A Look at Jewish Life after 1918

This workshop examines the impact of oral testimonies on the historical narrative. The period after 1918 was marked by dramatic changes with major effects on all segments of European society. How did Europe´s Jewish population cope with the changes after 1918? The participants compare the different experiences after 1918 by discussing Jewish biographical stories from interwar Hungary, Poland, Serbia and Ukraine. While Hungary introduced anti-Jewish laws after 1918, Jewish life in the other three countries blossomed – at least for the first years after the war. We will contrast these oral history testimonies with “official” (i.e. textbook) narratives dealing with this period. In particular, we focus on 3 questions: How can we deal with competing historical narratives? What effect does oral history testimonies have on our reception of history? How is our perception of contemporary events shaped by oral history?

This workshop is led by facilitators from Germany, Austria, Moldova and Ukraine. Participants develop a digital storytelling idea on the topic in groups of five. To integrate the urban space, participants shoot photos and videos at historic sites such as one of Berlin´s Jewish cemeteries and the World War I German-Jewish Veterans memorial. For this, you will benefit from bringing a laptop, tablet or smartphone with video function. The material is to be used later for a short film clip which will be shown on the final day together with a wrap-up presentation.

This workshop is provided by

Centropa is a non-profit, Jewish historical institute dedicated to preserving 20th century Jewish family stories and photos from Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans, and disseminating these stories and photos through films, books, exhibitions and apps. Since 2000, Centropa has interviewed 1,200 elderly Jews from 15 countries – without focusing primarily on the Holocaust but rather on the world they grew up in and the world they built from scratch after the war for their families.

Teamer

MAXIMILIAN VON SCHOELER

Germany

• Studied Social Science at Humboldt University of Berlin and Holocaust Communication and Tolerance at Touro College Berlin
• Specialized in the fields of Holocaust Studies and forced labour
• Project manager of Centropa’s Trans.History project

WOLFGANG ELS

Austria

• Studied filmmaking and sound design at the University of St. Pölten
• Produced dozens of short films for Centropa, several of them were featured in international film festivals
• Chief filmmaker and sound engineer at Centropa

IRINA SHIKHOVA

Moldova

• Studied Ethnology at the Institute of Cultural Heritage of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova, specialized in Jewish Studies
• Director and curator of the Jewish Museum in Chisinau
• Moldovan coordinator of Centropa’s Trans.History project for Moldova and Ukraine

KHRYSTYNA RUTAR

Ukraine

• Studied Philology at Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, specialised in trauma studies
• Teaches Modern Literature at the Ukrainian Catholic University of Lviv
• Facilitator for Centropa seminars