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OFFICIAL SELECTION - DOC NYC 2021 | PREMIERED AT HBO HEADQUARTERS
Identity-based Discrimination and Violence • Gun Violence in America • Antisemitism in America • Judaism in AmericaDate of Completion: 2022 | Run Time: 81 & 37 minutes | Language: English | Captions: Yes | Includes: Transcript & Study Guide | Director: Trish Adlesic | Producers: Trish Adlesic & Susan Margolin
On Saturday, October 27th, 2018, a white supremacist, further radicalized by the political climate at the time, walked into the Tree of Life Synagogue with four semi-automatic assault weapons, shouting “all Jews must die.” He murdered eleven congregants, ranging in age from 54 to 97, as they prayed. A TREE OF LIFE: THE PITTSBURGH SYNAGOGUE SHOOTING creates a deeply personal, trauma-informed portrait of the survivors, victims, and victims' family members of the Pittsburgh Synagogue attack, and brings into sharp focus the hate-based crisis that threatens our collective safety and the very social fabric of our society. As the first film to document the survivor’s stories and the only documentary with this level of personal access to the survivors and families of the victims, viewers will experience first-hand how the lives of those directly affected have profoundly changed and how the Pittsburgh community and the congregations set out on a path towards healing.
Video Librarian | Ally Ham
"Adlesic’s hand guides the documentary quietly behind the scenes, letting the voices of survivors and victims’ families take center stage in firsthand accounts of what happened at the Pittsburgh synagogue [...] Highly recommended."
Educational Media Reviews Online | Reviewed by Michael Pasqualoni, Librarian for Public Communications, Syracuse University Libraries
"[D]irector Adlesic provides a highly personalized view of a chapter of mass violence targeted against persons converted into an other by those intent on doing them harm."
The Hollywood Reporter | Angie Han, Television Critic at The Hollywood Reporter
"A Tree of Life surely stands as an act of love toward humanity."
Salon | Melanie McFarland, Television Critic at Salon
“A tender remembrance and a chilling warning about the mainstreaming of antisemitism in American culture.”
The Daily Beast | Nick Shager, Entertainment Critic at The Daily Beast
“ ‘A Tree of Life: The Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting’ Is the Documentary Kanye West Needs to See”
Eye For Film | Jennie Kermode, Critic at Eye for Film
“All attempts to document true crime could be informed by this [film]”
Pittsburgh Post Gazette
"Families of victims tell their own stories in HBO documentary"
Solzy at the Movies | Danielle Solzy, Editor at Solzy at the Movies
Solzy at the Movies’ Best Documentaries of the Year list
Rotten Tomatoes | Multiple critic sources
Rotten tomatoes score: 100%
Esquire | Brady Langmann, Entertainment Writer at Esquire
"One of the best documentaries of the year"
FESTIVALS
DOC NYC 2021 | Official Selection
SCREENINGS
Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan
Premiere at HBO Headquarters, Hudson Yards