Breaking Home Ties

<p>In a groundbreaking collaboration born from the pandemic, a long-lost silent era gem, digitally restored to its original glory, debuts with a new soundtrack, performed by diverse, award-winning artists.</p>

<p>This melodrama of love and longing traces a young man from prerevolutionary Russia to New York, flourishing as a lawyer, while his destitute parents tirelessly search for him. This timeless tale movingly captures the arc of Jewish immigrants adapting to American life.</p>

<p>The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival will premiere the newly recorded score, a pandemic-inspired initiative commissioned and produced by Reboot, a non-profit dedicated to revitalizing Jewish culture through art. This project is led by 12-time Grammy-nominated musician Steve Berlin of Los Lobos. Drawing inspiration from Jewish cinema and heritage, he has assembled a stellar ensemble of celebrated musicians, covering genres such as Americana, jazz, avant-garde, punk, R&B, and indie rock. The lineup features Steve Berlin on saxophones, midisax, keyboards, and percussion; Mocean Worker on bass guitar and keyboards; and Scott Amendola on drums, percussion, vocals, electric guitar, electric bass, and electronics. They are complemented by additional talents like Nels Cline (Wilco) on guitar, Yuka Honda (Cibo Matto) on keyboards, Gretchen Gonzales (Slumber Party) with vocals, guitar, and organ, and Joey Mazzola (Sponge) on guitar. This eclectic soundscape enhances the film's themes of family, separation, and reconciliation. A vinyl release is anticipated for late 2024.</p>

<p>Thought lost, the film’s sole surviving print was discovered in a Berlin archive in 1984. The National Center for Jewish Film undertook an extensive restoration, a notable achievement given low preservation rates of early silent works. This rare cinematic portrayal, expressly made by Jewish filmmakers for a wide audience, sensitively shows Judaic culture and rituals, countering the era’s rising antisemitism.</p>