Between Mountains and Wars

In Sarajevo, a city where Sephardic Jews sought refuge over 400 years ago, the Jewish community lives in coexistence alongside their Muslim, Catholic and Orthodox Christian neighbours. Ester Kaveson Debevec, Rifka Albahari Raus & Laura Papo Ostojic, three Sephardi-Bosnian women not only lived through the 90’s war in Bosnia but also survived the Holocaust. At the heart of the film is the women’s focal point of congregation; the Jewish community centre, situated in the only active synagogue in Bosnia & Herzegovina. Once making up 1/5th of the population in Sarajevo, the community now only exists in its hundreds. Ester, Rifka and Laura’s stories each present hope in times of utter tragedy and horror. Non Jewish neighbours and friends helped them survive the Second World War as children. Almost half a century later, the three women did their utmost to help their fellow Sarajevans survive the siege of their city regardless of one's ethnicity or faith.