Three Palm Trees Productions
THE STORY
Laemmle's List:
When You Save A Life, You Save A World.
One woman's quest to discover the unsung impact of her ancestor, Carl Laemmle, one of Hollywood's founders.
In this fascinating documentary, filmmaker Deborah Fletcher Blum embarks on a deeply personal journey to uncover the hidden heroism of her great-grandfather's first cousin, Carl Laemmle, a Hollywood trailblazer and one of Universal Studios founding figures.​ A largely unsung hero, Laemmle used his influence to save Jews from Nazi Germany, yet his courageous efforts remain scarcely acknowledged by Hollywood today.​
What begins as a heartfelt mission to learn about “Uncle Carl” evolves into a powerful quest for lost history and family truth. Husband and filmmaker, Warren I. Blum, and their 11-year-old, Esther, join Deborah to travel from California to Germany, as they trace the stories of three families Carl sponsored, and uncover what became of Deborah's great-grandparents under the Nazis.
Along the way, they encounter modern-day Germans dedicated to preservation, memory and reconciliation — revealing a moving journey of courage, hope and redemption.
Directors Statement
by Deborah F Blum:
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Warren and I co-directed this film. This started as a labor of love and then it turned into something much more than that. We are deeply grateful to the three families we met who shared their stories of survival and escape from Nazi Germany. Each story was different and together they painted a picture of the way that lives were uprooted and then - if they were lucky - started anew. The lengths that Carl Laemmle went to to rescue his fellow Jews from the horrible situation in Nazi Germany shows his perseverance and commitment.
In the film, I say that meeting Sandy Einstein and the Schloss and Bender families, and hearing their stories, gave me courage to find out more about what happened to my great-grandparents under the Nazis. I knew they had made in to Los Angeles, but I had no idea how. Nor did I know that they had been forced to turn over their oil and grease factory to the Nazis and leave everything behind.
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I hope this film inspires people of all ages to look into their own family's past and history and to record and document the stories and the acts of courage and kindness that were done to help others. These stories can be a great inspiration to future generations and if they not recorded, risk being lost forever.