Big Sonia

Big Sonia, winner multiple Audience and Jury awards across the country and internationally, packs such a powerful punch it will transform the way you look at the world.Husband and wife filmmaking team, Todd Soliday and Leah Warshawski, have a synergy that translates directly onto the screen.

The making of Big Sonia is almost as profound as the movie itself. What began as an idea to create a colorful short about Director/Producer Leah Warshawski's 87-year-old (now 92) grandmother, a Holocaust survivor and unlikely fashion diva whose popular tailor shop was the only store still operating in a decrepit Kansas City mall.

While this is certainly story enough, when they arrived to begin filming, Leah and Todd discover that Grandma Sonia isn't simply a pint size octogenarian tearing into her daily illegal parking space, thick red lipstick and highly stylized hair barely peering over the leopard-wrapped steering wheel. This woman is all that and a courageous force whose public speaking tours are changing the lives of everyone she meets, from middle school students to prisoners at the state penitentiary.

Intuitively, the filmmakers expanded the short into a full-length feature, a movie that beautifully braids layers of loss and redemption with the story themes. Soliday's film editing is masterful.

Every bit of the story line resonates: Sonia's eviction notice from the mall threatening to close the tailor shop; adult prisoners and public school students visibly affected by Sonia's story; a difficult history uniquely recreated with creative (and sensitive) animation by artist, Rachel Ignotofsky and Dawn Norton; the impact of Sonia's experience on the lives of her grown children; and, of course, the wild ride that is Sonia herself, from holding court at the tailor shop to sharing the remnants of her mother's scarf with shaking hands, cutting flowers and choosing her lavish outfits.

Each thread strengthens the overall film, working together to create something greater than the individual parts, resulting in an experience so profound and beautiful that, by the end, you are stunned. Everything has somehow shifted, especially your worldview, and each tiny thing is now visible through a new lens. If you care about good storytelling, see this movie; prepare to be moved.

This is one of the best films of 2017, and it is absolutely necessary for the times we live in. "Big Sonia" is the antidote to hatred and intolerance, to prejudice born of ignorance. At the end of the day, we are all people, regardless of the color of our skin, who we worship, who we choose to vote for, or who we kiss. This film makes you realize that the person sitting next to you on any given day may have a story that makes you think about who you are and what you believe.

I am sure the filmmakers did not intend to make a film that could bring people together and teach them about tolerance and forgiveness. The film starts out as the story of somebody's eccentric grandmother and then morphs into something more. Much, much more. I am not going to talk about the plot or the characters. All I want to do is encourage you to see the film, prepare to smile, and prepare to think. Recommend it to your family and your friends, and watch it with your kids. Show them that the real superheroes in our world are actually living on any street in Anytown, USA, or simply working at the mall.

This is a heartwarming story of a young Holocaust survivor, her story and her eventual family.

A 14-year-old girl is caught in the Holocaust, survived multiple concentration camps and their horrors and eventually survived. She marries a fellow survivor, moves to the U.S. and raises a family. This is her story and that of her family.

While the period in Europe is discussed, it is not graphic and can be suitable for school age children although there is no doubt that this is something they will not forget.

They move to Kansas City where they operate a tailor shop and attempt to live a normal American life. Of course, their family is not normal, and never can be, given what the parents have lived through and the absence of an extended family.

I have a similar background personally so I could readily relate to the situation. My parents background, and those of myself and my brothers, is not all that much different than that in the move.

In the end, Sonia and her husband survived and thrived through some of the most horrifying events of humanity.

I am very glad I saw the movie. The movie is quite appropriate for educational audiences and events such as Yom Hashoa commemoration programs that want to remember the horrors of that period.

While her story is not uncommon for Holocaust survivors, the movie does an excellent job of saving this story for history when the last survivors is no longer with us.

My congratulations to the people behind this valiant effort and the story they leave behind.

Being from Kansas City I always love to support a "hometown" hero. But this is SO MUCH MORE than just supporting a local women with a tremendous story and her loving family who has documented her story.

Sonia, a holocaust survivor. She literally grew up in hell. Imagine the worst, but make it even worst. Her stories are heart wrenching. But she is larger than life and her heart is filled with so much love and positivity. She has no tolerance for hatred. This movie is strong reminder to all of "don't carry hate" and to LOVE. This documentary has so many life lessons.

The difficult parts of the movie are when Sonia tells her memories of her childhood at the concentration camps. The director opted to illustrate those memories which made it a little more tolerable to "see". Sonia's words though, paint the picture. I took my 11 yr old and it was age appropriate and started some great conversations with her. Not only about the childhood Sonia suffered, but about the LOVE that needs to be in this world.

Be prepared to laugh, cry, gasp and reflect. We need more Sonia's in this crazy world we live in.

Greetings again from the darkness. Some people anxiously await the day they can retire and spend their days fishing or reading, while others put it off as long as possible since they find their identity through work. The diminutive subject of this terrific documentary is 91 year old Sonia Warshawski. Her reasons for maintaining a 6 day work week are both heart-warming and chilling, and make for a fascinating story.

Filmmakers Todd Soliday and Leah Warshawski (Sonia's granddaughter) do their part in allowing the charming and fiery lady to deliver her own message and recount the horrors of her childhood. Sonia is a Holocaust survivor. As a 13 year old in 1939 Poland, she and her family were taken. She never again saw her father or brother, took multiple beatings while being shuffled through 3 death camps (including Auschwitz and Bergen-Belsen), and ultimately watched her mother led into the gas chamber. In her own words, she says she "was in hell", and it's "a miracle" she made it out.

You might assume that anyone who has experienced so much pain would be bitter and cynical, but that's not Sonia's way. In addition to running her tailor shop for 35 years, she is also an inspirational speaker at churches, schools and prisons. We get to see her in these presentations and we are struck by how her words carry such weight with the audiences – young and old. One of the convicts provides insight when he states, "It takes people who've been through something to reach those going through something". We also witness the way she connects with teenage students … something most of us have little success with.

Of course, Sonia has embraced her story, but the emotions and pain are never far from her. She stays busy to keep the memories at bay, and finds the idea of retirement somewhat frightening. We meet her 3 children and hear stories of their childhood and her husband John, also a Holocaust survivor. John died from Alzheimer's complications, but he is remembered fondly by all. It's so touching to watch as Sonia shows us her mother's 75 year old scarf which she keeps under her pillow, and we are mesmerized as she recounts the incredible story of her liberation day.

An NPR radio interview provides some structure throughout, but it's not necessary as we would follow Sonia wherever she leads. It's so much fun to watch her Overland Park customers greet her in the now- defunct shopping mall, and it's downright hilarious as she sports her favorite animal prints on her coat, shoes and purse … and even the cover on the steering wheel that she can barely see over! Mostly this is a life lesson from a master who teaches us "don't carry hate" … even though she admits to being unable to forgive. She leaves that to a higher power. She is the best example we could have for keeping history alive and spreading love and goodness.