Valerie A. Landes is a three-time Emmy award-winning television producer.  She is a granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, and her relative Judy was among the people Maria Babar helped save.  Landes felt a responsibility to tell this courageous story and took on the challenge of filling the void of Holocaust-related media for elementary-age students. 

 

Based on a true story, "Hideaway" was originally written in 1995, and produced in 1996 as a university project.  The cast and crew were all students, volunteering their talents and time, including Landes' young cousin Diana, playing the role of their older relative, Judy.  Landes made conscious decisions to stray slightly from the true story, wanting to focus the film on one child's experience, connecting with children today. 

 

The film was distributed informally to classrooms until 2007, when Landes was awarded a grant from the Zisovich Award for Holocaust Education to update the project for educators and students.  The goal is to have "Hideaway" accessible and relevant to as many educators and students as possible.

 

Landes currently lives in Northern California, and is a Producer for Public Television.  She encourages feedback on this project.