Digging through the vast collection of his father's home videos, a young man reconstructs the unthinkable story of his boyhood and exposes vile abuse passed through generations. Sasha speaks about his trauma as a child and how he learned to love himself again by transforming his pain into good. After a decade of battling to reclaim his voice in court as a child in Pennsylvania, Sasha moved to Montana in 2008 to study film production at Montana State University. Men act like they arent allowed to love each other, not openly. Is Director Ari Aster a Madman or a Genius? Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter, Sasha Joseph Neulinger digs into the story of his own childhood sexual abuse in his debut doc, 'Rewind.'. The story, as Neulinger's mom Jacqui remembers it, is that her husband Henry Nevison was several hours late to Sasha's birth because he was out buying a video camera, and that beginning . At age 4, he said his uncle sexually abused him for the first time. He tried to live a normal kid's life but was dying inside. Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations. Sasha Joseph Neulinger with his sister Bekah around the age that the sexual abuse started. Along with bringing courage and solace to children and adolescents who have been sexually abused, Neulinger hopes the film speaks to religious institutions and makes them own up to their culpability if they remain silent, refusing even to acknowledge the possibility of evildoing within their own ranks. For her, the mission is for people to recognize abuse and talk about it to erase the stigma, and films like Neulingers will help, she said. My dad is an incredibly gifted filmmaker and the big inspiration in my life. I play hockey here in Montana. I got through six of them and discovered that with each question I answered, I had three more questions, and thats why I decided to interview my mom, dad, sister and others who were part of my life at the time, he said. His mother asked him what had happened. A Man Who Was Sexually Abused By His Uncles As A Child Is Making A Documentary That Will Change Lives! After premiering at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival to critical acclaim, Rewind, a documentary about surviving abuse both by family members and the justice system that required that he relive the trauma for years afterward, makes its television debut on Monday on PBS Independent Lens. He now lives in Montana, where he and his wife, Lauren, and their puppy are riding out the coronavirus pandemic in relative . I can recognize that the trauma I experienced is just one piece of an expansive, multifaceted life. Rewind To Fast-Forward is an autobiographical documentary about Sasha Joseph Neulinger, a survivor of multigenerational child sexual abuse. In that regard, Rewind delivers in spades. Seeking justice in the courts required an endless series of painful interviews and years of legal procedure. After scoring very high marks on his standardized tests after Kindergarten, Sasha began displaying frequent withdrawal episodes. Neulinger still struggles with how the venerated synagogue unquestioningly rallied to Nevisons defense and literally paid for much of it. My kids that we plan to have one day are going to be die-hard Flyers fans. I was in constant therapy sessions. Henry grew up with a mother who was gregarious in public and emotionally cold and remote in private, a father who accepted his wifes vitriol on a daily basis, and two older brothers. And so I was able to reclaim these beautiful memories that had been lost, which was extremely healing and cathartic.
Help bring programs like Independent Lens to your PBS station. A memoir of molestation whose convoluted structure mirrors the shocking web of abuse its protagonists suffered, Sasha Joseph Neulingers Rewind allows viewers to watch as a bright, loving child is utterly transformed by a family members sexual assault. Rewind chronicles his life as a survivor of multi-generational child sexual abuse.
Overcoming Childhood Trauma | Novni Following the director, who was repeatedly sexually abused by his fathers side of the family as a child, Neulinger revisits his dad Henrys home film canisters, reopening old wounds. Shining a brighter light on this side of things would only have strengthened the movies impact. He was too ashamed to. Sasha and REWIND can be a part of your next event. Directors of photography: Jeff Dougherty, Rick Smith Cantor Howard Nevison pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of indecent assault, terroristic threats, simple assault, corruption of minors and endangering the welfare of children. Unflinching and uncompromising, Rewind is a documentary that isn't afraid to dive deep into the issues of abuse and trauma that it explores across its relatively brief 80 minute runtime as documentarian and main subject Sasha Neulinger delves into his own childhood and his families horrific experiences that spanned generations. I was you know, hiking, fishing, and doing all the things that I loved. An autobiographical film years in the making, Rewind premiered at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival where it received a special jury mention. I struggled with what public disclosure would do for me. Stewart asked for a plea deal and served 11 months in prison. The Filmmaker Sasha Joseph Neulinger is the co-founder and head of production at Step 1 Films. Clearly, there was more healing to be done; one hopes that making Rewind has helped Sasha and his family close this book. Thus Rewind, was spawned, a seven-year project that started when Neulinger was still a film student at Montana State University.
