FAREWELL, MY ISLAND

A film by Isaac Dostis

 

Director: Isaac Dostis

Camera: Nir Ramon

Music: Meir Israel

Voiceovers: Diana Sunrise

Anna Megaris

Running Time: 22 Minutes

 

The Holocaust came late to the Greek island of Corfu. On the ninth of June, 1944, months after the Italians surrendered, the Nazis began one of the final roundups of the war. Four months later, the Germans retreated from Greece. Of the 2000 Jews taken that early morning, only 165 remained after the war*.

 

The documentary has no traditional narration. The story is developed through the voice-over dialogue between mother and daughter and interviews with some of the survivors.

 

From the opening moment when the daughter first asks, "Where are we going, Mama?" the scene is set for the final trek. The film is timed to reflect the actual time it took from the roundup area to the beaches & boats: 22 minutes. The film is in Greek with English subtitles.

 

Isaac Dostis is a Romaniote Jew (A Greek speaking Jew, descendant from the Roman Byzantine Empire) who is an actor, director, playwright and teacher working with Act I Presentations' Moral Courage workshops. His next project is TEN GOLD MEDALS: GLORY OR FREEDOM, a children's book about how his uncle won 10 gold medals in the state competitions of Greece & had to use them to save his family during the Holocaust.

 

For more information about how the filmmaker can visit your institution or association please contact Isaac at PO Box 333 Lake Hiawatha, NJ 07034 or call 973 984 6618.

 

"…informative & moving, elements which make for a successful documentary."

                                                                                    Fotini Tomai-Contsantopoulou

Director, Hellenic Historical Archive

"…a major contribution to better understanding of Americans of Greek Jewish background."                                                     Sy Rotter

                                                                        Documentaries International

                                                                        Washington, DC

"…a beautiful & fascinating film. A valuable aspect of Holocaust history."

                                                                        Seymour Siegler, Director

                                                                        Holocaust Center, Lincroft, NJ

 

*Although the survivors of the roundup cite 2000 Jews being taken, historians estimate 1,750 Jews were on the island at that time. The 165 Greek Jews either survived the concentration camps or were hidden by their fellow Corfu Greeks. With the Allied bombings, many records were lost. An effort is currently underway to be more precise.

 

 

 

FAREWELL, MY ISLAND