Jeri Jacquin

In theatres from director Beth Lane and Greenwich Entertainment comes the history of a family that refuses to be UNBROKEN.

Beth Lane takes on the story of her family who deals with the struggles of Nazi Germany and how they survived a war-torn Germany. Starting with grandfather Alexander who starts out life in Germany and eventually moves to Hungary where he meets his wife, Lina. They began their life with a difference as Alexander was Catholic and Lina was Jewish but in a bold move, he converts to Judaism.

Moving to Berlin, Lane looks for trails of her grandparents through her Uncle Alfonse’s’ letters providing a vague guide where to look into the family history even more. In Berlin, Lina has her own business repairing stockings. Her daughters Bella and Ruth have their memories of that time in Berlin. They recall wearing the star on their clothing. Soon after, Alexander is arrested and sent to a camp as Lina fought for her husband. World War II has begun and so did the deportations. Lina helped those fleeing and Alexander knew hos dangerous it was for the family.

Then Lina is arrested and as all the children are taken away. Arthur Schmidt, a local grocer and his wife Paula take the children to Worin, Germany and their farm. The children live in fear, hunger and isolation in a very small room. Schmidt tells no one and the Mayor of Worin tells no one of the children’s presence. While this is happening, Alexander renounces his Judaism to be able to work and feel his children while waiting for news of Lina.

Alexander takes the children back to Berlin only to have the family suffer an intense air raid while staying in the Schmidt’s’ basement. When the children are again taken by the Joint Distributions, Alexander pleads with them to stay together. The children experience hardship and more suffering as they arrive in Munich. Spending time at a convent, they are eventually put on the SS Marine Flasher boat but Alexander cannot follow them.

The children arrive in New York and make headlines as the “7 Orphans” (Alfons, Ruth, Senta, Gertrude, Judith, Renee and Bela), making their way to Chicago and the Jewish Children’s Bureau. It is there that the children discover to their shock that they can not keep their word to Alexander. Alexander tries again and again to get to America while the children begin new lives but away from one another. When Alexander does finally arrive, he starts over without the children.

As each of the children grow up, they become part of their new families but there is so much they cannot forget – including each other. In 1986, the children, now adults, finally get together. This is a family that came from love and war but never forgot where they came from and how seven children created a huge family of their own!

Greenwich Entertainment, founded in 2017, is an independent film distribution company specializing in narrative and documentary feature films. For more of what they have to offer please visit www.greenwichentertainment.com.

The film has garnered recognition from the Heartland Int’l Film Festival for Best Documentary Premiere, Audience Choice Best Doc from the Julien Dubuque Int’l Film Festival, Best First Time Filmmaker from the Hot Springs Women’s Int’l Film Festival, Audience Choice Best Doc from the Berkshire Int’l Film Festival, Madelyn’s Choice Award from the Rocky Mountain Women’s Film Festival and Runner Up Audience Choice Best Doc from the Orcas Island Film Festival.

Beth Lane says of her film, “Making UNBROKEN has allowed me to embrace how wholly Jewish I am. And I am very proud of it. My life doesn’t revolve around my Judaism, but this moment in history – this horrible period of antisemitism has brought out the Mama Bear in me that is fierce and ancient. My birth grandfather was tortured by Nazis and then they murdered my birth grandmother. My mother and her siblings barely survived. I had never considered that I was the recipient of intergenerational trauma until I started exploring my mother’s past.”

UNBROKEN is a stunning story of family during a time when their country was falling apart. Surviving day by day through their trauma during way and more trauma being separated for so many years, director Lane follows the painful path and the story that shaped them. It is heart breaking to see how a beautiful beginning based in love becomes the beginnings of trying to survive. The children experienced things no child should ever have to and its almost unthinkable today.

Yet, they managed to find their way back to each other which brings it all full circle back to love. Only the seven children knew the whole of their story and only the seven could relate to each other’s pain and feeling of abandonment coming to a strange new world. The most wonderful part of this documentary is seeing them together to feel safe enough to remember it and share it with Lane. That’s what it takes to talk about such trauma, safety in the presence of those who understand it all from Germany, their parents, living in basically a closet, shuffled to another country and starting over.

In the midst of all that is the one thing that could never be taken from them and that is the blood flowing through their sibling veins and the ache to reconnect. That is such a powerful force and the “7 Orphans” found a way to be together once again. This is an amazing documentary and Lane does her family proud in every way bringing it to the screen for us all to experience.

In the end –  always stay together!

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