Yael Katzir

Documentary feature with unique archival footage, unveiling the unknown story of rescuing thousands of Jewish refugees in Albania (Mostly Muslim state) in WWII. Ennie Altaratz-Francis, who was saved there escaping from Yugoslavia, decides to go to thank whoever she can. This voyage is full of surprises, discovering how an entire Nation saved refugees, bound by their Moral Code. At-last, the Albanians get the appreciation they deserve for being the only country in Europe that rescued the persecuted. The film carries a universal message of gratitude to human-values.

War heard through the ears of classical musicians and also seen through their eyes.

The film begins right after the funeral of my mom, Ziona. We sit Shiva at my parents' home. My parents represented the melting pot of Tel Aviv: a Sabra and a Berliner physician, who barely escaped the Nazis in 1933. Suddenly, my sister Nurit, my brother Micha, and I, Yael, are orphans. I ask my son, Dan, to document the Shiva and beg him to be gentle and unobtrusive, but that is not his filming style. "Shiva on Mother" is a mourning journey unfolding through the different stages of grief, through the days of the Shiva. It begins with nostalgic stories about Ziona, but soon turns into a search for resolutions of past conflicts with her mother. In the back rooms of the house, the brother and sisters talk about painful issues regarding their relations with their parents. Anger, frustrations and doubts are expressed. Being exposed and fragile, her own children accuse Yael of the same things she accused her mother.