy, what's next for you? This was your feature debut, wasn't it, for you? What do you got planned? I think you have a promising career ahead of you.

Jordy Sank 20:11
Thank you. Thank you so much, Matthew. So, it's funny, the next project that we actually have completed is premiering in South Africa at the end of this month, and it's, a completely different project altogether. But it's a narrative short, in one of the 11 official languages of South Africa, which is - the language is Afrikaans and it's a story somewhat inspired by Ella, but it's about a woman in her later years in life dealing with the tragic loss of her husband. And, you know, it's, you know, and I think - also with, you know, these times of Covid that we've all - and the pandemic that we've all experienced - we've all lost loved ones, and we've all lost people dear to us, and, you know, it's sort of answers the question to how do we sort of pick up our lives when we do lose someone we love? So, that's the next project that's premiering in South Africa at the end of the month.

Matthew 21:16
I mean, yes, indeed. I guess South Africa's one of the places that has been on the front lines when it's come to Covid, unfortunately, but I imagine South Africa must be a treasure trove of subjects for a documentary filmmaker. That's your hope, I guess.

Jordy Sank 21:34
No, definitely. There's so many different cultures and unique people in South Africa, really. It really is a goldmine of subjects and stories that need to, and deserve to, be told. So, yeah. So, we're looking forward to many, many more projects in South Africa.

Matthew 21:58
Okay, well, we may be called Factual America, but we'd be happy to have you on again. Just want to thank Jordy Sank, the director and co-producer of I Am Here, theatrically released on March 11, and will be streaming later. Just Google it, I'm sure you'll find out where that is, shortly. So, Jordy, thank you so much again. It's been a pleasure having you on and if we haven't scared you off, we'd love to have you on again.

Jordy Sank 22:26
Thank you, Matthew; would love that. Thank you.

Matthew 22:30
I'd like to give a shout out to Sam and Joe Graves at Innersound Audio in Escrick, England, in deepest, darkest Yorkshire. A big thanks to Nevena Paunovic, podcast manager at Alamo Pictures, who ensures we continue getting great guests onto the show. And finally, a big thanks to our listeners. As always, we love to hear from you. So, please keep sending us feedback and episode ideas. You can reach out to us on YouTube, social media, or directly by going to our website, www.factualamerica.com and clicking on the Get in Touch link. And as always, please remember to like us and share us with your friends and family, wherever you happen to listen or watch podcasts. This is Factual America signing off.

Factual America Outro 23:12
You've been listening to Factual America. This podcast is produced by Alamo Pictures specializing in documentaries, television, and shorts about the USA for international audiences. Head on down to the show notes for more information about today's episode, our guests, and the team behind the podcast. Subscribe to our mailing list or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @alamopictures. Be the first to hear about new productions, festivals showing our films, and to connect with our team. Our homepage is alamopictures.co.uk

I Am Here: The Most Inspirational Holocaust Survivor

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I Am Here: The Most Inspirational Holocaust Survivor

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