DJFF: The Samuel Project

Director: Marc Fusco

2018/USA/90 minutes

English

In The Samuel Project, Los Angeles teenager Eli (Ryan Ochoa) gets to know his grandfather Samuel (Hal Linden) when he makes him the subject of his senior year animated art project. With dreams of becoming a professional artist, the teen discovers that his grandpa, a Jewish dry cleaner, was heroically saved from Nazi capture by a young woman when he was a boy. After hesitating, Samuel agrees to tell his story for the project-a story he hasn’t told in over 75 years. In the end, Eli’s project makes the finals in a countywide art showcase, where he unveils his animated ‘Samuel’ Project’ with the help of his unlikely friend Kasim, an electric guitar-wielding school misfit. And after decades, three generations of Eli’s family finally connect with one another.