In this video, Michael Kutz describes how he learned about the Canadian government's War Orphans program while he was living in the Grugliasco displaced persons camp. Michael arrived in Canada and arrived in Winnipeg in 1948. Source: Montreal Holocaust Museum, 1994
[00:00-00:06]
Video begins with inter-title in white text on black screen while instrumental music plays and fades into the next frame: Michael Kutz learned about Canada's War Orphans Project in 1948 while living in the Grugliasco Displaced Persons Camp near Turin (Italy).
[00:07-00:40]
Cut to Holocaust survivor Michael Kutz, sitting in front of a black background, and looking to the left of the camera. The camera shows his face and shoulders as he speaks during an interview conducted in Montreal in 1994.
>> Michael Kutz: In Grugliasco, we were gonna go, part of a group were going to go on the ship Exodus, you must be aware.
[00:14-00:20]
The name “Michael Kutz” and the location of the filmed interview, “Montreal”, appear in white text above Michael's left shoulder.
>> Once the British intelligence service had discovered that the ship was supposed to leave Italy, they diverted the Jewish Aliyah, the Bricha that shipped to a French port, the Port-de-Bouc, from France and they left from there. While they were intercepted, they were sent to Cyprus or to Hamburg, etc, and I remained in Italy. And I couldn't go into Palestine, whatsoever, we just couldn't.
[00:41-00:47]
Cut to sepia-tone photograph of young man with dark hair standing against a wall and looking away towards the right of the camera. The photo caption appears in white text on the left-hand side of the frame, “Michael Kutz, Turin, 1947”.
>> At that time in Italy, in Turino, Grugliasco, the camp, they announced that the Canadian government…
[00:48-01:28]
Cut to Michael Kutz in front of the camera.
>> …in conjunction with the Canadian Jewish Congress would allow to take in 500 Jewish orphans after the war. And I was one among them. Papers were given to me in Milano, and we left beginning of February 1948, on the Greek ship Nea Hellas from Genova, Italy, into Halifax. In Halifax we were intercepted by the Canadian government and the late Alastair Stewart.
[01:32-01:37]
Cut to black-and-white photograph of a large group of approximately 50 young adults in four rows. The photo caption appears in white text in the top right, “War orphans, Winnipeg, 1948”.
>> And they divided us into groups: Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg, Vancouver, and Calgary. I was designated to Winnipeg.
[01:38-01:52]
Cut to Michael Kutz in front of the camera.
>> In Winnipeg, I stayed more than a year. And I had a lot of my friends in Montreal and Toronto, so I decided after a year to come back to Montreal. And here I am.
[01:52-01:59]
Music plays for the remainder of the video. Three credit pages appear in white text on black screen: Interview conducted by Gerry Singer, Witness to History Program, Montreal, 1994, Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre
Images: Courtesy of the Azrieli Foundation; Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada
Directing: Helgi Piccinin and Colorization; Editing: Michaël Gravel, Helgi Piccinin; Audio Mix and Original Music: Pierre-Luc Lecours. [Logo for Chaire de recherche du Canada en patrimoine ethnologique]
Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre, copyright 2017.
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End of transcript.