Documentary, by Luigi Toscano, Germany, 2024.
Anna... She doesn't know if that is her real name. Because aside from the vague memory of the sound of this name, she associates only one thing with her early childhood: a horrible fear. Of doctors, injections and the bitter-sweet taste of a sugar cube on Liberation Day. Anna Strishkowa was a child when she found herself on the ramp of Auschwitz on December 4, 1943. She knew neither the names of her parents nor the place where she was born. For Luigi Toscano, Anna Strishkowa is the first Auschwitz survivor he portrays for the exhibition of his project "Against oblivion" in Kiev. Since then she has photographed more than 500 other survivors, but Anna's fate never lets go. Luigi wants to help Anna decipher her identity.
But shortly before filming begins, Putin invades Ukraine. The bombs falling on Kiev catapult Anna back to the horrors of her childhood.

The photographer and director Luigi Toscano is a self-taught man with a busy life. As a roofer, doorman and window cleaner, the son of Italian immigrant workers has experienced his environment from the most diverse perspectives. It is unusual for this to turn into an artistic career. Luigi Toscano's works focus on people and tell the stories behind the visible. His art speaks a language that everyone can understand. Facades of houses, squares or parks: instead of being presented behind the screened doors of museums, his paintings are exhibited in freely accessible places. In 2021 Luigi Toscano was named UNESCO Artist for Peace, the first ever photographer.

LANGUAGE: Ukrainian, German
SUBTITLES: English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese