75 YEARS
OF POWERFUL
HOLOCAUST CINEMA
MAY 6 - 15
SPONSORED BY
Welcome to the Liberation75 FREE Holocaust Film Festival, in partnership with the Toronto Jewish Film Foundation. Featuring over 25 powerful films (released 1940-today). We hope you enjoy these iconic films, exclusive introductions, and discussions with filmmakers, historians and experts!
Remembering and honouring the tragedy of the Holocaust has been the motive behind countless films depicting life in concentration camps, revealing the hardships people endured, and portraying inspirational stories of survival and resilience. Here, we take a look at powerful films that have illuminated one of history’s most traumatic events.
1940
1971
1964
1960
1956
1980
1945
1946
1985
1993
1997
2006
THE GREAT DICTATOR (1940)
dir. Charlie Chaplin.
Dictator Adenoid Hynkel tries to expand his empire while a poor Jewish barber tries to avoid persecution from Hynkel's regime.
Introduction by Dr. Chris Yogerst, PhD, Department of Humanities at University of Wisconsin
Available in Canada & United States
May 6-15
ROME OPEN CITY (1945)
dir. Roberto Rossellini.
During the Nazi occupation of Rome in 1944, the Resistance leader, Giorgio Manfredi, is chased by the Nazis as he seeks refuge and a way to escape.
Introduction by Steven Carr, Professor and Graduate Program Director at Purdue University Fort Wayne
Available in Canada (except QC) & United States
May 6-15
THE MURDERERS ARE AMONG US (1946)
dir. Wolfgang Staudte.
After returning from a concentration camp, Susanne finds an ex-soldier living in her apartment. Together the two try to move past their experiences during WWII.
Introduction by Mariana Ivanova, Associate Professor of German Film at University of Massachusetts
Available in Canada
May 6-15
NIGHT AND FOG (1956)
dir. Alain Resnais.
The history of Nazi Germany's death camps of the Final Solution and the hellish world of dehumanization and death contained inside.
Introduction by Dr. Ewout van der Knaap, PhD, Professor of Humanities at Universiteit Utrecht
Available in Australia, Canada (except QC), New Zealand, United Kingdom & United States
May 6-15
A MAN ESCAPED (1956)
dir. Robert Bresson.
​A captured French Resistance fighter during WWII engineers a daunting escape from a Nazi prison in France.
Introduction by Steven Carr, Professor and Graduate Program Director at Purdue University Fort Wayne
Available in Canada (except QC) & United States
May 6-15
KAPO (1960)
dir. Gillo Pontecorvo
A young Jewish girl leads an escape attempt from a concentration camp.
Introduction by Dr. Millicent Marcus, PhD, Professor of Italian Studies at Yale University
Available in Canada (except QC) & United States
May 6-15
DIAMONDS OF THE NIGHT (1964)
dir. Jan Nemec.
​Two Jewish boys escape from a train transporting them from one concentration camp to another. The film goes beyond the themes of war and anti-Nazism and concerns itself with man's struggle to preserve human dignity.
Introduction by Dr. Chris Horak, PhD, Adjunct Professor at UCLA School of Theatre, Film & Television.
Available in Canada & United States
May 6-15
THE PAWNBROKER (1964)
dir. Sidney Lumet.
​A Jewish pawnbroker, victim of Nazi persecution, loses all faith in his fellow man until he realizes too late the tragedy of his actions.
Introduction by Dr. Peter Labuza, PhD, Cinema and Media Studies at the University of Southern California
Available Worldwide
May 6-15
THE THIRD PART OF THE NIGHT (1971)
dir. Andrzej Zulawski.
A surreal and psychological nightmare set during the occupation of Poland during World War II.
Introduction by Dr. J. Marek Haltof, PhD, Professor at North Michigan University.
Available in Canada
May 6-15
THE BIG RED ONE (1980)
dir. Sam Fuller.
​A hardened sergeant and the four core members of his infantry unit try to survive World War II as they move from battle to battle throughout Europe.
Introduction by Dr. Marsha Gordon, PhD, Professor and Director of Film Studies at North Carolina State University.
Available Worldwide
May 6-15
COME AND SEE (1985)
dir. Elem Klimov.
After finding an old rifle, a young boy joins the Soviet resistance movement against ruthless German forces and experiences the horrors of World War II.
Introduction by lead actor Aleksey Kravchenko.
