Zuflucht in Shanghai & Besuch aus China

Refuge in Shanghai & A Visit from China

Refuge in Shanghai
AT/US 1998, 75 min, English/German with German & English subtitles
Directors/Screenplay: Joan Grossman, Paul Rosdy
Cast: Fred Fields, Siegmar Simon, Ernest Heppner

A Visit from China
AT 2024, 74 min, English/German with German & English subtitles
Director/Screenplay/Editing: Paul Rosdy
Cinematography: Wolfram Wuinovic
Cast: Christina Adler, Fang Sheng

Between 1938 and 1941, approximately 20,000 Jews fled to Shanghai and spent nearly a decade in exile there. After the outbreak of war in Asia, Shanghai came under Japanese rule and the Jewish refugees were relocated to ghettos.
One of these refugees was Viennese violinist Ferdinand Adler, who taught violin in Shanghai — including to the young Mingliang Sheng.

Decades later, director Paul Rosdy documented the meeting of the two musicians’ now-adult children — Christina and Fang.
With sensitivity and the use of compelling archival material, Rosdy’s film brings historical and personal connections to light, offering a rare perspective on Jewish exile through a Chinese lens.