"Kafka's Last Trial" is a riveting documentary that delves into the tangled legacy of one of the 20th century’s most enigmatic literary figures: Franz Kafka. Far more than a biographical portrait, the film unravels a modern-day legal and philosophical battle over Kafka’s unpublished manuscripts—documents that survived war, exile, and secrecy, only to become the center of a fierce dispute over cultural ownership and moral responsibility.

Set against the backdrop of Israeli and German archives, courtroom drama, and literary obsession, the film follows the contentious trial that determined the fate of Kafka’s papers, long held by the descendants of Max Brod, Kafka’s friend and executor. Should Kafka’s legacy belong to the Jewish people, as Brod intended, or to the world at large? Through interviews with scholars, lawyers, and archivists, and with haunting visuals that echo Kafka’s own surreal sensibilities, the film explores themes of identity, memory, and the power of literature to transcend borders.

Whether you're a devoted Kafka reader or new to his world of existential dread and bureaucratic absurdity, Kafka's Last Trial offers a compelling meditation on how we preserve—and fight over—the cultural treasures of the past.

Eliran Peled is a producer, director, and writer based in Israel. He works in the fields of animation, fiction feature films, And documentaries. He directed 14 shorts, and nowadays, he is in post-production of his feature film debut. He was born on May 7, 1992. He as a BFA in film and business from Tel Aviv university.