Witsies with the edge AWA R D S
[BA FT 2017]
GABRIELLA BLUMBERG Producer of I Am Here: Best South African Documentary at Durban International Film Festival, 2021; Audience Choice at the Durban International Film Festival, 2021; Audience Choice at the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival 2021
GABRIELLA BLUMBERG
20 W I T S R E V I E W
I Am Here is a moving documentary, which tells the story of Ella Blumenthal, a Holocaust survivor, who turned 100 in July this year. The film’s producer, Gabriella Blumberg (BA FT 2017) says the idea for the film came about when director, Jordy Sank, shared a Friday night Sabbath dinner at a friend’s house as a teenager. “Completely unannounced an elderly woman energetically stood up and started speaking. The whole table went silent as they listened to her recount haunting tales of her survival during the Holocaust. Then something
peculiar happened. Her attitude completely changed and she was dancing, singing and joking around. She lit up the room.” Blumberg says she was approached by Sank in 2019 because they knew “Ella’s story needed to be shared with the world, and most importantly it is her positive personality, despite all odds that we can all learn from.” The film is described as the highlight of the Durban Film Festival, and its Audience Choice Award qualifies it for an Oscar consideration. I Am Here innovatively weaves Ella’s
