How to Re-Establish a Vodka Empire

New York Premiere!

Co-director Daniel Edelstyn in person at both screenings! Shards director Jack Feldstein in person at both screenings!

Documentary filmmaker Dan Edelstyn grew up in Northern Ireland only vaguely aware of his ancestry, but the discovery of his grandmother’s memoir inspires a quest to trace and reconnect with his Jewish Ukrainian roots. Edelstyn balances his personal journey with the story of his grandmother, giving voice to a highly educated cosmopolitan Jew from a merchant family fully integrated with the aristocracy of the day. The film’s parallel narratives become a fascinating and layered exploration of a common theme: the desire for return and the rediscovery of heritage.

Screening with:
Shards/Brokhshtiker
Jack Feldstein | 2012 | USA | 2m
On August 12th, 1952, 13 Yiddish poets and writers were murdered by Stalin's forces. This neon animation of “Shards,” a Yiddish poem by Peretz Markish, one of those killed, was created to commemorate the 60th anniversary of that night. Yiddish with English subtitles.