Two Rivers Media has secured a commission from BBC Arts for “The Last Musician of Auschwitz,” a feature documentary set to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.
The 90-minute film, co-funded by Access, the company behind Cannes, Oscar and BAFTA-winning “The Zone of Interest,” will explore the stories of musicians who created and performed music in the concentration camp during the Holocaust.
Centering on 99-year-old Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, the only living musician from the Auschwitz orchestras, the doc will also highlight four other musicians from across Europe: Adam Kopyciński, Szymon Laks, Martin Rosebery D’Arguto and Ilse Weber. The documentary will feature a newly discovered work by Weber and a premiere recording of a lullaby composed by Kopyciński in Auschwitz.
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Alan Clements, managing director of Two Rivers Media, will executive produce alongside Cohen and Emily Blavatnik for Access. Deborah Lee is producing, with Toby Trackman directing.
Abacus Media Rights will handle international distribution.
Danny Cohen, president of Access, said: “This important film tells the story of Auschwitz through the powerful lens of music. It will be a moving, surprising and sometimes shocking film — an innovative hybrid of observational documentary, expert interview, archive, highly stylized drama and music. We are extremely proud to be involved in this project.”
Suzy Klein, head of BBC Arts and Classical Music TV, added: “On the 80th anniversary of Auschwitz’s liberation, ‘The Last Musician of Auschwitz’ shows how music itself can testify both to what these musicians of the Holocaust endured – and how they tried to endure it.”
Jonathan Ford, managing director of Abacus Media Rights, stated: “The rescue of these people’s stories and their music from oblivion is largely thanks to the devotion of family, friends and dedicated scholars, many of whom feature in this film. This is a powerful documentary which will resonate worldwide. We are extremely pleased to be part of it.”
This commission follows Two Rivers’ recent projects for BBC, including “Confessions of a Teenage Fraudster” for BBC Three and iPlayer, and “Keeping It Up,” a Viagra documentary for BBC Two’s Storyville.
