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Ben Hur Sepher was honoured on Sunday night Oct. 24 when his independent short film “The Desperate” was announced as the best short film at the Hollywood Film Festival.

A humble Sepher accepted the trophy for the heart-wrenching film that deals with an eminent Jewish surgeon imprisoned at a Nazi concentration camp during World War II who is conscripted at gunpoint to perform emergency surgery on the son of a fearsome Nazi general. The film stars television series regular Peter Mark Richman, who gives a remarkable performance as the guilt ridden Jewish surgeon Dr. Blumenthal in the film.

But this latest award is not the only acclaim the film has received since it was released earlier this year. “The Desperate” has so far won 17 top honors at a whole host of national film festivals including best Short Film of 2010 at the California Independent Film Festival and runner up for best Short Film of 2010 at the Los Angeles Jewish film Festival.

I caught up with Sepher who was caught off guard with his film’s latest win when he said “I am honestly surprised to receive such an honor at the Hollywood Film Festival— I wasn’t expecting it at all”. Sepher is one of the Iranian Jewish community’s rare filmmakers who has made a name for himself in Iran and the United States for writing, directing and producing provocative films. His occupation as a filmmaker is indeed unique in the Iranian Jewish community because individuals who pursued careers in the arts or entertainment in Iran were typically not looked highly upon or even respected. Nevertheless Sepher was trained in his craft at the Swedish Film Institute and began his career at the Stockholm State Theatre as a protégée to renown film director Ingmar Bergman. Sepher went on to direct films and plays in Iran and was the personal filmmaker to the late Shah of Iran— shooting the Shah’s private meeting and gatherings. Since immigrating to the U.S. three decades ago, he has gone on to direct a whole host of television programs and short films in Hollywood.

What I found truly remarkable was the fact that the “The Desperate” was produced by a filmmaker of Iranian descent. This speaks volumes in light of Iran’s current president denying the existence of the Holocaust. No doubt this short film will draw the attention of Iranians living worldwide who are interested in learning more about the realities of the Holocaust.

http://www.TheDesperateTheMovie.com

Tolerance Through Knowledge, Inc., is a non-profit film production company to serve humanity by educating the masses through shorts, features, and documentaries in every aspect of our religious, social and political lives. A big part of our task is to commemorate, acknowledge, and preserve the dignity of the Holocaust victims, especially in a world that tolerates Holocaust deniers.

‘The Desperate’ illuminates the heroic action of a concentration camp victim (Dr. Blumenthal) who exhibits integrity and demonstrates respect for human life. We believe this quality which stems from Jewish/Christian values was shared by, if not all, the majority of those innocent people who were murdered by Hitler.

To be faithful to the authenticity of this work, we are exploring the possibility of scoring our film through the music that had been composed by the Holocaust victims.

I have been so fortunate to be supported by some wonderful people who have donated their time and energy to this endeavor.

According to some, this short film stands a good chance to be recognized by the Academy of Motion Pictures and Scinences. We are also planning on submitting this film to many top National and International film festivals.

The film has already been shot and we are currently in post production. To finish it we still need some tax deductable donations and contributions for those who are willing to participate in this endeavor.

Needless to say that all proceeds from this film will go toward the production of our next film.

Your help and support of donating the music is highly appreciated and will be acknowledged on screen, so that many art-lovers and Holocaust sympathizers will have the chance of getting more familiar with the existence of the 12 volumes of KZ music.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me. I will be glad to send a copy of the script to you if need be.

Sincerely yours,
Ben Hur Sepehr
President

 http://www.TheDesperateTheMovie.com

newdawnpictures@hotmail.com

Should we just pray that the latest political “peace process” will succeed and that the Jews and Arabs will all stop fighting each other?

Should we pray that Israel’s Prime Minister will give the Palestinian leader all that he asks for so that he stops his people attacking Israelis.

Do we think Jerusalem should be handed over to the Palestinians and that they will then allow free access for Jews and Christians?

Do we assume that they will not then start pushing for more and pursue the destruction of Israel and the driving out of the Jews?

How do we reconcile praying for peace with the events that appear to be moving towards fulfillment of the prophecies of conflict and suffering, and the nations coming against Jerusalem to fight against it?