Misa's Fugue Screens for Staff at USHMM

Post date: Oct 11, 2012 3:12:21 PM

On Wednesday, October 10, Misa's Fugue was screened at a special event for the staff at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. The event was arranged as a joint venture between the Education, Archives and Curatorial Affairs Departments to highlight the work of Producers Sean Gaston & Jennifer Goss, who are alumni of Museum Education programs and also to share news about the recent donation of Vilma's letter by Frank.

Although the event was specifically arranged by the aforementioned departments, members of a variety of Museum departments and many survivor volunteers were in attendance. The event was of particular interest to survivor volunteer, Martin Weiss, who was in many of the same camps as Frank. Martin shared many thoughts with the audience after viewing the film and said that it particularly affected him, not because of the information and story that was shared, but the "amazing way in which the story was told by all who were involved in the project." He also stated, "That this is not your ordinary Holocaust film, this film has a soul."

For the producers, it was particularly fitting to share this project with the staff at USHMM. Gaston initially met Frank at the Belfer Next Step Conference in Indianapolis, IN in June 2010. The Belfer Next Step is a bridge program between the Arthur and Rochelle Belfer Conference for Educators (which Goss attended in 2006 and Gaston in 2008) and the Museum Teacher Fellows Program (Goss is a 2010-11 alum). Program coordinator Christina Chavarria was thrilled to share Gaston's "Next Step" with the audience and Program director Peter Fredlake said the work of this team and other teachers in the nation was "why we come to work each day."

Those in attendance were very excited about the project and suggested several additional ideas for future screenings, translations and international opportunities. As the team pursues these ideas, we will be sure to post updates on this site and also to share them with you via our e-mail updates. Additionally, we will be sure to keep everyone posted about the debut of Vilma's Letter in the Permanent Exhibition of the Museum which is currently being coordinated by PE Curator Steven Luckert.

The Misa's Fugue team was honored to be able to share this film with those who are involved in the preservation of Holocaust memory on a daily basis. The Museum was instrumental in providing the resources needed to create the film and accomplish our goals. We hope that the film continues to make the impact that was voiced by a staff member in a post-viewing e- mail: "Misa's Fugue is an amazing documentary and it proves the importance of the Museum's educational outreach efforts. Hopefully the film will get wide exposure and be used by many schools as they embark on programs to teach about the Holocaust."