"Simply remarkable.
If there was something to remember about this year's Sundance festival --besides
the work of Ella Lewenz-- it is that the medium will always be capable of
bringing people together, in some cases relatives who have never even met."
—NEWSDAY, John Anderson
All
families have secrets. Ella Arnhold Lewenz
tried to protect hers by asking her son to burn her personal letters and
papers after she died. He did. What motivated this Jewish grandmother's request,
when she also left behind dozens of reels of 16mm color and black/white films
documenting a large family who had once been powerful figures in the history
of Germany? Until this discovery in her family attic in 1981, director Lisa
Lewenz had little idea about her family's silenced past.
A Letter Without
Words exposes a granddaughter's sixteen year quest to discover her
grandmother's motives for having made films long after 1933, when independent
filmmaking became illegal. Ella risked her life to chronicle an otherwise
forgotten time. Her footage documents a carefree family; elaborate Nazi
extravaganzas; and notable figures who soon would become exiles from Hitler's
regime: such as Albert Einstein, Rabbi Leo Baeck, actress Brigitte Helm.
Lisa Lewenz retraced her grandmother's
footsteps and invited her family to participate in the journey. This film
chronicles an imagined correspondence between generations while questioning
the role of the historical witness. The 1998 film A Letter Without Words
explores themes of racism, genocide, and ongoing attempts to grapple with
effects of political upheaval, while discovering a forgotten personal
history.
For preview cassettes,
photos,
and interviews contact: Lisa Lewenz,
Writer/Director/Producer
P.O. Box 133
Madison Square Station
New York, NY 10010
tel/fax: 212-447-7752 100430.350@compuserve.com
