Martha
Filmmaker Daniel Schubert visits his grandmother, Martha, in this warm, intimate portrait of an unrelenting survivor.
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Even at a frail 90, Martha Katz has an impish energy that remains undiminished. She chides grandson-filmmaker Daniel Schubert over his choice of shirt during a visit to her Los Angeles home, but there’s trauma beneath the humour. At 14, Martha and her family were torn from their village in Czechoslovakia and shipped to Auschwitz. A visit to a Holocaust museum ignites painful memories, including a haunting personal encounter with one of Nazi Germany’s most notorious figures. For Martha, however, the emphasis is on a tough but rewarding postwar life in Winnipeg, which she fondly recalls in this warm, intimate portrait of an unrelenting survivor.
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directorDaniel Schubert
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writerDaniel SchubertBirdie Hamilton
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producerShirley VercruysseTeri Snelgrove
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director of photographyMichael Dinsmore
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editorHart SniderJason Schneider
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composerBrent Belke
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line productionJennifer Roworth
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production managerCaroline Coutts
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1st assistant cameraTravis Lee
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gafferChris Judson
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gripMathew Gilrow
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construction coordinatorTravis Devlin
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location managerCaroline Coutts
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production designerJennifer LeCaine
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art department assistantAnäisa Visser
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costume designerBarbara Gregusova
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hair artistPamela SilveyCatherine Sherwin
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makeup artistPamela SilveyCatherine Sherwin
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production assistantMathew GilrowÖzgün Gündüz
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castingCatharine FalconBim Narine
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castMila BursacShaun MorseOrsolya Szabo
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location sound recordistIryna Kucherenko
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sound designerChris McIntosh
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re-recording mixerChris McIntosh
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musicianPeggy LeeMark Ferris
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colouristLorne Wright
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visual effectsBun Lee
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titlesJason Lau
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creditsJason Lau
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researcherCaroline Coutts
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technical coordinatorWes Machnikowski
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production coordinatorNicolas Ayerbe BaronaNathan Conchie
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studio administratorCarla Jones
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marketing managerKay Rondonneau
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publicistKatja De Bock
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executive producerShirley Vercruysse
Warnings: This film includes sensitive subject matter: reenactments of illness and fear in a concentration camp.
Prepare the students for the mature content of this film. What memories of Auschwitz did Martha share? Martha says, “You think your mother will always be there.” Discuss: What do you think she missed about her mother? Do a Think, Pair, Share about Martha’s interaction with Dr. Josef Mengele and its impact on the family. Martha seems content with her life despite having been a prisoner at Auschwitz. Write a reflection on her statement that “we had to forget what happened, otherwise we were dead too.”