Lea and Darija

Branko Ivanda

U.S. Premiere! Director Branko Ivanda in person!

A captivating drama tells the story of Lea Deutsch, known as the Croatian Shirley Temple, and her friend and dancing partner Darija Gasteiger. The two talented and exuberant 13-year-old girls were great stars in Zagreb on the eve of World War II. The Nazi persecution of Jews and later, German nationals’ flight from communists, tests their friendship.

DIRECTOR
Branko Ivanda
YEAR
2011
COUNTRY
Croatia
RUNTIME
101 minutes
LANGUAGE
Croatian with English subtitles

U.S. Premiere! Director Branko Ivanda in person at both screenings!

A captivating drama tells the story of Lea Deutsch, known as the Croatian Shirley Temple, and her friend and dancing partner Darija Gasteiger. The two talented and exuberant 13-year-old girls were great stars in Zagreb on the eve of World War II. They played to sold-out houses around Europe, were filmed by Pathé Paris and Berlin’s UFA and lived in the rarefied world of the 1930s Croatian National Theater’s “Children’s Realm.” The Nazi persecution of Jews and later, German nationals’ flight from communists, tests their friendship.

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