„THE NEXT GENERATION” is a cherished story of the descendants of the saved seeking for the roots, the past and the rescuers
The European Capital of Culture Plovdiv will host the world premiere of the documentary “The Next Generation,” in which the main characters are significant Israeli figures, descendants of rescued Bulgarian Jews. The event will take place on October 23 / Wednesday / 2019 at the Lucky House of Cinema at 8.30 pm.
“The Next Generation” is a film about the humanity which reminds us that before the national identity and ethnicity, we are humans. And that the protection of human’s life is one of the highest values. This is a movie that, through memories of a terrible historical past, presents the heroism and cause of Bulgarians who were able to save the Bulgarian Jews and to give a chance to the future generations.
“The Next Generation” is not a historical film, but a sacred story of the descendants of the Rescued, who seek their roots, past and rescuers in Bulgaria.
The full-length documentary, created by the directors Nia Alexandrova and Ayelet Heller, preserves our national and European historical memory, revealing the untold personal and very emotional stories of two rescued Jewish families whose roots are in Bulgaria.
“The Next Generation” is directly connected to Plovdiv. Its main characters are General Gabriel Ashkenazi, Chief of General Staff of Israel’s Defense Forces (2007-2011), and Oshrat Kotler, popular Israeli TV personality, who are descendants of well-known families from the city and region.
“How can the people here have made a quiet revolution against the Nazis?”Oshrat Kotler asks and General Ashkenazi adds: “This story must be told to future generations. To remember that there were other people in Europe’s most sinister time who were human. While Bulgaria insignificant, with no major achievement, but with great moral qualities not in existence In Europe of WWII. Ordinary people who were counted at times of trial. We owe them. We exist today because of them.”
Both General Ashkenazi and Oshrat Kotler will attend the opening event.
The movie was filmed in Israel and Bulgaria, and through the emotional journey of the characters back to the roots, traces not only the extraordinary story of the rescue and biographies of the two families, but also the personal feelings and emotions of the characters in their search for answers about the past and present.
This documentary is in honor of the 70th anniversary of the “Big Aliya” (the immigration of 45,000 Bulgaria’s Jews to Israel out of the 50,000 Jewish Community of Bulgaria). The project is part of the program „Plovdiv – European Capital of Culture“.
„Next Generation“is a project of DI Industry OOD and T.T.V Production Ltd. based on an idea of Yaakov Djerassi, Zafrir Kochanovski and Dimitar Gotchev.
Made possible by: Foundation Plovdiv 2019 – European Capital of Culture, Israel’s Channel 8, Zionist Federation of Bulgaria, Foundation Bulgaria International & others. The project is part of the program „Plovdiv – European Capital of Culture“.
