Emerging from the Shadows: Rediscovering the Legacies of Weinberg & Korngold Named Official Selection of the Newport Beach Film Festival
Acclaimed music documentary directed by Veronika Emily Pohl will screen October 18, spotlighting celebrated cellist Kristina Reiko Cooper and GRAMMY®-nominated conductor Constantine Orbelian
Emerging from the Shadows: Rediscovering the Legacies of Weinberg & Korngold, the acclaimed documentary from U.S.-German filmmaker Veronika Emily Pohl, has been named an Official Selection of the Newport Beach Film Festival. The film will screen on October 18, 2026 as part of the festival’s 2026 program.
Produced by Bernhard Fleischer Moving Images GmbH (BFMI), Emerging from the Shadows illuminates the extraordinary artistic legacies of two historically under-recognized composers whose lives were irrevocably shaped by displacement, persecution, survival, and artistic reinvention: Mieczysław Weinberg and Erich Wolfgang Korngold.
The film follows world-renowned cellist Kristina Reiko Cooper and four-time GRAMMY®-nominated conductor Constantine Orbelian as they join the Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra in Lithuania for a deeply affecting program of works by Weinberg and Korngold. Blending concert performance, archival storytelling, personal reflection, and historical context, the documentary brings renewed attention to music that speaks across generations.
The featured repertoire includes Weinberg’s Cello Concerto in C minor, Op. 43 and Fantasy for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 52, as well as Korngold’s Cello Concerto in C Major, Op. 37. Korngold’s concerto reflects the composer’s artistic return to his Viennese roots following his celebrated career in Hollywood, where he won two Academy Awards® for Best Original Score and helped define the emotional, symphonic language of early film music.
Though their paths unfolded differently, Weinberg and Korngold shared a Jewish heritage and endured the devastating consequences of World War II. Weinberg escaped to Moscow after his family was murdered in the Holocaust, while Korngold fled Vienna and found refuge in the United States, ultimately transforming the sound of Hollywood through his sweeping, operatic musical voice. Their stories, and the music they created in the wake of exile, form the emotional core of Emerging from the Shadows.
“To perform this music is to enter a conversation with history,” says Cooper. “Weinberg and Korngold each transformed personal and collective tragedy into work of remarkable beauty, intimacy, and strength. I am honored that Emerging from the Shadows will screen at the Newport Beach Film Festival, where their stories can resonate beyond the concert hall and remind us that music has the power to preserve memory and create connection.”
Pohl, whose music-centered documentary work includes projects for ZDF/Arte, SONY Classical, and Deutsche Grammophon, describes the project as “a journey through artistry, history, and identity—honoring two composers whose voices refused to vanish.”
“Music has a profound ability to connect and heal. I hope this film can foster understanding, and allow for human connection in the here and now,” comments Pohl.
As Emerging from the Shadows: Rediscovering the Legacies of Weinberg & Korngold continues its awards-season campaign, the film is being positioned for consideration by industry organizations, including the Critics Choice Association, Realscreen Awards, and the GRAMMY® Awards. The recognition underscores the documentary’s distinctive fusion of cinematic storytelling, world-class musical performance, and a timely examination of artistic legacy, cultural memory, and resilience.
The documentary’s Newport Beach Film Festival selection follows a growing international profile for the project, including its Eastern European festival debut at the 7th edition of Music Dance Screenings Film Festival Consonance in Tbilisi, Georgia, being shortlisted for the Screen International Global Production Awards at Cannes, and an industry screening at the Directors Guild of America Theater in New York earlier this year. It has since received multiple awards and growing critical recognition.
Notably, critic Jeffrey Lyons described it on Lyons Den Radio as “a beautiful documentary about two great composers of classical music forced to flee Hitler,” adding that “even if you’re not a fan of classical music, Emerging from the Shadows is a treat for your ears.”
The companion album, Hidden Legacies, featuring Cooper and Orbelian with the Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra performing the film’s repertoire, was released by Delos.
Screening Information:
Film: Emerging from the Shadows: Rediscovering the Legacies of Weinberg & Korngold
Festival: Newport Beach Film Festival
Where: Triangle, Screen 3 | 1870 Harbor Blvd., Costa Mesa, Ca 92627
When: October 18, 2026, 3:30 PM PDT
Ticket link: https://nbff2026.eventive.org/schedule/6aa2f6e5b59d6eb75f0f6c4b
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