Documentary | REWIND: Family's Secret Cycle of Child Abuse | PBS Explaining this change is present-day footage in which Sasha interviews others, leaning largely on conversations with his mother, Jacqui. Neulinger had learned that his Uncle Larry, father and others were sexually abused. Made up of home video footage that reveals a long-kept secret, Sasha Joseph Neulingers. I got to watch the four years of my life from 4 to 8 where I was holding this painful secret and I got to watch myself grow up. Rewind: Directed by Sasha Joseph Neulinger. Digging through the vast collection of his father's home videos, a young man reconstructs the unthinkable story of his boyhood and exposes vile abuse passed through generations.Digging through the vast collection of his father's home videos, a young man reconstructs the unthinkable story of his boyhood and exposes vile abuse passed through generations.Digging through the vast collection of his father's home videos, a young man reconstructs the unthinkable story of his boyhood and exposes vile abuse passed through generations. However, the 30-year-old also knew confronting his demons was a necessary step. He realized that this tug-of-war that was happening inside of him was an indication of lingering, unhealed wounds and unanswered questions from his childhood. Minutes earlier, they were having Uncle/Nephew time in the bedroom, behind closed doors. I felt like I couldnt escape my trauma. It was traumatizing, and tiring, he said. He was a straight-A student, physically fit, and enjoying his social life. Yet the more Neulinger crawls back into his thorny past, the more it becomes apparent that his victimizationas well as Bekahswas not an isolated incident. After premiering at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival, "Rewind" makes its television debut on PBS "Independent Lens.".
A very candid. Sasha doesnt blame his father; there is no disdain remaining, only raw empathy. But when I watch myself as a kid objectively as an adult, he continued, I see that my abusers didnt take that beauty away from me, even though I was experiencing pain, even though I was limited by self-doubt and self-deprecating thoughts. Kim Kardashian Dripping in Pearls at Met Gala in Custom Schiaparelli Nude Dress, Slumberland Review: Jason Momoa in Francis Lawrences Innocuous Netflix Kids Pic, Black Adam Review: Dwayne Johnsons Charisma Carries a Morally Muddy Superhero Flick, Dalland Review: Ben Kingsley and Ezra Miller Get Surreal in Mary Harrons Eye-Opening Art-World Portrait, Jock Zonfrillo, Chef and 'MasterChef Australia' Judge, Dies at 46, John Oliver Mocks Matthew McConaughey's Five-Hour Virtual Motivational Seminar, Chris Pratt and James Gunn Talk Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. Let us know how we can support the important work you are doing. Whats more difficult is following exactly how things played out in the legal system. Sasha's Story - Leaving Ground Zero Header, Sasha's Story - Revisiting the Past Header, Sasha's Story - A New Path Forward Header. Rewind paints a vivid but ultimately hopeful portrait of a family plagued by a vicious cycle of abuse. Interspersed throughout, Neulinger interviews his mother, father, sister and psychiatrist among others recalling their growing realizations that something rotten was transpiring in their own home and the culprits were close family members. If my religious leaders, those who connect me to God, are sinister or even evil, what does that say about my faith? Given how much Rewind relies, from the get-go, on home movie footage of the clanwhich would soon come to include a daughter, Bekah, whom Sasha fiercely lovedJacquis early comment implies a forthcoming focus on the harmful presence of technology in modern American households. It is a human issue.
Trauma is Irreversible. How It Shapes Us is Our Choice: Sasha Joseph (One uncle, Lawrence Nevison, and his son, Stewart Nevison, pleaded guilty to felonies and were sent to prison in connection with separate incidents with Neulinger. Henrys older brothers one of whom, Howard Nevison would go on to become a renowned opera singer and well-respected cantor at a high-profile synagogue became abusers; and abuse breeds more abuse. (Though Neulinger works hard to be even-handed here, including footage that shows Uncle Howies loving side, he doesnt invite anyone from Emanu-El to share their side of the story.). Jacqui soon realized what was happening and it destroyed her marriage. After a plea bargain, Howard was sentenced to 12 years probation, when Neulinger was 16. By probing the gap between image and reality, the film depicts both how little and how much a camera can capture. For as long as Neulinger can remember, a video camera was ever-present, with his father constantly filmingfrom birthday parties and hockey games to holidays. Rate. Twice exceptional (2e) stands for gifted with disabilities or learning differences.
