Sojourner Films

Esther Topaz Documentary

Arts Alive offers fiscal sponsorship to new arts organizations working their way towards independence as nonprofits and to artists exploring community-centered projects and creating work in the Monadnock region.

the big idea

Mission and vision of project

Sojourner Films will finish production of a movie about artist and Holocaust survivor Esther Topaz. The film will be a catalyst for discussion and education about art, war, inherited trauma, and the Holocaust. We are currently in post-production; all major video recording has been completed; we have a script written and imagery selected. We have interviewed four noted scholars on the question of Vichy and its role in the Holocaust: Michael Marrus, Robert Paxton, Susan Zuccotti and Claude Laharie. Virginia Eskin, noted pianist, has agreed to compose and perform the musical score.

Measurable outcomes of project

1. To have a finished feature length documentary ready for distribution. New Hampshire PBS has expressed an interest in airing the film.

2. To create an impactful work of documentary filmmaking - which utilizes local creators, musicians, film editors, etc - that can educate a national audience about arts & creative process the impact of trauma on an artist’s life and career the 20th century genocide of Jewish people and many others in Europe during and leading up to WWII, focusing on the Vichy government’s role.