Wake Up, Grandson
Synopsis
Director Renen Schorr’s (“Late Summer Blues”, founding director of the Sam Spiegel Film School), journey in the footsteps of his grandfather, Rabbi Avraham Heller, hero of the 1948 War Battle of Safed. Spiritual vs. Secular, Faith vs. Film, Holy Safed vs. Hedonistic Tel Aviv. A duel.
In a 25-year exchange of letters between Grandfather and grandson, the elder begs the young filmmaker to forsake his belief in filmmaking for Jewish tradition and carry on his legacy. When the request is rebuffed, a surprising final wish comes from the grandfather, “Make a movie about me”.
In the epilogue, the director makes a double-act. For the first time since his bar mitzvah, he puts on Tefillin and prays. Furthermore, he undertakes the legal act of changing his name and official identity to Renen Schorr Heller. And finally, his homecoming to Safed, to direct a scene scripted by his grandfather when his life was coming to an end.
Credits
Director(s)
Renen Schorr Heller
Producer(s)
Renen Schorr Heller
Script
Renen Schorr Heller
Cinematography
Gal Rumbak, Yaniv Linton
Editor
Noa Keidan
Original Music
Ehud Banai
Production Company
Blues Productions LTD
Research
Renen Schorr, Lily Yudinski
Sound Design
Aviv Aldema
Color
Yoav Raz
Festival Highlights
Docaviv International Documentary Film Festival, Israel, Masters Section, 2024
Reviews
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"An extraordinary documentary film – beautifully conceived, with great pacing, which combines the personal and the national in an effortless way."
- Amy Kronish,
