In November 1940, days after the Nazis sealed 450,000 Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto, a secret band of journalists, scholars and community leaders decided to fight back. Led by historian Emanuel Ringelblum and known by the code name Oyneg Shabes, this clandestine group vowed to defeat Nazi lies and propaganda not with guns or fists, but with pen and paper. Now, for the first time, their story is told in the documentary WHO WILL WRITE OUR HISTORY. Featuring the voices of three-time Academy Award(R) nominee Joan Allen and Academy Award(R) winner Adrian Brody, WHO WILL WRITE OUR HISTORY mixes the writings of the Oyneg Shabes archive with new interviews, rarely seen footage and stunning dramatizations (shot on location in Lodz and Warsaw, Poland) to transport audiences inside the Ghetto and the lives of these courageous resistance fighters.
Premiering to commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day and the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, WHO WILL WRITE OUR HISTORY debuts SUNDAY, JANUARY 26 AT 3PM ET/PT on Discovery Channel and on Discovery Go. In addition, the film will air on multiple Discovery-owned networks around the world.
On International Holocaust Remembrance Day 2019, WHO WILL WRITE OUR HISTORY had an unprecedented global theatrical release with 355 organized screenings in 55 countries. In addition, the film had a premiere screening and Facebook Live integrated event at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France, with the participation of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute in Warsaw, Poland, Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles, and the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum in Birkenau, Poland.
WHO WILL WRITE OUR HISTORY screened in more than 75 countries and at prestigious film festivals including the Palm Springs Film Festival, Rome Film Festival, and the Berlin Film Festival as a Berlinale Special. It received the audience awards at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival, Miami Jewish Film Festival and JFilm Festival, and best documentary at the Twin Cities Film Festival.
A New York Times Critics Pick, The Times called it “A bold story of Nazi resistance,” “Immensely important,” and “heartbreaking.” The film reminds us of the courage of a secret band of journalists, scholars and community leaders who fought back against lies and propaganda with paper and pen.
Viewers can join the conversation on social media by using the hashtag #WhoWillWriteOurHistory.