CREDIT: JOE’S VIOLIN
A ninety-one year old man donates an old violin to a New York program for putting musical instruments into the hands of underprivileged kids.
It’s a simple story – until you learn the history behind it – a story that became the inspiration for the Academy Award®-nominated documentary short feature, Joe’s Violin. The story of how a connection was formed between a Holocaust survivor and a twelve-year old Bronx schoolgirl…
POV, the critically acclaimed documentary series on PBS, has acquired the the film for broadcast on PBS later this year.
POV Acquires Oscar-Nominated Short Joe’s Violin for 2017 Broadcast on PBS
Music Connects Holocaust Survivor and Bronx Schoolgirl in Film Nominated for Academy Award in Best Documentary Short Subject
?New York, N.Y., Feb. 14, 2017 — ?
Celebrated PBS documentary series POV has acquired the broadcast rights for Joe’s Violin, an Academy Award nominee in Best Documentary (Short Subject). In the film, a donated musical instrument forges an improbable friendship between 91-year-old Holocaust survivor Joseph Feingold and 12-year-old Bronx schoolgirl Brianna Perez. Directed by Kahane Cooperman, winner of 11 Primetime Emmy Awards as Co-Executive Producer of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Joe’s Violin showcases the impact of music and how a small act of kindness unexpectedly brings together a Holocaust-survivor and the young daughter of Dominican immigrants in the Bronx.
“We’re thrilled to include Joe’s Violin in POV’s 30th season,” said POV Executive Producer Justine Nagan. “During these discordant times, finding stories that remind us of our shared humanity is of particular importance. As Joe’s Violin touches on the holocaust, immigration, the arts and urban education, it’s a timely reminder of how often our lives are woven together across divides.”
“I couldn’t be more excited that Joe’s Violin, which got its start when I heard a promo for an instrument drive on public radio, will have its broadcast debut on public television as part of such a highly-regarded series,” said Cooperman. “POV connects people across the country through the power of storytelling and I believe there is no better broadcast home for our film about an unlikely connection between strangers.”
The film premiered at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival and will debut on the PBS documentary series POV in 2017, after the showcase kicks off its 30th season this spring.
About the Filmmaker:
Kahane Cooperman, Director/Producer
Kahane Cooperman is a documentary filmmaker and television producer. Currently, she is the Executive Producer and Showrunner of the Untitled Holcomb Project with Radical Media for SundanceTV. Prior, she was the executive producer and showrunner of The New Yorker Presents, a series with Jigsaw Productions for Amazon Prime. Before The New Yorker Presents, she was co-executive producer of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Originally hired for her documentary background, she was with The Daily Show from its inception in 1996, starting out as a field producer before becoming senior producer, supervising producer and then co-executive producer from 2005-2015. For her work at the show, she received eleven Primetime Emmy awards and two Peabody awards.
Kahane began her documentary career at Maysles Films in NYC. She has directed and produced several documentaries prior to Joe’s Violin including Cool Water, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and Making Dazed about Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused, which was broadcast on AMC and acquired by the Criterion Collection. Kahane also produced the feature doc Heidi Fleiss: Hollywood Madam, directed by Nick Broomfield. Kahane has an MFA in Film from Columbia University.
Credits:
Director: Kahane Cooperman; Producers: Kahane Cooperman and Raphaela Neihausen; Executive Producer: Peter Kenney; Editors: Amira Dughri and Andrew Saunderson; Composer: Gary Meister; Director of Photography: Bob Richman; Executive Producers for POV: Justine Nagan, Chris White
Running Time: 24:17
POV Series Credits:
Executive Producers: Justine Nagan, Chris White; Vice President, Content Strategy: Eliza Licht; Associate Producer: Nicole Tsien; Coordinating Producer: Nikki Heyman
About POV
Produced by American Documentary, Inc., POV is public television’s premier showcase for nonfiction films. Since 1988, POV has been the home for the world’s boldest contemporary filmmakers, celebrating intriguing personal stories that spark conversation and inspire action. Always an innovator, POV discovers fresh new voices and creates interactive experiences that shine a light on social issues and elevate the art of storytelling. With our documentary broadcasts, original online programming and dynamic community engagement campaigns, we are committed to supporting films that capture the imagination and present diverse perspectives.
POV films have won 36 Emmy® Awards, 19 George Foster Peabody Awards, 12 Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards, three Academy Awards®, the first-ever George Polk Documentary Film Award and the Prix Italia. The POV series has been honored with a Special News & Documentary Emmy Award for Excellence in Television Documentary Filmmaking, three IDA Awards for Best Curated Series and the National Association of Latino Independent Producers (NALIP) Award for Corporate Commitment to Diversity. In 2013, American Documentary | POV was one of 13 nonprofit organizations around the world to win a MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. Learn more at www.pbs.org/pov.
Major funding for POV is provided by PBS, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Corporation for Public Broadcasting and National Endowment for the Arts. Additional funding comes from Nancy Blachman and David desJardins, Bertha Foundation, Wyncote Foundation, The Fledgling Fund, Marguerite Casey Foundation, Ettinger Foundation, New York State Council on the Arts, Ann Tenenbaum and Thomas H. Lee, and public television viewers. POV is presented by a consortium of public television stations including KQED San Francisco, WGBH Boston and THIRTEEN in association with WNET.ORG.