2026 Filmmaker in Residence
Family Pictures (working title) is an intimate documentary following four generations of an Israeli-American family that has endured unspeakable loss yet insists on holding on to hope. It echoes a century of Jewish upheaval, from a pogrom in 1919 Ukraine that killed Zissel Malcha, the family’s matriarch, to the Hamas attack of October 7th, in which Zissel’s great granddaughter, peace activist Deborah Troen Mathias, and her husband Shlomi were killed protecting their son. At the center stands Deborah’s father, historian Ilan Troen, whose life bridges past and future. Filmed by Deborah’s youngest brother, Abie, an award-winning director and DOP, the documentary weaves together memory, history, and present-day reality to ask: How does a family carry pain across generations without being consumed by it? How do we honor the dead while insisting on a future rooted in life; peace, justice and dignity?
Abraham “Abie” Troen is an award-winning documentary filmmaker. He’s lensed and led film projects across Israel, Kenya, India, the U.S. and Canada, with work for Netflix, BBC, ARTE, Vanity Fair, and more, screened at Tribeca, TIFF, SXSW, DOC NYC and IDFA. Abie studied film at the Sam Spiegel School in Jerusalem, earned a BA at Brandeis (Phi Beta Kappa) and an MFA from USC, where he received the Annenberg Fellowship. His films include Just Sing, Finding Home and ’Til Kingdom Come.
Project description and bios courtesy of the Resident