Get curated editors’ picks, peeks behind the scenes, film recommendations and more.
‘For all of the stories of those who rose above it, who fought it and reclaimed their lives, there are stories of those who are broken.’
In Noch Am Leben (I’m Still Alive), the Australian animator and illustrator Anita Lester reflects on the harrowing and tragic life of her late great-aunt Eva Nagler, who survived the Holocaust, but was never truly able to escape its horrors. Over dreamlike animated vignettes and a haunting score, Lester recalls how her aunt was ‘born into a destiny unhinged’, losing most of her family to the Nazi persecution of the Jews while still young, including her beloved older sister Sonia, who died on top of her while shielding Eva from bullet fire on a death march. Despite surviving, Nagler found little relief after the war. Unable to make sense of what she had experienced and witnessed, her torturous memories drove her to bouts of mental illness and, ultimately, into an asylum. In telling her aunt’s story, Lester considers those Holocaust survival stories for which there is no redeeming ‘Hollywood filter’, and how, continents and decades away from the Holocaust, her family is still shaped by its persistent trauma.
Video by Anita Lester
video
Rituals and celebrations
A beginner’s guide to a joyful Persian tradition of spring renewal and rebirth
3 minutes
video
Politics and government
How it looked to Afghan women to see the Taliban return to power
33 minutes
video
Love and friendship
Love looks a bit different for a chain-smoking couple in a small apartment
11 minutes
video
Biography and memoir
Passed over as the first Black astronaut, Ed Dwight carved out an impressive second act
13 minutes
video
The ancient world
The six priestesses who kept the flame of ancient Rome alight at risk of death
5 minutes
video
Engineering
A close-up look at electronic paper reveals its exquisite patterns – and limitations
9 minutes
video
Architecture
West Africa was once an architectural laboratory. Is it time for a revival?
12 minutes
video
Work
A Swedish expat in the Philippines wonders: what’s up with people sleeping at work?
14 minutes
video
Biography and memoir
The unique life philosophy of Abdi, born in Somalia, living in the Netherlands
29 minutes