A Project Witness Documentary
A 60 minute documentary on the remarkable youth who kept diaries during the Holocaust
A 60 minute documentary on the remarkable youth who kept diaries during the Holocaust
to
Release Date:
JULY 23, 2025
Yitskhok
Rudashevski
Rywka
Lipszyc
Ruthka
Lieblich
Anita
Meyer
Moshe
Flinker
Release Date:
JULY 23, 2025
Yitskhok
Rudashevski
Rywka
Lipszyc
Ruthka
Lieblich
Anita
Meyer
Moshe
Flinker
Unfiltered voices of young diarists
These diaries, written in secret and often at great risk, offer a raw and intimate look into the lives of young people grappling with unimaginable circumstances.
The Holocaust, Through the Eyes of Its Younger Witnesses
Most Holocaust films speak through historians. This one speaks through the voices of the young.
We Dared to Write is not another black-and-white documentary. It fuses vivid animation, survivor testimony, and scholarly insight to spotlight five Jewish teens whose diary pages outlived them. From ghettos to hiding places, these youth didn't just suffer history—they wrote it.
Each diarist's story is presented in its own animated short, using a distinct visual style that honors their unique voice, personality, and context. Together, their words ignite a powerful tapestry of memory, resistance, and unbreakable spirit.
In an Age of Denial, Their Words Bare the Undeniable Truth
These diaries are more than historical records—they are acts of defiance. In the face of persecution, censorship, and erasure, these teens wrote to bear witness. Their words confront denial with lived experience, and silence with soul.
Today, as antisemitism and historical distortion resurface, We Dared to Write offers a stirring call to remember, reflect, and reckon—with the collective past, and with ourselves in the present.
"A breathtaking tribute to the resilience of youth. The animation styles make each diarist's story unforgettable."— Early Viewer, Test Screening
"This film is a must-see for anyone who cares about history, humanity, and the power of words."— Educator, Holocaust Studies
Featured Testimony & Commentary
Peter Feigl
Survivor & Diarist
Anita Budding Meyer
Survivor & Diarist
Mina Boyar
Survivor, Cousin of Rywka Lipszyc
Dr. Ruth Lichtenstein
Founder & Executive Director, Project Witness
Dr. Michael Berenbaum
Historian, Director, Sigi Ziering Institute
Alexandra Zapruder
Historian, Author, Salvaged Pages
Dr. Beth Cohen
Education Director, JFCS Holocaust Center
Morgan Blum Schneider
Director, JFCS Holocaust Center
Morgan Robinson
Museum of Jewish Heritage