2017 Hot Docs ‘The Forger’

The Forger, by Samantha Stark, Alexandra Garcia, Pamela Druckerman and Manual Cinema Studios, is a character driven reality drama about Adolfo Kaminsky, a master forger.  The film explores his early life, his motivation and is a glimpse into the world of a master forger.

Following his release from Drancy, a French Internment camp for Jews, because of his expertise of removing ink stains from having worked for a clothes dyer, he is recruited by the French resistance and trained in the art of forging identity documents.  His documents save the lives of thousands of children and adults fleeing Nazi persecution.  His early life is told in flashbacks juxtaposed with the present as he recollects the past. 

The film is beautifully crafted making use of cinematography, innovative animation techniques in the style of Indonesian hand puppets which are shot in black and white and infused with colour, super-imposed images, still photographs, first person interviews, and editing techniques to create a dignified film that does Mr. Adolfo Kaminsky justice.  He along with his forging techniques are exquisitely filmed in luminous light.  The film is narrated by Adolfo Kaminsky and his daughter Sarah Kaminsky.

During his career, he worked in secret under cover and several of the black and white animated vignettes express the theme of a very young man who fought in the shadows against the tyranny of oppression to save the lives of others.  They are juxtaposed with close ups, medium and wide angle shots of Mr. Kaminsky inside and outside his apartment alone or with his daughter Sarah revealing an elderly man full of gravitas. 

The Forger is a testament to a man of humble origins, a victim of persecution himself, motivated by compassion, who used his ingenuity and skills as a forger to save the lives of thousands of people during and after the Second World War.  It is an excellent film depicting the story of a humanitarian hero, and deserving of your attention.  

The Forger will be playing at various theatres:
TIFF Bell lightbox 4 on May 7 @ 6:00 p.m.

Tickets can be purchased here!