Academy’s Contemporary Documentaries Series Explores Stories of Survival during Wartime

Beverly Hills, CA - “Ochberg’s Orphans” and “The Rape of Europa” will screen as part of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ 27th annual “Contemporary Documentaries” series on Wednesday, April 1, at 7 p.m. at the Linwood Dunn Theater in Hollywood. Admission is free.

Directed by Jon Blair and produced by Blair, Paul Goldin and Georgina Townsley, “Ochberg’s Orphans” chronicles a South African businessman’s heroic efforts to save 300,000 Russian Jewish children who had been orphaned in anti-Semitic attacks during the Russian Revolution and civil war, and who were now fighting for survival.

Directed and produced by Richard Berge, Nicole Newnham and Bonni Cohen, “The Rape of Europa” tells the epic story of the systematic theft, deliberate destruction and miraculous survival of Europe’s art treasures during the Third Reich and World War II. Berge and Cohen will be present to take questions from the audience following the screening.

The 27th annual Contemporary Documentaries series continues through June 3, showcasing feature-length and short documentaries drawn from the 2007 Academy Award® nominations, including the winners, as well as other important and innovative films considered by the Academy that year.

All films will screen at the Linwood Dunn Theater at the Academy’s Pickford Center for Motion Picture Study on Wednesdays at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6 p.m. All seating is unreserved.

The Linwood Dunn Theater is located at 1313 Vine Street in Hollywood. Free parking is available through the entrance on Homewood Avenue (one block north of Fountain Avenue). For additional information, visit www.oscars.org or call (310) 247-3600.