Lionsgate Partners With StoryCorps, USC Shoah Foundation to Amplify Message of New Film ‘White Bird’
Ahead of the Oct. 4 theatrical release of WWII drama “White Bird,” Lionsgate and Kingdom Story Company have partnered with StoryCorps Studios and the Shoah Foundation to tell real-life stories of Holocaust survivors.
Directed by Marc Forster and starring Gillian Anderson and Helen Mirren, “White Bird” is the story of a girl’s attempt to escape Nazi-occupied France during WWII. It’s based on the graphic novel by R.J. Palacio.
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StoryCorps Studios is working with Living Links, a national organization empowering descendants of Holocaust survivors, to publish first-person accounts of children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors “being brave and choosing kindness.”
Living Links has also partnered with the Shoah Foundation, which records, preserves and shares the testimonies of Holocaust survivors, to release a viewing guide and related testimony-based classroom resources for educators, students, and the general public to extend the learning opportunities raised by “White Bird” in support of the film’s theatrical release.
“We are proud to share our expertise with Living Links in this endeavor with StoryCorps. Like the USC Shoah Foundation, StoryCorps has long played an important role in preserving the diverse tapestry of human experiences through the power of storytelling. Their work resonates with our own, particularly as we celebrate 30 years of collecting and preserving survivor testimony,” said Dr. Catherine Clark, Senior Director of Programs at the USC Shoah Foundation.
Through the StoryCorps partnership, director Forster and author Palacio will also take part in a conversation sharing their memorable moments with fans from working on both the movie and the graphic novel it’s based upon.
The conversation will be recorded and preserved in StoryCorps’ collection at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress. StoryCorps and Lionsgate will also launch a Collections page on the StoryCorps site where audiences can listen to the collection of stories in their entirety.
“White Bird” also stars Ariella Glaser, Orlando Schwerdt and Bryce Gheisar. With a screenplay by Mark Bomback, it’s produced by Todd Lieberman, David Hoberman and Palacio.
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