Sasha's Story Voice For The Kids His story involves looking at multigenerational abuse and the emotional, clinical and legal facets that go with it. There is inspiration, there is hope and the message is that if we are able to look at our wounds and embrace your fears, to accept and examine our traumatic experiences, then we can truly heal them and move forward in life, he said, and this idea that its never too late to start the journey of healing. He was present when interacting with others; he was gifted and joyful. Neither Neulinger nor his family saw these as roadblocks, although his sister (admittedly for different reasons) couldnt understand why he needed to make the film and relive the atrocities, especially after having been through so much already. But like most young victims, he told no one. Sasha Joseph Neulinger is the co-founder and head of production at Step 1 Films where he produces content for commercial clients nationally. Child sexual abuse is one of the greatest social epidemics of our time, according to Neulinger, who last week debuted an autobiographical documentary film at the Tribeca Film Festival. They say it takes a village to raise a child, Neulinger noted. Sashas dad, Henry was another victim. I can recognize and accept that the mountain I climbed, while massive on its own, is just one piece of an expansive world. All Rights Reserved. The film plays like a memoir of sorts, intercutting family footage with modern-day interviews the director conducts, twenty years after his assault. The goal for the Sept. 24 event was to raise the additional funds needed for sound editing and to create an original score for the film, which he hopes will be done by August 2017. Davis: Betty Gilpin Talks Playing An A.I. People will make up excuses in their own minds because its easier to say, Oh hes just eccentric, hes quirky, hes not really touching inappropriately. The clip in the film where Howard is using the word pervert in a joking way, thats not a very that makes people uncomfortable but people are willing to overlook it and I think that happens all the time.. The Montco-raised child actor and director was sexually abused as a child by two uncles and a cousin. Shortly before Sasha turned 17, Howard's attorneys ran out of delays, and discussions of a plea agreement commenced. But the Philadelphia Flyers are with me every single day of my life in Montana. Theres deep fear. After four years of abuse and nine years of prosecution, I was ready to move forward with my life, Neulinger said. Its not that I didnt get love, its that I didnt feel lovable, Sasha concedes. Sasha Joseph Neulinger is the co-founder and head of production at Step 1 Films. Neulinger sprinkled home-movie clips and television news broadcasts into his presentation. This isnt a film worried about manipulating feeling in a specific manner, its concern is bringing that sensation back to those who have forgotten how to feel it. Well send you updates moving forward, but you can unsubscribe at any time. But the most tragic thing is that all this sexual trauma goes much deeper than what happened to Sasha. Be more independent. I was about to turn 17, and the legal process could have gone for another two or three . Documentary Biography Drama. His mom asked his sister to draw pictures.
Filmmaker inspired by professionals who help children I did not choose my trauma, nor have I chosen to be defined by it. What is it that tinges even. Family members, people he trusted, betrayed and violated him. is a brave and wrenching look at his childhood and his journey to reconcile his past.
'Rewind' Review: Sasha Joseph Neulinger's Staggering Doc - Yahoo When I was a kid going through all this, a lot of my time was spent just trying to survive to the next day. Neulinger talked with The Inquirer about his film, seven years in the making, about seeing his parents with new eyes, and about the Flyers. Henry never told his wife that they were bringing child abusers into their home. Sasha, it turns out, did just that, first to his therapist, whom he confided in via crayon drawings that are almost too unbearable to take, and then in a courtroom where he persuasively testified that Howard had sadistically violated him. He was a successful actor, but nursed many suicidal thoughts and often swerved into erratic behavior. Neulinger had learned that his Uncle Larry, father and others were sexually abused. Shortly after graduating college in 2013, Sasha asked his dad to send him all of the home videos that had been filmed during his childhood. Following is the full transcript of filmmaker Sasha Joseph Neulinger's TEDx Talk titled: Trauma is Irreversible. As each frame of footage unfolds, so, too, do the layers of this complex and affecting survivor story, the heartbeat of which is Neulingers vulnerability, bravery, and enduring positivity, against all odds. Sexual abuse doesnt discriminate. Sasha Joseph Neulinger, She felt things were going well for me. Producers: Robert Schneeweis, Sasha Joseph Neulinger, Avela Grenier, Shasta Grenier Winston But there was still more work to be done. But by sharing his story with the world, he is working to empower survivors to look inward and recognize their strength. Because they had been overshadowed by the trauma.
