Can the Holocaust be funny? That's the premise of , a documentary film that features Holocaust survivors, as well as Jewish comedians, trying to answer that question. It's being screened , followed by a panel discussion with some of the filmmakers.
Director told VPR that the inspiration for the film's topic came after a discussion with a Holocaust survivor back in the early 1990s about .
Pearlstein's documentary, released in 2016, features comedians like Mel Brooks, Rob Reiner, Judy Gold and Sarah Silverman.
It鈥檚 a natural instinct, Pearlstein said, to use humor to process difficult and traumatic experiences.
鈥淔or whatever reason Jewish people are associated with it, but I think humor is very common in oppressed groups,鈥� she said.
will take place at the Fleming Museum of Art on Sunday, Feb. 17 at 3 p.m.
Listen above to Ferne Pearlstein's conversation with VPR's Mitch Wertlieb about her film.
