Elisha Wiesel Carries Father's Torch at Montreal Documentary Screening
The powerful legacy of Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Elie Wiesel will be honored this weekend in Montreal with the premiere of a new documentary film about his life and work. Elie Wiesel: Soul on Fire will screen at the Montreal Holocaust Museum on Sunday evening, followed by a discussion with Wiesel's son, Elisha Wiesel, who continues his father's humanitarian mission.
A Monument in Language and Memory
In the documentary, Elie Wiesel reflects on his decision to write about his Holocaust experiences a decade after surviving the atrocities. "I wanted my language to be a monument to my people — especially those who died," he explains, capturing the essence of his lifelong commitment to testimony and remembrance. The film arrives during a significant period, coinciding with International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Tuesday, January 27th.
The 90-minute documentary was directed and written by Oren Rudavsky with extensive cooperation from the Wiesel family. Elisha Wiesel and his late mother, Marion Wiesel — herself a Holocaust survivor who passed away in February 2025 — granted the filmmaker access to personal archives, private family recordings, and previously unseen footage. The film incorporates hand-painted animation to powerful effect, creating a visually striking tribute to one of history's most prominent witnesses to genocide.
From Sighet to Global Recognition
The documentary traces Elie Wiesel's journey from his childhood in Sighet, Romania, through the unimaginable horrors of the Holocaust. At just 15 years old, he was deported with his family to Auschwitz-Birkenau in May 1944, where his mother and younger sister were killed almost immediately. Wiesel and his father endured slave labor before being sent on a death march to Buchenwald, where his father died in January 1945, just months before liberation.
After the war, Wiesel eventually reunited with his surviving sisters — one of whom, Beatrice, moved to Montreal where she lived until her death in 1974. He studied at the Sorbonne in France and worked as a journalist before publishing his seminal work, Night, in 1956. Originally an 846-page Yiddish manuscript titled And the World Remained Silent, the book was eventually abridged and translated, becoming an international phenomenon that has sold more than six million copies in 30 languages.
"I wrote it for the other survivors, who found it difficult to speak," Wiesel explains in the film. "And I wanted to tell them, 'Really ... you must speak.'" This imperative to bear witness became the driving force behind his subsequent career as an author, educator, and humanitarian.
Legacy of Moral Action
Elisha Wiesel, now 53, serves as Chairman of the Board at the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity, which his parents established to continue their work fighting indifference and injustice. A hedge fund manager, social activist, and philanthropist based in New York, Elisha represents the next generation carrying forward his father's mission.
When asked what his father would say about rising global antisemitism and Holocaust denial, Elisha responded thoughtfully: "My father clearly articulated that the antisemites will always hate, even if they mask that hate as anti-Zionism — as though it were somehow separable from antisemitism." He emphasized his father's consistent support for Israel while maintaining a commitment to positive global impact, resisting isolationism in all forms.
The documentary highlights how Elie Wiesel transformed personal trauma into moral action, dedicating his life to denouncing genocide and human rights violations worldwide — from Rwanda and Cambodia to the former Yugoslavia and Sudan. As he stated in his 1986 Nobel Prize acceptance speech: "I have tried to fight those who would forget. Because if we forget, we are guilty, we are accomplices. ... We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim."
Montreal Event Details and Broader Impact
The Montreal screening represents a significant moment for the city's Jewish community and all those committed to Holocaust education. Following the Sunday premiere at the Montreal Holocaust Museum, the documentary will air nationally on PBS on Tuesday, January 27th at 9 p.m., reaching audiences across Canada and the United States.
The museum itself is marking the occasion with free Sunday admission from January 25th through June 30th, encouraging broader public engagement with Holocaust history and remembrance. This expanded access aligns perfectly with Elie Wiesel's educational mission, ensuring that his message continues to reach new generations.
Through this documentary and events like the Montreal premiere, the Wiesel family's work continues to remind us that memory is not passive but requires active preservation and transmission. As one of Elie Wiesel's former students reflects in the film: "Your suffering is not what defines you, but it can inform you. It shapes you and then it is your job to make it the best tool you can." This philosophy — transforming pain into purpose — remains as relevant today as ever in our increasingly complex world.
