52 | JUNE 9 • 2022 

A

bout six months after its pre-
miere, Shoah Ambassadors, 
the Holocaust documentary 
film directed and produced by Keith 
Famie, is still in the film festival circuit 
nationally and being shown to organi-
zations and universities to widen the 
reach of the film.
The film was nominated for four 
Michigan Emmys. Famie and his 
Visionalist Entertainment Productions 
crew are nominated for the documen-
tary as a whole, its directing, editing 
and lighting. The award ceremony 
takes place June 11.
Famie says it’s exciting that the 
Michigan Emmy committee viewed 
the film as important enough to gar-
ner four nominations.
“It feels good to be recognized for 
something you know is important 
work with an important, powerful 
message,
” Famie said. 
The film is a new take on telling the 
Holocaust story focused on educating 
youth about the horrors and atrocities 
of the genocide through ambassadors 
Curtis Bates, a singer-songwriter 
from Detroit, and Hailey Callahan of 

Rochester, an artist/sculpturist and 
graduate from Detroit-based College 
of Creative Studies (CCS), who tell the 
story through their own unique artis-
tic expression. 
Callahan’s artistic medium inspired 
her to recreate a train car out of 
stained glass to tell the story of how 
the trains were used to transport Jews 
to German death camps. Bates’ musi-
cal medium inspired him to write two 
rap songs in the film that help illus-
trate general themes of the Holocaust 
and, at the same time, generate inter-
est with the younger generation.
The film made its debut on DPTV/
PBS on Nov. 18, with a second airing 
on Dec. 12.
Highlights from the film festival 
circuit include being an Official 
Selection for the LA Documentary 
Film Festival, Miami Jewish Film 
Festival, Santa Monica International 
Film Festival, Austin Lift-Off Film 
Festival and Malibu Film Festival. It 
also received an Honorable Mention 
from the Tokyo International Short 
Film Festival.
In New York City on March 20, 

Filmmaker Keith 
Famie’s fi
 lm is 
connecting with 
audiences and 
students.

Filmmaker Keith 
Filmmaker Keith 

Shoah Ambassadors 
Nominated for Four 
Michigan Emmys

DANNY SCHWARTZ 
STAFF WRITER

ARTS&LIFE
FILM

Director Keith Famie (center),
Holocaust survivor Rene Lichtman (right)
and directors of the SR Socially Relevant
Film Festival New York (left)

Shoah Ambassadors was honored with the 
award of Jury Special Mention at the SR 
Socially Relevant Film Festival New York.

A still from the documentary of 
Holocaust survivor Irene Miller and 
ambassador Hailey Callahan

PHOTOS COURTESY OF KEITH FAMIE

