Yulia Ruditskaya’s “The Waltz” Wins Award at ASIFA-East

By Christy Bailey-Tomecek - June 7, 2022

The Fortunoff Archive is pleased to announce that "The Waltz," a short film created by 2022 Laurel Vlock fellow Yulia Ruditskaya, placed third in the Independent Films category at ASIFA-East's 52nd Annual Animation Awards Ceremony. ASIFA is French for the Association Internationale du Film d'Animation. ASIFA-East is the New York chapter, promoting all things animation. Debuting in 1969, the ASIFA-East Animated Film Festival is one of the longest running festivals of its kind. Each year, entries are submitted and judged during special jury screenings.

"The Waltz" is based on the poem by A. Lutzky, pen name of the Yiddish poet Aaron Zucker (1894-1957), set to music by D. Zisl Slepovitch and performed by Sasha Lurje and the Zisl Slepovitch Ensemble as part of the Songs from Testimonies project. Lutzky was born in Ukraine and immigrated to New York in the 1910s. In the poem, Lutzky raises themes of lost youth, lost hopes, lost lives, nostalgia for his homeland, and the fragility of life. Employing metaphorical language, the poet expresses themes of death and sorrow. The poem was sung in the Lodz Ghetto during the Second World War and was recounted in the testimony of Jean B. (HVT-701) at the Fortunoff Video Archive.

Upcoming screenings for "The Waltz" include: