The Tree of Life

This new autobiographical documentary is about a Los Angeles woman who travels to Italy to trace the roots of her Jewish-Italian ancestors and come to terms with her father's death in the land of his birth. With the help of her feisty 82-year-old aunt, her father's sister, she travels relentlessly from city to city, digging through ancient manuscripts and interviewing a wide range of quirky scholars, to piece together the fascinating and humorous stories of her Jewish-Italian ancestors. As the woman continues her journey, her aunt begins to come to terms with her own past, and plans a trip to find and thank the family who hid her and woman’s father during WWII. Using both Monty Python-style animation and computer-enhanced marionettes, along with music from Golden Globe-nominated composer Carlo Siliotto, the film tells the story of Jewish mystics, money-lenders, scientists and politicians, while reflecting on how our parents and their roots affect our sense of belonging, identity and self-worth. Both utterly hilarious and emotionally gripping, THE TREE OF LIFE is a fresh look at history in the most immediate of ways.