Schindler's List facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Schindler's List
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Steven Spielberg
Produced by	Steven Spielberg Gerald R. Molen Branko Lustig
Screenplay by	Steven Zaillian
Starring	Liam Neeson Ben Kingsley Ralph Fiennes Caroline Goodall Jonathan Sagall Embeth Davidtz
Music by	John Williams
Cinematography	Janusz Kamiński
Editing by	Michael Kahn
Studio	Amblin Entertainment Universal Pictures
Distributed by	Universal Pictures
Release date(s)	November 30, 1993 (1993-11-30) (Washington, D.C.) December 15, 1993 (1993-12-15) (United States)
Running time	195 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$22 million
Money made	$322.2 million

Schindler's List is a 1993 American movie set in World War II, and directed by Steven Spielberg. It is based on Schindler's Ark, a 1982 book by Thomas Keneally. The movie and the book owe their names to the list of over a thousand Jews who worked in the title character's factory.

Ideas for a film about the Schindlerjuden (Schindler Jews) were proposed as early as 1963. Poldek Pfefferberg, one of the Schindlerjuden, made it his life's mission to tell Schindler's story. Spielberg became interested when executive Sidney Sheinberg sent him a book review of Schindler's Ark. Universal Pictures bought the rights to the novel, but Spielberg, unsure if he was ready to make a film about the Holocaust, tried to pass the project to several directors before deciding to direct it.

Principal photography took place in Kraków, Poland, over 72 days in 1993. Spielberg shot in black and white and approached the film as a documentary. Cinematographer Janusz Kamiński wanted to create a sense of timelessness. John Williams composed the score, and violinist Itzhak Perlman performed the main theme.

Schindler's List premiered on November 30, 1993, in Washington, D.C., and was released on December 15, 1993, in the United States. Often listed among the greatest films ever made, the film received universal acclaim for its tone, acting (particularly Neeson, Fiennes, and Kingsley), atmosphere, score, cinematography, and Spielberg's direction; it was also a box office success, earning $322 million worldwide on a $22 million budget. It was nominated for twelve awards at the 66th Academy Awards, and won seven, including Best Picture, Best Director (for Spielberg), Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Original Score. The film won numerous other awards, including seven BAFTAs and three Golden Globe Awards. In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked Schindler's List 8th on its list of the 100 best American films of all time. The film was designated as "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress in 2004 and selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.

Following the success of the film, Spielberg founded the Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation, a nonprofit organization with the goal of providing an archive for the filmed testimony of as many survivors of the Holocaust as possible, to save their stories. He continues to finance that work. Spielberg used proceeds from the film to finance several related documentaries, including Anne Frank Remembered (1995), The Lost Children of Berlin (1996), and The Last Days (1998).

Plot

In Kraków during World War II, the Nazis force local Polish Jews into the overcrowded Kraków Ghetto. Oskar Schindler, a German Nazi Party member from Czechoslovakia, arrives in the city, hoping to make his fortune. He bribes Wehrmacht (German armed forces) and SS officials, acquiring a factory to produce enamelware. Schindler hires Itzhak Stern, a Jewish official with contacts among black marketeers and the Jewish business community; he handles administration and helps Schindler arrange financing. Stern ensures that as many Jewish workers as possible are deemed essential to the German war effort to prevent them from being taken by the SS to concentration camps or killed.

Cast

Accolades

Spielberg won the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film for his work, and shared the Producers Guild of America Award for Best Theatrical Motion Picture with co-producers Branko Lustig and Gerald R. Molen. Steven Zaillian won the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. The film also won the National Board of Review for Best Film, along with the National Society of Film Critics for Best Film, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Cinematography. Awards from the New York Film Critics Circle were also won for Best Film, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Cinematographer. The Los Angeles Film Critics Association awarded the film for Best Film, Best Cinematography (tied with The Piano), and Best Production Design. The film also won numerous other awards and nominations worldwide.

Images for kids

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  Liam Neeson plays Oskar Schindler in the film.

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  The liquidation of the Kraków Ghetto in March 1943 is the subject of a 15-minute segment of the film.

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  Schindler sees a girl in red during the liquidation of the Kraków ghetto. The red coat is one of the few instances of color used in this predominantly black and white film.

See also

In Spanish: La lista de Schindler para niños