Sasha Neulinger - Wikipedia One day, Sasha began grabbing at Bekah, his little sisters chest in the back of the car, something he saw as nothing more than a harmless titty twister. His mother, Jacqui asked why he was acting so aggressively. This is complex. With each rape, I felt increasingly numb. It was about justice.. And maybe, just maybe, I didnt either.. And he was captured on film at every stage by his father Henry, a compulsive videographer and producer of PBS documentaries. One of Sasha's alleged abusers was his uncle, Howard Nevison, the esteemed cantor at New York's Reform Jewish Temple Emanu-el. He told his parents about the abuse and learned his uncles had also abused his dad and their brother. With Sasha Joseph Neulinger, Howard Nevison. She recalled watching Neulingers case unfold on the news, not being able to believe it. Televisions 10 Most Iconic Jewish Mothers, Maisel Mondays Lets Fans Re-Watch Season 3 of Marvelous Mrs. Maisel with the Cast, Israel and the Internet Wars A Professional Social Media Review, The Invisible Student: A Tale of Homelessness at UCLA and USC, Youre Not a Bad Jewish Mom If Your Kid Wants Santa Claus to Come to Your House, No Labels: The Group Fighting for the Political Center, Springing into Success: My Blooming Awards Collection, Why Defenders of Judicial Reforms Keep Changing the Subject, Rabbi Harold Kushner, Whose Works of Practical Theology Were Best-sellers, Dies at 88, Be Holy The Holy Order of the Six-Pointed Star comments on Torah Portion Kedoshim, PJ Librarys Israel Trail Hub Engages Families, The Unforgettable Flavor of Preserved Lemon. Sasha said it was because of Bekah's "private club with Stuart," one of his Uncle Howard's nephews. Whats more remarkable is that he was once that small boy. But there was something else going on below the surface beneath the frames a terrible secret Henry never told his family about. Sasha Joseph Neulinger's heroic and devastating autobiographical documentary opens with questions familiar to many people: Why are home movies always so haunting? "I realized my sister was also being abused," said Sasha.
How Camcorder Footage Exposed a Famed New York City Cantor's Shocking With one foot in front of the other, and with each step taken, more of the path is revealed. The investigation and three trials that ensued dragged on for eight years (1998-2006) and generated a lot of media coverage.
Case of Cantor Howard Nevison - The Awareness Center But there was still this self-deprecating voice in the back of my mind that would say, Sasha, youre dirty, youre disgusting, unlovable. And I wanted to find out where that voice was coming from. The filmmaker behind the PBS film "Rewind" speaks about his personal journey to expose and understand his childhood, where he was the survivor of sexual abus. The film premiered at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival, where it received the Special Jury Mention Award, and it won Best Documentary earlier this year at the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival. READ MORE: In HBO's "The Tale," Narberth's Jennifer Fox turns to fiction to tell her own true, tough story. 2017 Children's Advocacy Center.
'Rewind' Film Review: Family Tale of Sexual Abuse Is - Yahoo Free Sign Up.
As the camera focuses in on the smiling and playful antics of Sasha's larger-than-life uncle's Larry and Howard, a more sinister reality begins to unravel. That critique, however, never materializes; instead, Neulingers film casts a wary eye at camcorders as a means of highlighting the deceptiveness of surface appearances. After finishing film school at Montana State University, he discovered the raw materials that.
Sasha Joseph Neulinger Confronts Family Trauma Head-On Notable people and events in the Jewish LA community. As a filmmaker, Neulinger owes much here to his father Henry who was late to his own sons birth because he was buying the video camera hed use to shoot so much of this footage. The view of the world from within the thick timber is very different than the view from the top of that mountain. Editor: Avela Grenier
'Rewind': Jewish Filmmaker Confronts His Traumatic Childhood