啟明星學(xué)生在清華：用紀(jì)錄片展示一段塵封的歷史

5月20日下午，我們10年級的學(xué)生楊一森（Ethan Yang）走進(jìn)清華大學(xué)，向通識教育《猶太文明》課程的學(xué)生講述自己制作的、關(guān)于二戰(zhàn)時期上海人民收留猶太難民的紀(jì)錄片《Stranded in Shanghai》。

紀(jì)錄片截圖

紀(jì)錄片截圖

紀(jì)錄片截圖

紀(jì)錄片截圖

紀(jì)錄片截圖

紀(jì)錄片截圖

紀(jì)錄片截圖

在中國最高學(xué)府的講臺上分享自己的項目，Ethan說，有點緊張，但是，也特別有成就感：“上海人民收留猶太難民是一段并不被很多人知道、但又非常重要的歷史。這段歷史讓我們看到，即便在二戰(zhàn)那樣一段到處是戰(zhàn)爭和死亡的歲月里，依然有光明和希望存在，依然有人性的光輝。它啟發(fā)我們思考面對人生的態(tài)度——無論什么時候，無論多么困難，都要堅持下去！”

1

源起

Ethan制作的記錄片是他的IBMYP個人項目的作品。他的父親是中國人，母親是猶太人。他一直希望完成一個能夠串聯(lián)起自己的中國文化和猶太文化的個人項目。

疫情期間，Ethan的媽媽前往上海參加一個猶太社區(qū)的傳統(tǒng)儀式，地點就是二戰(zhàn)時被中國收留的猶太人的會堂。這讓Ethan了解到，原來中國人民和猶太民族之間還有這樣一段淵源——

1938年到1945年間，歐洲的猶太人受到納粹迫害，陸陸續(xù)續(xù)有大約2萬人逃亡到上海。這里的人民接納了他們，提供了避難所，讓他們得以幸存、喘息，并最終陸續(xù)前往安全地定居生活。

這樣的往事觸動了Ethan：“我想讓更多人知道這段歷史，而且決定用紀(jì)錄片這種形式，因為它更直觀、更打動人。另外，這個項目恰好連接了我的猶太背景和中國背景。”

2

行動

Ethan的想法得到家人和老師的大力支持——在家人幫助下，他獨自前往上海猶太難民紀(jì)念館做義工并采訪；個人項目指導(dǎo)老師Joseph LeDoux則為他不斷提供落實和完善項目的意見和建議......

Ethan還前往美國舊金山，訪問了3位在上海生活過的猶太難民。

感動于Ethan的執(zhí)著和真誠，受訪者為Ethan提供了難得的一手信息。要知道，對于他們而言，多年之后再去回憶那段艱難的歲月，無異于重新揭開傷疤。

受訪者Paul Schreier讓Ethan特別感慨。1939年，Paul從維也納逃到上海，此后的10年間，他一直生活在這里，做過修車工和攝影師，后來遷居美國舊金山。他經(jīng)歷了戰(zhàn)爭帶來的絕望，又在中國找到了活下去的希望。98歲的他對Ethan說，他感激中國人民的收留，否則他會像其他很多歐洲猶太人那樣，不是死于戰(zhàn)火便是被抓進(jìn)集中營，他覺得自己是幸運的，因為他活下來了。

Ethan和受訪人Paul Schreier（左）

結(jié)束采訪后，Ethan又前往上海，在猶太難民紀(jì)念館做義工，邊為觀眾做講解，邊了解更多信息，為紀(jì)錄片做準(zhǔn)備。“讓我特別感觸的是，不像那些為去世的人設(shè)立的紀(jì)念館，這是一座為幸存的、活著的人設(shè)立的紀(jì)念館。”Ethan說。

去年11月到12月，Ethan開始為紀(jì)錄片收集更多資料，包括300張圖片和50多段視頻資料。之后他又花費了2個月把所有素材剪輯成近30分鐘的紀(jì)錄片。

至此，距離起意制作紀(jì)錄片，已經(jīng)過去了大概一年的時間。

3

成長

如果把“熱愛”比喻成種子，那么Ethan多年養(yǎng)成的學(xué)習(xí)習(xí)慣和技能就是培育這顆種子的沃土，而這部紀(jì)錄片便是經(jīng)過長久時間，初步成才的苗木：

在個人項目展上，他的紀(jì)錄片給所有參觀者留下了深刻的印象。無論是老師還是家長，還是同學(xué)，都為他關(guān)注這個項目的獨特視角和付出感到由衷的認(rèn)可。

對Ethan而言，最大的收獲是人生的感悟。“訪問這些猶太難民幸存者讓我意識到，對生活總要抱有希望和期待，不要放棄，要努力堅持下來！”

他反思說，“還有就是教育的重要。即便在上海避難，那些猶太人也沒有放棄教育，他們?yōu)楹⒆咏M織起學(xué)校。值得一提的是，學(xué)生們在學(xué)校里學(xué)習(xí)的不是他們原來國家的語言，比如德語、西班牙語，而是英語，因為他們判斷以后很可能永遠(yuǎn)不會回到原來的國家去了，而英語是世界語言。這樣的教育為他們?nèi)蘸笄巴澜绺鞯厣詈凸ぷ鞯於嘶A(chǔ)。”