Available in Australia, Canada (except QC), New Zealand, United Kingdom & United States
May 6-15
SCHINDLER'S LIST (1993)
dir. Steven Spielberg.
In German-occupied Poland during World War II, industrialist Oskar Schindler gradually becomes concerned for his Jewish workforce after witnessing their persecution by the Nazis.
Introduction by Oscar-winning director Steven Spielberg, post-film Zoom interview with author Thomas Keneally.
Available in Canada
May 6-15
LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL (1997)
dir. Roberto Benigni.
When an open-minded Jewish librarian and his son become victims of the Holocaust, he uses a perfect mixture of will, humor, and imagination to protect his son from the dangers around their camp.
Introduction by Robert M. Ehrenreich, Director of National Academic Programs at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Available in Canada
May 6-15
BLACK BOOK (2006)
dir. Paul Verhoeven.
In the Nazi-occupied Netherlands during World War II, a Jewish singer infiltrates the regional Gestapo headquarters for the Dutch resistance.
Introduction by Adam Nayman, film critic, author and lecturer at University of Toronto and Ryerson University.
Available in Canada
May 6-15
dir. Dana Doron & Uriel Sinai.
Auschwitz prisoners, both Jewish and non-Jewish, were tattooed with serial numbers, first on their chests and then their left arms. These scars, paradoxically unanimous and anonymous, reveal themselves to be diverse, enlightening, and full of life.
Available Worldwide
May 6-15
2012
GERMAN CONCENTRATION CAMP FACTUAL SURVEY (2014)
dir. Sidney Bernstein.
​Cameramen from Britain's Army Film Unit capture footage of concentration camps in German in 1945.
Introduction by Jane Wells, Executive Director of 3 Generations.
Available in Canada & United States
May 6-15
SON OF SAUL (2015)
dir. Laszlo Nemes.
A Jewish-Hungarian concentration camp prisoner sets out to give a child he mistook for his son a proper burial.
Co-sponsored by the Claims Conference. Introduction by Claims Conference Executive Vice-President Greg Schneider, post-film panel with Pelin Uzay, Greg Schneider and Dr. Michael Berenbaum.
Available in Canada
May 6-15
*Disabled for Shabbat:
May 7, 5pm ET - May 8, 5pm ET
2015
2014
PHOENIX (2014)
dir. Christian Petzold.
A disfigured Holocaust survivor sets out to determine if the man she loved betrayed her trust.
Introduction by Adam Nayman, film critic, author and lecturer at University of Toronto and Ryerson University.
Available in Canada
May 6-15
SCANDAL IN IVANSK (2017)
dir. David Blumenfeld.
A photographer journeys to his grandfather's former Polish shtetl in search of memories and how they are formed...and forgotten.
Co-sponsored by the Claims Conference. Introduction by director David Blumenfeld.
Available in Canada & United States
May 11-12
1945 (2017)
dir. Ferenc Torok.
12 August 1945, 11 AM. Two mysterious strangers dressed in black appear at the railway station of a Hungarian village. Within a few hours, everything changes.
Co-sponsored with the Claims Conference. Introduction by director Ferenc Török.
Available in Canada & United States
May 13
2017
2016
DENIAL (2016)
dir. Mick Jackson.
Acclaimed writer and historian Deborah E. Lipstadt must battle for historical truth to prove the Holocaust actually occurred when David Irving, a renowned denier, sues her for libel.
Introduction by historian, Dr. Deborah Lipstadt.
Available in Canada
May 6-15
116 CAMERAS (2017)
dir. Davina Pardo.
Holocaust Survivor Eva Schloss preserves her story interactively so that she will be able to tell it forever.
Co-sponsored by the Claims Conference. Introductions by Davina Pardo, Director & Elizabeth Edelstein, Vice President for Education at the Museum of Jewish Heritage.
Available in Canada & United States
May 9-10
2019
2018
WHO WILL WRITE OUR HISTORY (2018)
dir. Roberta Grossman.
​Who Will Write Our History tells the story of Emanuel Ringelblum and the Oyneg Shabes Archive, the secret archive he created and led in the Warsaw Ghetto. It documents not only how the Jews of the ghetto died, but how they lived.
Co-sponsored by the Claims Conference. Introduction by director Roberta Grossman.
Available in Canada & United States
May 11-12
LIBERATION HEROES: The Last Eyewitnesses (2019)
dir. Vanessa Roth.
Heroic World War II veterans vividly share their liberation experiences in their own words, drawing parallels between the past and present.
Introduction by Dr. Stephen D. Smith, USC Shoah Foundation.
Available Worldwide
May 6-15
CHEATING HITLER (2019)
dir. Rebecca Snow.
Three Canadian Holocaust survivors journey to hometowns, killing sites, archives and hiding places in search of clues to unanswered questions from their pasts.
Co-sponsored by the Claims Conference. Introduction by director Rebecca Snow. Post-film panel with Rebecca, Producer Steve Gamester and the survivors featured in the film.
Available in Canada & United States
May 9-10
YOU ONLY DIE TWICE (2018)
dir. Yair Lev
A filmmaker-turned-detective uncovers the truth behind the man who stole his grandfather's identity and became the president of an Austrian Jewish community.
Co-sponsored by the Claims Conference. Introduction by director, Yair Lev.
Available in Canada & United States
May 11-12
SOBIBOR (2018)
dir. Konstantin Khabensky.
Soviet officer Alexander Pechersky organizes a revolt and mass escape of prisoners from Sobibór extermination camp in October 1943.
Introduction by director and lead actor, Konstantin Khabensky.
Available Worldwide
May 6-15
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SCHOOL OF EXECUTIONERS (2019)
dir. Alexey Kitaytsev.
In 1941, SS training camps were established in the small Polish town of Trawniki. The cadets of this camp were Soviet prisoners of war. Nazi recruiters offered them salvation in exchange for joining the SS.
Introduction by producers Edward Staroselsky & Ilnur Rafikov.
Available Worldwide
May 6-15
*ALL FILMS ARE AVAILABLE IN CANADA
(EXCLUDING QC)​
FILMS AVAILABLE IN QUEBEC
THE GREAT DICTATOR (1940)
MURDERERS ARE AMONG US (1946)
DIAMONDS OF THE NIGHT (1964)
THE PAWNBROKER (1964)
THE THIRD PART OF THE NIGHT (1971)
THE BIG RED ONE (1980)
SCHINDLER'S LIST (1993)
LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL (1997)
BLACK BOOK (2006)
NUMBERED (2012)
GERMAN CONCENTRATION CAMP FACTUAL SURVEY (2014)
PHOENIX (2014)
SON OF SAUL (2015)
DENIAL (2016)
1945 (2017)
SCANDAL IN IVANSK (2017)
116 CAMERAS (2017)
WHO WILL WRITE OUR HISTORY (2018)
YOU ONLY DIE TWICE (2018)
SOBIBOR (2018)
LIBERATION HEROES (2019)
CHEATING HITLER (2019)
SCHOOL OF EXECUTIONERS (2019)
FILMS AVAILABLE IN USA
THE GREAT DICTATOR (1940)
ROME OPEN CITY (1945)
NIGHT AND FOG (1956)
A MAN ESCAPED (1956)
KAPO (1960)
DIAMONDS OF THE NIGHT (1964)
THE PAWNBROKER (1964)
THE BIG RED ONE (1980)
COME AND SEE (1985)
NUMBERED (2012)
GERMAN CONCENTRATION CAMP FACTUAL SURVEY (2014)
1945 (2017)
SCANDAL IN IVANSK (2017)
116 CAMERAS (2017)
WHO WILL WRITE OUR HISTORY (2018)
YOU ONLY DIE TWICE (2018)
SOBIBOR (2018)
LIBERATION HEROES (2019)
CHEATING HITLER (2019)
SCHOOL OF EXECUTIONERS (2019)
FILMS AVAILABLE WORLDWIDE
THE PAWNBROKER (1964)
THE BIG RED ONE (1980)
NUMBERED (2012)
SOBIBOR (2018)
LIBERATION HEROES (2019)
SCHOOL OF EXECUTIONERS (2019)
FILMS AVAILABLE IN THE UK
NIGHT AND FOG (1956)
THE PAWNBROKER (1964)
THE BIG RED ONE (1980)
COME AND SEE (1985)
NUMBERED (2012)
SOBIBOR (2018)
LIBERATION HEROES (2019)
SCHOOL OF EXECUTIONERS (2019)
FILMS AVAILABLE IN AUSTRALIA/NEW ZEALAND
NIGHT AND FOG (1956)
THE PAWNBROKER (1964)
THE BIG RED ONE (1980)
COME AND SEE (1985)
NUMBERED (2012)
SOBIBOR (2018)
LIBERATION HEROES (2019)
SCHOOL OF EXECUTIONERS (2019)