Judy Levis Krug Boca Raton Virtual Jewish Film Festival

MADE IN AUSCHWITZ: THE UNTOLD STORY OF BLOCK 10

Expired May 23, 2021 3:59 AM
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PALM BEACH COUNTY PREMIERE


This chilling documentary uses intimate survivor testimonies, archival footage and legal records to tell the story of the over 400 young women who underwent medical experimentation in Auschwitz under Carl Clauberg, an enterprising, sadistic gynecologist. Clauberg, who had already made a name for himself as a research scientist who volunteered his services to Heinrich Himmler of the SS to both help eradicate future generations of Jews and to avail himself of a pool of captive research subjects.


These experiments, which sterilized many of the women, was also what spared them from the gas chambers. Many of the women, who were deported to Auschwitz from across Nazi-occupied Europe, were so young that they did not understand their reproductive systems before suffering their destruction. This admirably crafted film traces the history of the survivors and the subsequent attempts to bring Clauberg to justice, which includes examining his -and these women's - enduring contribution to research .



DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT : SYLVIA NAGEL AND SONYA WINTERBERG


Our documentary of the untold story of Auschwitz’ Block 10 centers on six women who

were subjected to sterilization experiments by German gynecologist Carl Clauberg, who

initially looked to further his career in endocrinology, a fairly new branch of medicine in

the 1930's, and in particular in fertility research. However, Clauberg’s ambitions took a Uturn

and instead of helping women become pregnant, he helped the Nazis to make them

infertile by the cruelest of means. Clauberg sacrificed the women in his personal quest for

recognition and his indispensable will to produce scientific results that would have made

a second genocide in the East possible once the war was won.


The film is based on the life and memories of the survivors of Block 10, strong women

who for the first time tell their stories in front of a camera. Historic court documents are

the basis for a treasure trove of insights that our experts explain and comment on both

with regard to Clauberg’s narcissistic personality as well as the results of his questionable

work that are the basis of scientific fertility research to this day.


The findings from the “Clauberg Files” and the memories of our protagonists result in a

visual dialogue on several levels, that combine its focal points in pictorial language and

tone of voice, structure and sequence of the scenes like a mosaic. Hardly noticeably

animated documents, which lend the stories plasticity, and music composed especially for

this film offer the viewer an insight into a time gone by and preserved by the memories of

our protagonists while being directly linked to today.


The aim of our film was to give a voice and face to the last women survivors of these

horrors. How did they survive? How were they able to carry on and start families (or not)

after all? And why do we know so little about how Auschwitz was used in the

development of contraceptives when Clauberg is actually considered the “real father of

the birth control pill”. While it is indeed difficult to hear these accounts, we believe it is

important to see the worst and the best in people in order to better understand history.


It is our hope that this film will find its way into the heart and minds of viewers as the

women of Block 10 tell their stories with graceful charm and unrivaled wit as we pay

tribute. It is a testament to future generations and, especially in the way our German-

Israeli team collaborated, leading the way for times to come.

  • Year
    2019
  • Runtime
    72 minutes
  • Language
    German, French, English, Hebrew w/Subtitles
  • Country
    Germany, Israel
  • Premiere
    Palm Beach County
  • Director
    Sylvia Nagel & Sonya Winterberg
  • Screenwriter
    Sylvia Nagel & Sonya Winterberg
  • Producer
    Sylvia Nagel, Sonya Winterberg Simone Baumann, Sascha Beier, Philippa Kowarsky, Olivier Tournaud
  • Editor
    Shaked Goren and Clemens Hübner
  • Music
    Peter Andreas