GETO: The Historic Jewish Ghetto of Venice (DVD)

This award-winning documentary tells the story of the Venice Ghetto, one of the most interesting chapters in Jewish history. The Jewish presence in Italy dates back to the Roman era, and it was only in 1516 that the Jews of Venice were compelled to live in the walled area known originally as the “Geto.” The program depicts life inside the Ghetto with images of the striking architecture of the synagogues and multi-story residences, and accounts of the artistic activities which encouraged visits from Christian Venetians and travellers. Despite their limitations, the Jews also made their mark on the outside world, through advances in science and commerce. Geto continues with the story of the liberation of the Ghetto by Napoleon, in 1797, and details the events leading up to the Holocaust. The documentary is framed by footage of ceremonies marking the installation of modern-day contributions to the Ghetto by Lithuanian artist Arbit Blatas: a series of large bronze bas-reliefs honoring the Venetian Jews who died in World War II, entitled The Monument of the Holocaust and The Last Train. Written and produced by Regina Resnik and Michael Philip Davis, and narrated by Ms. Resnik, Geto has been called “a beautifully crafted history of the Jews of Venice and the Ghetto… Thanks to the interest and support shown by artists like Regina Resnik and Arbit Blatas (Resnik’s husband), the Jewish Ghetto of Venice is not disappearing, but is having a twenty-first-century renaissance” (Dr. Sara Reguer, Chair of the Dept. of Judaic Studies, Brooklyn College, CUNY).
Color, 54 minutes, 4:3, NTSC (Playable all regions)