From the Shtetl to the Studio: The Jewish Story of Hollywood 

As part of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures’ exhibition Hollywoodland: Jewish Founders and the Making of a Movie Capital, From the Shtetl to the Studio: The Jewish Story of Hollywood  is an original short-form documentary that delves into the nuances of Hollywood’s Jewish history, exploring how the shared backgrounds of the industry founders weave together a complex immigrant story characterized by both oppression and innovation. Narrated by Ben Mankiewicz, the documentary features archival imagery and film clips, illustrating the larger global context at the turn of the 20th century as well as personal narratives of the predominantly Jewish founders of the Hollywood studio system. The film examines how antisemitism shaped the founders’ trajectories throughout their careers and how their projected vision of an immigrant’s American Dream came to define America itself on movie screens around the world.

Hollywoodland is curated by Associate Curator Dara Jaffe with support from Research Assistant Josue Lopez and is the Academy Museum’s first permanent exhibition. Author and film critic Neal Gabler has served as an advisor since the development of the exhibition. For more information visit www.academymuseum.org.

Post Exhibition Opening Advisory Group: Ivy Barsky, Capital Jewish Museum; Beth Kean, Holocaust Museum, LA; Annie Polland, Tenement Museum;  Aviva Rosenthal, Museum Executive;  Jill Savitt, National Center for Civil and Human Rights;  and Shari Werb, Library of Congress.

About the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures

The Academy Museum is the largest museum in the world devoted to the arts, sciences, and artists of moviemaking. The museum advances the understanding, celebration, and preservation of cinema through inclusive and accessible exhibitions, screenings, programs, initiatives, and collections. Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Renzo Piano, the museum’s campus contains the restored and revitalized historic Saban Building—formerly known as the May Company building (1939)—and a soaring spherical addition. Together, these buildings contain 50,000 square feet of exhibition spaces, two state-of-the-art theaters, the Shirley Temple Education Studio, and beautiful public spaces that are free and open to the public. These include The Walt Disney Company Piazza and the Sidney Poitier Grand Lobby, which houses the Spielberg Family Gallery, Academy Museum Store, and Fanny’s restaurant and café. The Academy Museum is open six days a week from 10am to 6pm.