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Life in Roosevelt: A Tapestry of the Jewish-American Dream
This documentary is an oral history project of the Jewish Heritage Museum and was produced in collaboration with Gellman Images of Freehold. The film will be followed by a panel discussion with several of the subjects who were interviewed in the film. Admission to this film premiere is $18.
With the support of an Inclusive History Grant through the NJ Historical Commission, the Muse-um has embarked on collecting oral histories from community members, including a group of cur-rent and past residents of Roosevelt. Originally named Jersey Homesteads, this community was established under Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal initiatives and was the only agro-industrial community created for urban Jewish immigrants. Renamed Roosevelt after FDR’s death in 1945, it provided a haven first for garment workers, and later for artists which led to the establishment of the Roosevelt Arts Project, still active today.
The documentary features the history and first-person accounts of living in Roosevelt. The film weaves together newly captured images and video of the town and its surroundings, as well as au-thentic town photos, family photos, and historic videos, along with the oral history interviews and narrative. “Working on this project has been incredible,” filmmaker Gary Gellman said. “Uncover-ing a small, yet heartfelt and impactful Jewish community and discovering historical footage of great leaders such as Albert Einstein and Eleanor Roosevelt has been a highlight of my career.”
Gellman’s career in photography and filmmaking spans 35 years and includes being chosen as the official photographer for the NJ Hall of Fame annual induction ceremony for 15 years, hundreds of appearances in newspapers, magazines, television, radio, and photographing numerous celebrities including Bruce Springsteen, Yogi Berra, Buzz Aldrin, Queen Latifah, Mary Higgins Clark, and more. His work has been featured at the NJ State Museum, The US Senate Gallery, The Rock and Roll Museum, and The Vatican.
Event Links
Tickets: https://go.evvnt.com/2671456-0
Booking: https://go.evvnt.com/2671456-2
