Moderator Annette Insdorf hosts an online conversation with the creator and cast of Transatlantic, the 7-part limited series premiering April 7 on Netflix. Set in 1940-1941 and shot entirely on location in Marseille, France, it’s based on Julie Orringer’s novel about the Emergency Rescue Committee, The Flight Portfolio, which was inspired by the real-life adventures of Varian Fry (Cory Michael Smith, Gotham), Mary Jayne Gold (Gillian Jacobs, Community) and Albert Hirschman (Lucas Englander, The Witcher). The Creator/Showrunner Anna Winger – who also created the Netflix series Unorthodox (2020) – will join cast members Gillian Jacobs, Cory Michael Smith, Lucas Englander, Deleila Piasko, and Corey Stoll.
In Nazi-occupied France, ERC members risked their lives to save over 2000 refugees from the Nazis during World War II. Among the targets were some of Europe’s leading artists and thinkers, including Hannah Arendt, Marcel Duchamp, and Marc Chagall. The young ERC heroes forged an escape route across the Pyrenees while protecting many victims at the Villa Air-Bel. Despite the backdrop of danger and suspense, Transatlantic is filled with humor – in what Winger called a “screwball melodrama.”
Registrants can watch Episode 1 – written by Anna Winger and Daniel Hendler, directed by Stéphanie Chuat and Véronique Reymond – on Netflix beginning April 7.