As part of Peace Days 2024, don't miss the free virtual screening of Daniela Volker's documentary “The Commandant's Shadow”. This documentary echoes Jonathan Glazer's The Zone of Interest, tackling themes of family guilt and the legacy of the Holocaust. “The Commander's Shadow” follows Hans Hurgen Höss, the son of Auschwitz camp commander Rudolf Höss, as he confronts for the first time the terrible legacy of his father, responsible for the death of millions of Jews.
As in The Zone of Interest, the film juxtaposes the carefree lives of the commandant's family with the unimaginable horror of the camp. Hans Jürgen Höss grew up in a nearby villa, surrounded by toys, while Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, a Jewish cellist, played to survive Auschwitz. Eight decades later, the film captures an unprecedented encounter between the war criminal's son and Anita, in her London living room, where they confront their complex heritages, alongside their children, Kai Höss and Maya Lasker-Wallfisch.
The film will be available online, with free registration, from September 23 to October 15. It is in English and German, with English subtitles.
