The Children of San Simon

Israel 2024, 73 min, Hebrew, Hebrew & English subtitles

Sima Shimony, age 69, embarks on a mission to find her friends and staff from the “ALYN” Institute for Children with Disabilities, that was situated in the secluded San-Simon monastery in Jerusalem, during the 1960s. Armed with a small camera attached to her wheelchair, she sets off on a journey across the country together with her friend Pini Newirth, also a polio child, to unfold and reclaim the story of the children affected by the Polio epidemic. In a futile attempt to rebuild their bodies so they could walk, the children were subjected to excruciating medical procedures with no parents or family at their side. But growing up together forged a group of remarkable, self-driven women and men with disabilities who eventually launched the Disability-Rights movement in Israel.

Against all Odds Beyond the Screen Competition Israeli Official Website