Jewish Philly Filmmaker to Show Documentary on Black and Jewish Relations at the Weitzman

Andrew Guckes | Staff Writer

Ilana Trachtman is an Emmy award-winning filmmaker, Center City resident and Temple Beth Zion-Beth Israel member. On Feb. 6 at the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History, she will premiere her new documentary, “Ain’t No Back to a Merry-Go-Round,” which focuses on the first time during the Civil Rights Movement that a white community organized to join and support Black protesters. That community was predominantly Jewish.

“There’s an unwritten pact between the filmmaker and the audience when something is billed as a documentary, and that is that the audience is going to learn about something that really happened in the way that it happened by the people that were involved with it,” she said. “The filmmaker has a responsibility to uphold their end of the bargain by telling the truth, and that means both in visuals and in sound effects and in all oral matters.”

The documentary tells the story of the 1960 protest held at Glen Echo Amusement Park outside of Washington, D.C., which was an important milestone in the fight for equality. The peaceful demonstration included Black Americans, Jewish Americans and white Americans. It drew national media attention at the time.

The film features archival footage and narration by Emmy, Tony and Golden Globe-winning actor Jeffery Wright, as well as appearances by Mandy Patinkin, Dominique Thorne and others.

Trachtman has told countless stories over the years from behind the camera, but this one is special to her because she’s from from Washington, D.C. She has a particular connection to the amusement park, the primary setting of the documentary.

“As a child, we often went there and it was a beloved destination. It had this wholesome, old-time feel about it, and I loved looking at the photographs from the olden days. There was even one picture of [World War I or II] sailors swinging their girlfriends in the air in front of the carousel. It just seemed incredibly evocative of this Normal Rockwell-esque time in America,” she said.

But when she visited as an adult, Trachtman learned more and felt different.

“I went to the park with my then-fiancé, and we ran into a park ranger. He told us the story of the park. First, it was whites only, and then it became integrated. I was so dumbfounded. I was shocked that the park had been whites only, and that this symbol of iconic, wholesome Washington was actually documented racism,” she said.

The revelation was what led her to pursue the initial steps of the documentary.

“I’ve been looking at [the photos] all those years and never once noticed that everyone was white. That means that entire communities are barred from entry,” she said. “When [the ranger] told us about how the park was integrated and the communities that essentially collaborated in order to make this protest successful, I was really drawn to the story.”

While the documentary won Best Documentary Feature at the 2024 DC Black Film Festival and will hit dozens of cities on the film festival circuit, the screening at the Weitzman is special, Trachtman said.

“It’s been great having the film travel and be out there in the world, but I am so glad it is finally [being shown] in Philadelphia,” she said. “This is where I live. This is my community. This is where my roots are and I am thrilled to be able to share it here.”

The process of creating this film was intensive, Trachtman said. She consulted focus groups to make sure her message was complete, accurate and balanced. What she learned was that we are strongest when we are one.

“The crew was very diverse, and my editor, who is my biggest collaborator, is African American,” she said. “If the film is any good at all, it’s because the two of us worked together and [from] the perspective that we both brought in. It’s a product of the two of us, and I think that’s why it feels like a portrait that’s authentic.”

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