Syracuse University's "Symposium on Holocaust Education: A Tribute to the Voices Lost"
will present a film screening Monday, Oct. 27, at 7 p.m. at the Everson Museum of Art, 401
Harrison St., Syracuse. The screening, which is free and open to the public, will feature the
films "The Memory Thief" by Gil Kofman and "The Dr. John Haney Session" by Owen
Shapiro. A reception and talk-back with the filmmakers will follow. The screening is
sponsored by SU's College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) and the Syracuse
International Film Festival.
Both films challenge traditional portrayal and visual conventions for dealing with the
Holocaust. "The Memory Thief" (90 min.) has generated controversy and discussion by
virtue of its unconventional way of presenting the story of the Holocaust. Its impact is
memorable and powerful. The 1986 screening of "The Dr. John Haney Session" (17 min.) in
Tel Aviv, Israel, was instrumental in the creation of Children of Holocaust Survivors groups.
The film has served as a discussion trigger at numerous national and international
conferences and Holocaust Remembrance Day events.
Kofman is a writer and feature film director born in Nigeria and raised in Kenya, Israel and
New York City. "The Memory Thief," his first narrative feature, received the Digital Feature
Award at the 21st Edmonton International Film Festival in Canada and the Grand Jury Prize
at the Red Rock Film Festival in Utah. He has written numerous plays, including "American
Magic," produced in New York City, Los Angeles and London; "Entrivista 187," produced
in Los Angeles and Dallas; and "The Report" and "Pharmacopeia," both produced in Los
Angeles.
Shapiro is the Maurice E. Shaffer and Dorothea I. Shaffer Professor in the film program of
VPA's Department of Transmedia. He is also the co-founder and artistic director of the
Syracuse International Film Festival. Since 1969, he has made more than 30 films and 12
videos on a wide range of subjects in the documentary, narrative and experimental genres.
He recently co-wrote and co-produced "Session," a feature film that he now has in post-
production for a scheduled May 2009 release. He also recently co-wrote the feature film
"Hotel Syracuse" with director Haim Bouzaglo. His latest personal work, "Rain and a
Woman," is an experimental video exploring women in domestic and public spaces. His
films have been in numerous festivals in England, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong,
Israel, Scotland and the United States.
"Symposium on Holocaust Education: A Tribute to the Voices Lost" is a week of Holocaust
education events Oct. 23-31 that will bring together a diverse group of people-from
scholars to performers-to build knowledge and understanding about the realities of the
Holocaust. The symposium is sponsored by Marilyn Ziering G'56 and the Ziering Family
Foundation.
For more information about the screening, contact the VPA Dean's Office at (315) 443-5889.
