Watch Life In Stills

Life in Stills is a captivating documentary film released in 2011 that tells the story of an aging woman's fight to preserve her family's legacy. Miriam Weissenstein, a Holocaust survivor living in Tel Aviv, dedicated her life to running a renowned photographic studio called Berekhat HaYarkon. The studio was established in the 1930s by her husband Rudi, and it thrived over the years, capturing thousands of images that documented the nation's history.

However, in the early 2000s, the studio faced a crisis. The rise of digital photography, coupled with the fading memories of its clients, led to a significant decline in business. Miriam, now in her 90s, couldn't let the studio fade away into obscurity. She began a campaign to safeguard the studio's archive of images, which Rudi stored in a colossal archive of negatives.

Her efforts culminated into a legal battle to stop the Tel Aviv municipality, which owned the land on which the studio was located, from seizing the archive and other Berekhat HaYarkon assets. She enlisted the help of her grandson, Ben, a filmmaker, in her fight. Together, they worked tirelessly to gather support for her cause, refurbish the studio, and create a museum to showcase its vast collection.

The film is a heartwarming tribute to Miriam's unwavering spirit and resilience. It portrays her as a woman of great determination, passion, and conviction in the face of enormous odds. She emerges as a symbol of the generation that lived through the horrors of the Holocaust but was able to rebuild their lives and preserve their heritage.

Through a series of interviews with Miriam, Ben, and other family members, as well as archival footage and photographs from the Berekhat HaYarkon collection, the film takes the viewer on a journey through the history of modern-day Israel. We witness the country's tumultuous birth, its struggle for independence, and its evolution into a thriving modern society.

The film also explores the power of images in shaping history and personal memory. It highlights the role of photography as an art form that captures the essence of a moment and preserves it for posterity. It shows the importance of preserving our heritage and the need for us to safeguard our history for future generations.

Life in Stills is a moving tribute to the power of photography to capture the human spirit, to bear witness to the events that shape our lives, and to preserve our memories for eternity. It is a must-see for anyone interested in photography, history, and the human experience. It reminds us that we all have a story to tell, and it is up to us to ensure that our stories are heard and remembered by future generations.