EXCLUSIVE: The Last Musician of Auschwitz, the BBC documentary feature backed by Access Entertainment, has landed a UK theatrical release.
Brit sales house Cosmic Cat has secured the rights to distribute the doc and plans to have 100 screenings by the end of this year.
Backed by The Zone of Interest funder Access, the doc, which was made by Two Rivers Media, follows Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who, along with other victims of Auschwitz, played and created music amid the terrors of the Holocaust. It reveals how despite living in the most brutal and dehumanizing of situations, prisoners were secretly composing music whilst in the camps. The film also examines the SS’s perverse relationship with music — forcing prisoners to perform for their entertainment and accompany slave laborers, turning art into another form of torture.
Cosmic Cat plans to pair many of the UK cinema screenings with Q&A sessions including a live talk with Jacqueline Luck, daughter of Auschwitz survivor Lela Black née Amiel.
The Last Musician of Auschwitz aired on the BBC in January around the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the notorious death camp, which was commemorated worldwide.
Director Toby Trackman said: “We know from the response we have received already that this film can have a profound impact on those who see it, which I hope audiences will find is amplified by experiencing it in cinemas. It has already created a huge amount of discussion which we’re keen to build on, inviting a deeper examination of the themes explored in the film – whether educational, musical or emotional. I really hope to involve interfaith organisations and community groups, to give those conversations as wide a geographic and social footprint as possible.”
Co-EPs Emily Blavatnik and Danny Cohen added: “Preserving the memories, stories and truths of the Holocaust is critically important. It’s something that the Blavatnik Family and Access Industries are profoundly committed to. This documentary and its musical testimonies resonate deeply when experienced in a shared, collective setting, which is key to furthering holocaust remembrance.”
BBC docs being given theatrical runs has been more common of late, with recent examples including BACKLASH: The Murder of George Floyd and From Roger Moore, With Love.
The Last Musician of Auschwitz is executive produced by Alan Clements for Two Rivers Media. Cohen and Blavatnik are EPs for Access. It is produced by Deborah Lee.
The post BBC’s ‘Last Musician Of Auschwitz’ Lands Theatrical Release appeared first on Deadline.
