by Katie Klemmensen, MavRadio.FM reporter
OMAHA – Tomorrow at 8:10 p.m., the Omaha Film Festival will feature For the Living at Aksarben Cinema. Following the screening, audiences will have the opportunity to engage in an exclusive Q&A session with Co-Director/Writer Tim Roper and Co-Director/Producer Marc Bennett.
For the Living is a deeply moving documentary that examines the enduring struggle between cruelty and compassion in our world. It tells the powerful story of Holocaust survivor Marcel Zielinski, who, at just 10 years old, made a treacherous 60-mile journey on foot from Auschwitz-Birkenau to Krakow, Poland, after being liberated from a Nazi death camp in 1945. His journey was a fight for survival, hope, and resilience.
Decades later, to honor Marcel’s journey, 250 cyclists from 12 countries participate in the annual Ride for the Living, retracing his path in a powerful act of remembrance. Organized by JCC Krakow, the ride serves as both a memorial and a reminder of the ongoing struggle between dehumanization and empathy.
While the film highlights the Holocaust, its message extends beyond a single historical event—it challenges audiences to examine the broader patterns of human behavior and their role in shaping a more compassionate world.
“You will learn a ton about history in this film, and it’s objective, fact-based history. It’s not whitewashed. It’s not spun in a way to get your blood boiling. It’s what I call: ‘don’t look away history.’ There’s a lot of that in human history, and it’s not just about North America or the United States of America. We pop around the globe, and we pop around the centuries to show you it’s a pattern in human behavior,” said Roper.
Featuring insights from historians and experts like Timothy Snyder and Neil deGrasse Tyson, For the Living raises urgent questions: When will we stop simply remembering the past and start making a difference for the future? When will “Never Again” truly mean never again?
The Omaha Film Festival runs through March 16. https://omahafilmfestival.org/