Ethan的紀(jì)錄片還參選了費城猶太電影和媒體獎，無論在評價中能走到多遠(yuǎn)，他都很欣慰：“我已經(jīng)收獲了很多，了解了這么多歷史，見到經(jīng)歷豐富的人，做博物館的志愿者，在清華大學(xué)分享，參加電影節(jié)……我會把紀(jì)錄片記錄下去，去探尋和記錄流散在世界其他地方的猶太人……”

像Ethan這樣圍繞自己真心熱愛的主題做或廣泛或深入的探究，是啟明星學(xué)生常規(guī)的學(xué)習(xí)模式。我們相信，在下一個學(xué)年，會有更多像Ethan的紀(jì)錄片一樣精彩的項目涌現(xiàn)！

On the afternoon of May 20th , our 10th grade student Ethan Yang walked into the Tsinghua University campus and gave a presentation about his documentary film "Stranded in Shanghai" to the students of Tsinghua's general education course "Jewish Civilization".

Screenshot of the Documentary

Screenshot of the Documentary

Screenshot of the Documentary

Screenshot of the Documentary

Screenshot of the Documentary

Screenshot of the Documentary

Screenshot of the Documentary

Scroll up to view more

Sharing his project on the podium of China's top university, Ethan said he was a bit nervous, but also felt a great sense of accomplishment:"The story of the Shanghai people sheltering Jewish refugees is a little-known but very important part of history. It inspires us to reflect on our attitude towards life — no matter how difficult the circumstances, we must persevere, because even in the war-torn years of World War II, there was still light and hope, there was still the brilliance of human nature..."

1

Origin

Ethan's documentary film is the result of his IBMYP Personal Project. His father is Chinese and his mother is Jewish. He always hoped to complete a personal project to connect his Chinese culture and Jewish background.

During the pandemic, Ethan's mother went to Shanghai to attend an important ceremony of a Jewish teenager, which took place in the synagogue where Jewish refugees were sheltered during the war. This made Ethan realize that there was a deep connection between the Chinese people and the Jewish nation.

Between 1938 and 1945, as European Jews were persecuted by the Nazis, about 20,000 of them fled to Shanghai. The local people here in China welcomed them, provided them with shelter, and allowed them to survive and eventually settle in safe places.

This history touched Ethan: "I want more people to know this story, and I decided to use a documentary film format, because it is more direct and moving. In addition, this project happens to connect my Jewish background and Chinese background."

2

Action

Ethan's idea was strongly supported by his family and teachers—his family helped him contact the Jewish Refugees Museum in Shanghai for interviews; his personal project mentor, Daystar teacher Joseph LeDoux, also nurtured his work by providing him with opinions and suggestions for implementing and improving the project.

In the second half of 2023, Ethan went to San Francisco, USA, and interviewed three Jewish refugees who had lived in Shanghai.

Moved by Ethan's perseverance and sincerity, the interviewees provided him with rare first-hand information.After all, for them, reminiscing about those difficult years was like reopening old wounds.

Interviewee Paul Schreier particularly touched Ethan. In 1939, Paul fled from Vienna to Shanghai, and for the next 10 years, he lived there, working as a car mechanic and photographer, and later emmigrating to San Francisco. He experienced the despair brought by the war, but also found hope to live on in China.At the age of 98, he told Ethan that he was grateful for the shelter provided by the Chinese people, otherwise he would have been killed in the war or sent to a concentration camp like many other European Jews, and he felt lucky to have survived.

Ethan and Paul Schreier (left)

After the interviews, Ethan also went to Shanghai and volunteered at the local Jewish Refugees Museum, giving lectures to audiences while learning more information for his documentary. "What particularly impressed me is that, unlike the memorials set up for the murdered or deceased Jews, this is a memorial for the survivors, for the living," Ethan said.

From November to December last year, Ethan colleceted even more materials for the documentary, including 300 photos and more than 50 video clips. He then spent two months editing all of the materials into a nearly 30-minute documentary film.

In total, it has been about a year since he started making the documentary.

3

Growth

If "passion" is likened to a seed, then the learning habits and skills that Ethan has cultivated over the years are the fertile soil nurturing this seed, and the documentary film is the young sapling that matured, and, after a long time, is now blossoming and bearing fruit:

At the personal project exhibition, his documentary film left a deep impression on the audience. Whether they were teachers, parents, or classmates, Ethan was sincerely admired and praised for his unique perspective and dedication.

For Ethan, the greatest gain is the realization of how experiences shape one’s perspective on life."Interviewing these Jewish refugee survivors made me realize that we must always have hope and expectations for life, never give up, and persevere!"

Ethan reflected, "And the importance of education.Even while taking refuge in Shanghai, those Jews did not abandon education, they organized schools for their children. It's worth mentioning that the students in the schools were not learning the languages of their original countries, such as German or Spanish, but rather English, because they judged that they would probably never return to their home countries, and English is a global language. This kind of education laid the foundation for their safe living and work in various parts of the world in the future."

Ethan's documentary film also was chosen to participate in the Philadelphia Jewish Film and Media Awards, and regardless of how far it goes in the evaluation, he is very happy: "I have already gained a lot, learned so much history, met people with rich experiences, volunteered at the museum, shared at Tsinghua University, and participated in the film festival... I will continue to record the documentary, and explore and record the stories of the Jews scattered around the world."

Students like Ethan, who delve deeply or widely into topics they are truly passionate about, often follow this learning model at Daystar. We believe that in the next school year, there will be even more exciting projects and learning fruits!