Real-life Holocaust survivors star in Scarlett Johansson's directorial debut 'Eleanor the Great'

(JTA) - When Rita Zohar stepped into the role of Bessie Stern, a Holocaust survivor whose death sets in motion Scarlett Johansson's new film "Eleanor the Great," she wasn't simply acting.

Zohar, 81, is a childhood survivor of the Holocaust. She was also drawing on her lived experience of loss and resilience to bring life to her character.

"This role in this movie has given me a voice," Zohar told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. "Even though this is not my story, this is not what happened to me or my family, but still, by being able to verbalize it, I connected to Bessie, and I became Bessie in...